Two seasoned hunters were discovered dead after going missing in the wilds of Colorado.
Andrew Porter and Ian Stasko, both 25, were last seen on September 11 during a hunting trip they embarked on together.
The duo ventured into Colorado’s Game Management Unit 81, a wilderness area extending to the New Mexico Border, sparking a search operation when they went missing.
Both were described as highly skilled in outdoor survival, having built shelters in the woods for fun since they were 12 years old.
Tragically, the bodies of the two hunters were found one week after they were last seen, though the cause of death remains undetermined.
Lynne Runkle, Porter’s aunt, initiated a GoFundMe campaign to raise funds for a search operation.
On Thursday (September 18), she provided an update, stating: “It is with a broken heart and through tears that I give you this update. Andrew and Ian have both been found deceased. Their bodies were discovered earlier today by Colorado Search and Rescue. I will provide another update tomorrow.”
She continued: “Please keep Andrew’s and Ian‘s families in your thoughts and prayers.”
Runkle had also mentioned severe weather conditions affecting the area where the men were located.
She commented: “Severe storms moved through the area Thursday evening, and we suspect the two young men were caught off-guard by the weather.”
CBS News reported that there were no visible signs of trauma on the bodies, though the coroner’s office has not yet determined an official cause of death.
An investigation is ongoing to ascertain the cause of death for both men, with an autopsy set to be conducted in El Paso County.
Prior to their disappearance, the pair had been regularly sending updates, with the last one sent to Porter’s fiancée, Bridget Murphy, via a satellite communication device around 3pm on September 11.
The final signal originated near where Stasko’s car was parked at the trailhead, with investigators discovering wet clothes inside the vehicle, as reported by The Colorado Sun.
Murphy speculates that the wet clothes in the car might indicate that the pair returned to change before heading out again.
This theory is supported by the absence of hunting and packing equipment for an elk in the vehicle, suggesting they had gone out to hunt.
Murphy noted a confirmed sighting of Porter and Stasko at the Spruce Hole trailhead with their vehicle on Friday morning, according to the outlet.
They reportedly told the observer they had encountered a bull moose and intended to go back out to find it.
Their vehicle was later moved back to the Rio de los Pinos trailhead.
“That gives us one more night and morning we know they were safe before the storms,” Murphy shared on Facebook.