Remains found at Colorado park may be missing Las Vegas hiker

Authorities identified what they believe are the remains of a Rancho High School graduate who went missing in late November in Rocky Mountain National Park, officials announced Friday.

Micah Tice was first reported missing in November when he did not return to the U.S. Air Force Academy Preparatory School after Thanksgiving break.

The prep school cadet had been last seen by two hikers around 7:30 a.m. Nov. 24 just above the treeline at Longs Peak Trailhead, National Park Service officials said in the statement.

At that time, he was carrying a light-blue backpack and wearing a sweatshirt, sweatpants, a hat, lightweight gloves and tennis shoes. “The visitors discouraged Tice from continuing to the summit due to his clothing, footwear and weather conditions,” the statement said.

The remains found Friday were more than 7 miles away from the trailhead, at the Boulder Brook drainage below the treeline, the park service said.

Rangers have completed an on-scene investigation, and recovery operations were taking place Friday afternoon, the statement read.

The remains will be transferred to the Larimer County coroner’s office. That office is not expected to release positive identification until completion of an autopsy, the statement read.

The discovery was made a day after after a private search crew affiliated with the Tice family found items believed to be the hiker’s.

Omar Khalek, a rescuer in the group that found the hiker’s belongings, said his goodbyes on Facebook to the 20-year-old he never met around 4:47 p.m. Friday. In the post, he said the crew found Micah Tice’s belongings on Thursday and gave them to the park service.

“We never stopped looking for you. I am thankful that we are able to bring closure to your family in a way. May your soul Rest In Peace,” the post read in part.

Last month, Tice’s mother, Janice Tice, posted on Facebook that rescue crews were making progress as snow continued to melt.

Search began in November

Rescuers began their search on Nov. 27, after locating his car at the trailhead, but winter conditions hampered their efforts.

“Longs Peak is the park’s highest peak at 14,259 feet in elevation,” the statement said. “Conditions on November 24 in the area were severe, including significant snow accumulation, extremely high winds, blizzard conditions, and bitter cold temperatures.”

While the winter continued, search crews found chest-deep snow, large areas of downed trees, drifting snow, and high avalanche danger.

During its search efforts since the hiker’s disappearance, the park’s search and rescue team was assisted by several rescue organizations and agencies, including the Colorado Air National Guard, the Air Force Academy Mountaineering Club, Larimer County Search and Rescue, an Rocky Mountain Rescue.

During a December press conference, Janice Tice and her husband had expressed frustration about how officials had handled search efforts, including what Benjamin Tice called split resources between his son and a “failed 28-day search and rescue.”

A month before the hiker went missing, search crews were hunting for Ryan Albert, a hiker from New Jersey, whose body was found buried under 3 feet of snow in Longs Peak in June.

“This made it very difficult for them to have adequate resources for the Micah Tice rescue,” Benjamin Tice said at the time.

The Tice family also had pleaded previously with government officials for additional resources, asking for then-Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke, then-Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper and Governor-elect Jared Polis.

Contact Sabrina Schnur at sschnur@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0278. Follow @sabrina_schnur on Twitter.