Whether it’s the white water rapids of its many rivers and creeks, the untouched wilderness of the state’s national forests or the rugged peaks of the Rocky Mountains, the call of Colorado’s wild outdoors is inescapable to many.
But with the millions of people exploring Colorado’s outdoors every year also comes a large number of accidents in the wilderness. The Colorado Search and Rescue Association estimates there are about 3,000 search and rescue incidents annually in the state and about 40,000 search and rescue volunteer hours logged.
This year’s incidents so far show even seasoned outdoorspoeple can be killed in accidents, and unprepared newcomers or people driving through the high country can also be faced with challenges or extreme conditions.
From thousands of search hours to national park closures and unique rescues, these are 10 incidents this year that required the most effort from search and rescue teams.
Two men stranded in Pike National Forest for 21 hours rescued by National Guard helicopter
Two men were stranded overnight in their car during a snowstorm in the Pike National Forest for 21 hours on May 11 before being rescued by a Colorado Army National Guard helicopter team.
A third man in the vehicle was rescued by a Douglas County deputy before snow conditions worsened and several trees toppled onto the roadway. Crews worked overnight to try and cut the fallen trees with chainsaws before the National Guard was called and flew in to rescue the men the next day.
Lost snowmobiler rescued from Vail Pass by helicopter
A lost snowmobiler on Vail Pass who later said he was not prepared for self-navigating was rescued May 14 after a search involving the Eagle and Summit counties sheriff’s offices, Colorado Search and Rescue, Colorado’s State Search and Rescue Coordinator Resource, Summit County Rescue Group and a Flight for Life helicopter.
Two other snowmobilers in the area were also given his last location and sent into the field from Vail Pass to search for him.
The helicopter and a rescue team eventually found and lifted him back to safety.
Dog saved from 14er during 8-hour Fourth of July weekend rescue
A seven-member volunteer team of rescuers from Alpine Rescue Team on July 2 spent eight hours rescuing a dog from the sheer east-facing side of Torreys Peak. The dog’s owners called for rescuers after she fell 600 feet over the side of the mountain, and 26 people responded to their call.
A rescuer descended about 30 feet to rescue the dog, and the team saved her using a bag as a makeshift harness.
CPW river ranger makes three round-trip Arkansas river crossings to save stranded rafters
A Colorado Parks and Wildlife river ranger traversed the Arkansas River in Brown’s Canyon three times overnight July 6 to save three rafters who had become stranded on the canyon’s sheer side.
Two Chaffee County Search and Rescue North team members and a team from Chaffee County SAR South assisted ranger Jeff Hammond in the daunting rescue that sent him bushwhacking through brush to the water’s edge in the darkness, kayaking across the river and back twice, then crossing the river a third time to rescue the rafters.
Aspen man’s body recovered after two-day search, rescue and recovery effort
A hiker reported missing from work July 30 was found dead in Conundrum Couloir during search and rescue efforts, and it took two days to recover his body due to weather conditions.
Mountain Rescue Aspen and the Pitkin County Sheriff’s Office began the search for the man, and when the team climbed up the couloir, they found the hiker’s body wedged into the skier’s lift against the rock face and mostly covered by snow.
Mountain Rescue Aspen wasn’t able to attempt recovery that day due to weather and had to return two days later on Aug. 2 for the hiker’s body.
Hiker found dead two months after going missing; his dog found alive with his body
Local, state and national search and rescue teams spent nearly 2,000 cumulative hours searching for a Pagosa Springs hiker and his dog who went missing in August before a hunter found the hiker’s body and the dog alive in late October.
Rich Moore, 71, was reported missing Aug. 19 in the area of Blackhead Peak approximately 18 miles east of Pagosa Springs. A hunter on Oct. 30 reported to the Archuleta County Sheriff’s Office he saw the hiker and a white dog in the lower Blanco River drainage basin.
On Oct. 31, a team flew in to recover Moore’s body and rescue Finney, the dog who stayed with her owner for more than ten weeks and who has regained her strength after losing half her body weight.
Driver gets vehicle stuck on hiking trail on 14er
A driver who apparently didn’t realize he was on a hiking trail, not a road, got his pickup truck stuck above 10,000 feet elevation on Mount Lincoln in Park County on Aug. 27, and it took several days for crews to recover the truck.
The nonprofit group Colorado 4×4 Rescue and Recovery said it spent 132 volunteer hours, and team members drove a total of 1,480 miles during its unsuccessful attempt to recover the GMC Canyon. Towing company Mountain Recovery eventually got the truck down the mountain.
Man last heard from Sept. 27 in Rocky Mountain National Park still missing
Rocky Mountain National Park officials announced Oct. 12 that broad-scale search efforts for Chad Pallansch, a 46-year-old Fort Collins man, had been suspended. The search involved closing a large area that was reopened after federal, state and local search and rescue crews unsuccessfully combed the area.
Pallansch was reported missing in the park Sept. 28 after last being heard from the previous day when he was near the summit of Mount Alice, according to park officials. Park rangers found his car still parked at the North Inlet Trailhead near Grand Lake, where he started his planned 28-mile trek.
A GoFundMe started for Pallansch’s family states efforts to find him will likely not resume until late next summer.
Hiker with no food, water or cold-weather gear saved from Colorado 13er after 10-hour rescue
An ill-prepared hiker who attempted to bushwhack to the summit of a 13er in Chaffee County on Nov. 8 was located and brought down safely by Chaffee County Search and Rescue North after nearly 10 hours.
The person had been caught in inclement weather and was hypothermic when found by search and rescue.
The hiker contacted 911 about 7 p.m., and a rescue team found them about 2 a.m. After warming the individual up for three hours, the team began extracting them around 5 a.m. They were being evaluated in an ambulance by 7 a.m.
Chicago family rescued from Greenhorn Mountain in southern Colorado
A Pueblo County Search and Rescue team was flown by Flight for Life to the top of North Peak to rescue a family of five visiting from Chicago who were stuck on Greenhorn Mountain on Nov. 22.
The family of three adults and two children set out from the Greenhorn Trailhead, which has 3,880 feet of elevation gain.
The rescue team hiked with the family a mile over the peak, where they were joined by county and local fire personnel, and then hiked to Ophir Creek, where emergency vehicles were waiting for them. The rescue took about seven hours.
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