Search and rescue teams in Colorado recovered the bodies of two missing college students on Wednesday afternoon, October 28, 2026, after a multi-day operation in the Rocky Mountains. The Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that 19-year-old Kaden Matsuda of Ridgway, Colorado, and 20-year-old Jackson Donlon of New York were located in a high-elevation basin of West Apostle Mountain, approximately 100 miles southeast of Aspen. Both victims were enrolled at Colorado Mountain College’s Leadville campus, where Matsuda was studying to become a wildland firefighter and Donlon was training to become a mountain guide.
Authorities launched the search on Monday morning, October 26, after college staff reported the pair missing. According to the Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office, the students had departed from campus on Friday, October 23, informing family and friends of their intent to climb Ice Mountain, a nearly 14,000-foot peak located on the northern edge of Chaffee County that demands technical mountaineering skills.
Search Efforts and Evidence Discovered
The operation involved roughly 60 search and rescue volunteers deployed alongside specialized tracking dogs, drones, and helicopters. On Tuesday, October 27, an aerial search crew spotted a snow-collapsed tent near a lake northwest of Ice Mountain containing the hikers’ sleeping bags, a cooking stove, and personal clothing. Based on the position of the encampment, emergency officials determined the men had shifted their objective toward the neighboring 13,597-foot West Apostle Mountain.
Investigators noted that the students’ technical climbing equipment was absent from their dormitories, vehicle, and discovered tent, indicating they had embarked outward fully prepared for an advanced ascent. Trash recovered inside the tent confirmed the pair had eaten prior to beginning their final climb.
Investigation and Community Response
Chaffee County Sheriff Andy Rohrich stated that while the exact causes of death remain under active investigation, foul play is not suspected. Officials announced that no definitive theories regarding the sequence of events will be released until official autopsies are finalized.
“Our heart aches for Kaden and Jackson’s family and friends,” Sheriff Rohrich said in a public statement. “We are very proud of our team’s efforts to find them before this weekend’s coming storm. Although this is a gut punch, our prayers were answered that we would find Kaden and Jackson, allowing some closure for the family.” Emergency managers had rushed the search timeline due to severe weather forecasts predicting heavy snow and hazardous conditions across the mountain range beginning Friday.