A woman died Sunday after she fell hundreds of feet while free-solo climbing a ridge in Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado, officials said.
The 26-year-old woman, from Boulder, Colorado, fell about 500 feet while climbing the Four Aces of Blitzen Ridge on Ypsilon Mountain on the east side of the park, according to the National Parks Service. Authorities recovered her body Monday morning.
A climber who is free soloing does not use a rope or gear beyond climbing shoes and chalk for their ascent, according to Climbing magazine.
Officials learned about the woman’s fall after her climbing partner, a 27-year-old man also from Boulder, called park rangers. The Rocky Mountain National Park Search and Rescue Team was able to reach the man Sunday night, though his location required officials to ask the Colorado Air National Guard for help getting him out of the area using a helicopter. Officials said he was not injured.
Early Monday, search and rescue team members hiked to the area above Ypsilon Lake to prepare for a helicopter to recover the woman’s body. A medical examiner’s office will determine her cause of death, officials said.
Authorities did not immediately release the climber’s name. However, friends identified her to KDVR as Bailee Mulholland, an avid climber and yoga instructor who had a passion for baking.
“She knew exactly who she was. She’s a mountain person that loved living in Boulder and was very grateful for being from there,” Tim Watts, who climbed with Mulholland for years, told the news station. “You can do everything right and everything can go wrong.”
Friends set up a GoFundMe campaign to support Mulholland’s family, according to KDVR.
Her death marked the second in one week at the national park.
Officials said a 26-year-old man from Providence, Rhode Island, died July 2 after being pulled underwater at West Creek Falls on the east side of Rocky Mountain National Park.
The park covers 415 square miles of Colorado and includes more than 300 miles of hiking trails. Climbing in the area has been popular since the 1800s, according to park officials.
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