The victim was climbing the fourteener when a rock broke, causing him to fall, resulting in life-threatening injuries.
Little Bear Peak in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of Colorado (Photo: Robertcicchetti/Getty Images)
Published July 2, 2026 02:43 pm
A hiker attempting to climb Little Bear Peak in Colorado’s Sangre de Cristo Mountains died over the weekend after suffering serious injuries in a fall. Alamosa Volunteer Search and Rescue Team (AVSAR) immediately responded to the incident but was unable to save the victim.
The deceased hiker, whose identity has not yet been released, was climbing the West Ridge Indirect Approach of Little Bear Peak. According to an AVSAR Facebook post about the incident, they were with a party of other people when a large section of rock broke, sending the hiker falling a ‘great distance’.
“The team knew we needed to work at full strength to be able to get this passenger out as quickly as possible,” AVSAR wrote in the post. “AVSAR was battling high winds and high temperatures at the incident command location, making it even more difficult to operate with the helicopters.”
Despite 60 MPH wind gusts, an AVSAR helicopter dropped two rescuers from an altitude of approximately 12,100 feet near Tobin Basin. They started moving towards the spot on foot. Simultaneously, other rescue workers reached Lake Como Road in four-wheelers.
Rescue workers evacuated the victim
When rescue workers arrived at the scene, he said, the victim was in “critical condition with serious injuries.” At about 2 p.m., Colorado Army National Guard Blackhawks arrived. This dropped two more rescuers, who “packed the hiker into a static flight bag to execute the hoist.”
He was airlifted to the AVSAR helicopter pad on Como Road, where intensive life-saving efforts immediately began. However, the pedestrian succumbed to his injuries and died.
After extraction, AVSAR rescuers carried the rest of the hiker group down the mountain. By 6 pm, all hikers and rescuers were safely out of the field.
“AVSAR would like to express its deepest condolences to everyone affected by this tragedy. This was not the outcome that anyone expected. Please keep the first responders, family and friends of this passenger in your thoughts and prayers.”
This is the second death in Colorado Fortner this summer. It follows a June 11 incident on Mount Sneffels, when rescuers discovered the body of a solo trail runner on the mountain, later identified as Brett Brachman-Goldstein.
