Longs Peak cirque, Rocky Mountain National Park/NPS
A 23-year-old Colorado man who climbed Longs Peak in Rocky Mountain National Park last weekend apparently died in a fall while descending.
The body of Lucas Macaj, of Colorado Springs, was recovered Thursday on Mills Glacier near the base of Lamb’s Slide, a park release said. The initial investigation indicated he took “a significant fall.”
Rocky Mountain National Park rangers completed an on-scene investigation and recovery operations took place by helicopter. Macaj’s body was flown to a landing zone in the park and transferred to the Boulder County Coroner’s Office.
The young man was reported overdue late Sunday night after attempting to summit Longs Peak that day. He had set out from the Longs Peak Trailhead early Sunday to summit Longs Peak via the Keyhole Route. Macaj was last heard from at approximately 1 p.m. Sunday when he texted a friend indicating that he was on the mountain’s 14,259-foot-high summit. Significant storms moved through high elevations in the park Sunday afternoon.
