Hiker missing for two weeks found dead in Colorado national park, rangers say

A hiker who was missing for more than two weeks was found dead Monday in Rocky Mountain National Park, officials said.

Steve Grunwald, a 24-year-old from Greenville, New York, was found in a “notch” below two peaks, according to the National Park Service.

Grunwald started a hiking trip in August, and his family had not heard from him since Aug. 28, the NPS said.

Rocky Mountain National Park officials started the search for Grunwald on Sept. 10 after a friend reported him missing. His car was found parked at the Glacier Gorge Trailhead.

A search and rescue team searched in the saddle between peaks that are more than 13,000 feet in elevation, officials said. Officials used helicopters to search for and recover Grunwald’s body.

Grunwald was “described as a fit trail runner” who had backcountry experience, according to the park service. In June 2019, Grunwald delivered a TED Talk at Syracuse University about “ how ancient organisms can provide us with clarity about how we got here and where we can go,” the video description on YouTube says.

“Through exploring how ancient organisms, such as moss, learned how to cooperate with the world, we can begin to revitalize the world and create a new perspective for humanity.”

Grunwald was described as an environmental biologist by TED’s YouTube video. But people close to him described him as “a great outdoorsman and friend” on Facebook.

“Steve lived life with such radical positivity, a huge smile on his face, and love for learning and growing. I think that everyone should try to live a little more like Steve,” Katie Beeles said in a post.

“You were a great kid taken way too soon,” Rick Hillman wrote on Facebook.

This story was originally published September 14, 2020 at 12:52 PM.