"One missed step can be your last": Hiker dead after 600-foot-fall in Colorado

A Fourth of July fall during a hike in the rugged terrain of Colorado's San Juan County left an out-of-stater dead.

According to Silverton Medical Rescue, a group of six – three males and three females – embarked on a day hike from Andrew's Lake, seeking to reach the top of Snowdon Mountain Peak. This peak is located about 11 miles southwest of the town of Silverton.

At about 4:09 p.m., a call for help was received by emergency services after a 25-year-old male in the group took a reported 600 to 800-foot-fall from a ridge of the peak.

Crews were sent into the field to respond and the man was ultimately pronounced deceased at 5:54 p.m. that evening.

Identifying details of the deceased male were not released aside from that he was from Cookeville, Tennessee.

"The mountains are dangerous, if you are coming to the San Juans to recreate, you really need to have a strong skill set and understand the risks you are putting yourself in," said San Juan County Sheriff Bruce Conrad of the incident. "Not that there was anything wrong done by this group in this incident, it was a group of young hikers climbing a peak that is not a super difficult peak, but one missed step can be your last one."

Authorities also cautioned the public about a "high potential for loose rock in the San Juans." This part of the state is notoriously loose, rugged, and steep, with many trails being quite remote and less-trafficked compared to the central mountain region.

The most common way to reach this 13,090-foot summit is via mostly class two route with a brief class three section . Based on the report, it sounds like this would have been the route the group was on, though their exact route was not specified.

Condolences go out to those impacted by this tragic death.

If you're interested in supporting Colorado's volunteer-powered search and rescue operation, one way to do so is through the purchase of a CORSAR card . It's cheap, at only $5 per year.

STAY INFORMED: Get free Colorado news with our daily newsletter (Click here)