Missing hunters in Colorado

Wow. Really grateful they went quickly. That's probably the best way I could imagine going out in the mountains!
Absolutely terrible for their families though. Definitely makes me think about better tracking for my wife's sake.
 
A co-worker's son had a buddy who got struck and killed in the mountains of Wyo. about 10 years ago and there was a fisherman struck and killed while out on a lake in Montana when the storm clouds were miles away. Never underestimate the potential!
 
Sheriff's department said they were found 2 miles from the trailhead. If you buffer the trailhead by 2 miles, most of it is above 11K ft, on top of the mesa with very sparse tree cover.

I got caught in a lightning storm the next drainage over one summer (Elk Creek), very uncomfortable experience. Prayers for their families.
 
I see Colorado has 58 million man-days of outdoor recreation each year, 500,000 air-to-ground lightning bolts, and usually only 2 fatalities a year since 1980. It may be higher than 1 in 29,000,000 odds if you’re on the mountain during a storm, but that’s crappy luck.
 
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