Updated at 9:27 p.m. on Wednesday October 28, 2026.
The two missing hikers were found dead around 3:30 p.m., according to the Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office. Their bodies were found next to each other in a pool on West Apostle Mountain in the county. Authorities say no foul play is suspected, but an autopsy and investigation will be conducted.
“We are heartbroken for the family and friends of Kaden and Jackson. We are very proud of our team’s efforts to find them before the coming storm this weekend. Although this is a gut punch, our prayers have been answered that we will find Kaden and Jackson, allowing some closure for the family,” Sheriff Andy Rohrich said in a social media post.
Our original story continues below.
An air and ground search is underway for two Leadville University students who went missing after leaving campus to go hiking late last week.
According to the Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office, Kaden Matsuda, 19, and Jackson Donlon, 20, left the Colorado Mountain College campus in Leadville on Friday to go hiking in Chaffee County and have not been heard from since. Both are students at the school.
Family and friends told the sheriff’s office that the students planned to hike Ice Mountain, located near Collegiate Peaks, northwest of Buena Vista. They were scheduled to return home Saturday or Sunday, depending on whether they felt safe enough to continue their planned hike.
They also sent their friends a map of their destination as Ice Mountain and the Mount Huron trailhead near Winfield were surrounded, according to the sheriff’s office.
They were reported missing Monday morning when they had not returned.
Sheriff’s deputies said they found Matsuda’s vehicle near the trailhead, where there was about 8 inches of snow on the ground. Search teams also found the hikers’ tent near Lake Ann, which is along the route. The tent contained sleeping bags, a stove and clothes.
According to the sheriff’s office, it rained on and off throughout the weekend and snowed heavily on Saturday.
“Ice Mountain is a very technical climb, and hikers are recommended to be very experienced when attempting to tackle it,” the sheriff’s office said in a Facebook post. “That’s when it’s dry. Although there was only about eight inches of snow around Kaden’s vehicle and in the lower basin, Ice Mountain received one to two feet of snow.”
The students’ families said Matsuda and Donlon were experienced hikers and likely would have had appropriate clothing and equipment for the hike.
Chaffee County Search and Rescue teams used helicopters, infrared planes, drones and dogs to search for Matsuda and Donlon, but were unable to find them.
Source: Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office
“Unfortunately, we still have not located Kaden and Jackson, and our hearts go out to their families. It’s unimaginable what they must be going through,” Chaffee County Sheriff Andy Rohrich said in the post. “We are still optimistic that Kaden and Jackson are holed up somewhere awaiting rescue. Our window of opportunity is closing as bad weather is expected again later this week, so we are putting all of our available resources on the ground.
“We are also considering other potential destinations they could have headed to, other than Ice Mountain. They are both strong young men. Kaden is studying to become a wildland firefighter and Jackson is studying to become a “Mountainair” mountain guide, so hope is not lost. Please keep the families in your thoughts as we continue our search.”
Matsuda is from Ridgway and Donlon is from New York.
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