Young outdoorsmen found dead on Colorado mountain were killed after falling from cliff, medical examiner says

Two experienced hikers, Kaden Matsuda, 19, and Jackson Donlon, 20, died after an abseiling anchor failed on a Colorado mountain, according to investigators. Their deaths were caused by multiple blunt force injuries and were instantaneous, the medical examiner said.

The pair set out in northern Chaffee County on 23 October and were reported missing after they did not return as scheduled. Search teams found them after 48 hours near a basin of West Apostle Mountain; investigators said they could not determine how far they fell or why the anchor failed. Friends said the men had shared a map of their planned route to the 13,958-foot peak, and a snow-covered tent and Matsuda’s car were found nearby.