DENVER — Pitkin County officials said a Denver woman died after falling 900 feet from below the summit of Capitol Peak Saturday morning.
The woman, whose name has yet to be released, was hiking the 14,137-foot peak in the Maroon Bells Wilderness area solo when a rock that she was attempting to grab onto gave way, according to the Pitkin County Sheriff’s Office.
Hikers nearby witnessed the fall and contacted the sheriff’s office around 7:56 a.m. Saturday.
Ground and air crews responded and recovered the woman’s body around 2:47 p.m., the sheriff’s office said.
Capitol Peak, which is approximately 14 miles west of Aspen, is considered one of Colorado’s most difficult mountains to climb with extreme exposure and loose, crumbling rock, the sheriff’s office said.