2 college students found dead in Colorado fell a ‘substantial distance’

The two Colorado college students found dead after going missing during a hiking trip in the Rocky Mountains last week were rappelling and fell a “substantial distance” when a rock they were anchored to likely gave way, authorities said.

Kaden Matsuda, 19, and Jackson Donlon, 20, died instantly from multiple blunt force injuries, an autopsy found, according to the Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office and coroner’s office.

Their bodies were found in a snow-filled basin of West Apostle Mountain, about 160 kilometres southeast of Aspen.

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“The investigation showed that Jackson was beginning to rappel from a primary anchor point on a rock substrate. That anchor appears to have been backed up by a piton and a secondary anchor made of rock substrate,” police said in a press release.

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“Kaden was attached via his personal anchor device to the same anchor points as well as the primary anchor point. The anchor had a catastrophic failure of unknown cause,” the press release added.

“Both then fell a substantial distance (exact distance unknown). It is unknown if the heavy snowstorm had a negative impact leading to the incident, but it did not play a direct contributing factor in their death,” according to police.

Chaffee County Sheriff Andy Rohrich said that Matsuda and Donlon “lived life at the highest peaks chasing freedoms and panoramic views that most of us only see in pictures.”

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“While their lives were far too short, they spent their final moments together surrounded by the majestic beauty of Chaffee County’s high peaks that they loved. There is also relief knowing neither of them suffered,” Rohrich added in a statement.

Rohrich said that Matsuda and Donlon will be remembered as “an example to others of what preparation looks like.”

“In most similar cases that have led to a devastating conclusion we find it easy to pick apart what was done wrong. That was not the case with Kaden and Jackson,” Rohrich said.

“There are no right words to family and friends for a loss this heavy. Know that whenever we explore our backcountry in the future we will think of them as young men who didn’t just look at the world; they climbed it. May they rest in peace,” Rohrich’s statement concluded.

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Matsuda and Donlon’s bodies were found “near each other” at 3:30 p.m. local time on Oct. 28 “in a basin of West Apostle Mountain in Chaffee County,” according to police.

The students left the Colorado Mountain College Leadville Campus for the hike on Oct. 23 and were reported missing around 10 a.m. local time on Oct. 26 by college staff after they didn’t return to campus, the Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office previously said.

Police said that Matsuda and Donlon were both experienced hikers and sent their friends a text with a map plot that pinpointed Ice Mountain as their destination.

“Kaden and Jackson’s dorms were searched, and their climbing equipment was not found,” police revealed. “The equipment was not located in their vehicle at the trailhead nor in their tent, which suggests they were prepared for a more technical climb when they left their tent.”

Police described Ice Mountain as “a very technical climb” and recommended that hikers be “very experienced when trying to tackle it.”

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Approximately 50 searchers continued their search for the missing hikers on Oct. 27 from multiple teams including Teller County, Lake County, Chaffee County, Arapaho County and Park County.

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“Dogs and arial searchers were used and shortly after 12:00PM a helicopter spotted an object near Lake Ann. A search team was sent in on foot to this area and discovered that the object was the hiker’s tent that had collapsed under the weight of the snow,” police said in an update on Oct. 27.

“There was no snow under the tent and there were no visible footprints in the snow which suggested, again, this was all in place before the snow came in. Their sleeping bags, a stove and some clothing were inside the tent, but Kaden and Jackson were not located,” police added.

In another update on Oct. 28 following the dayslong search, police said, “It is with profound sadness that we report Kaden Matsuda (age 19) and Jackson Donlon (age 20) were located deceased at about 3:30PM today (10-28-26) in a basin of West Apostle Mountain in Chaffee County.”

On Thursday, the Colorado Mountain College (CMC) said it is “mourning the loss of Kaden Matsuda, 19, and Jackson Donlon, 20, two students at CMC Leadville who died during a mountain trip in Chaffee County.”

Colorado Mountain College, which has campuses throughout the Colorado Rockies, is known for its programs focusing on the state’s robust outdoor recreation economy, including mountaineering, ski patrol and guiding careers.

Matsuda was studying to be a wildland firefighter. Donlon, an avid climber and skier, was studying outdoor recreation leadership and had come to Colorado to pursue his love of the mountains.

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—With files from The Associated Press

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