Search under way for overdue backcountry skiers

A search for four men from Denver is under way in the mountains above Aspen after they didn't return from a multi-day backcountry ski trip to the Goodwin Green Hut on time.

The men reserved the hut for Saturday, Sunday and Monday nights but, according to law enforcement, they told their friends they would be coming out of the backcountry on Monday. A heavy snowstorm, however, blew into Aspen on Sunday and Monday so it was expected they would return Tuesday instead.

The Pitkin County Sheriff's Office was notified of the overdue party on Monday evening. Authorities located the missing skiers' vehicle at the Ashcroft parking area off of Castle Creek Road and "per standard procedure, a note was left on the vehicle asking the skiers to phone the Sheriff's Office upon reaching cell range," according to a press release issued Tuesday night.

When the skiers did not come out by Tuesday afternoon, the sheriff's office and Mountain Rescue Aspen initiated a search for the four missing men, the sheriff's press release said.

"At the time of this release there are two snowmobiles and their operators making their way to the Goodwin Green Hut via Richmond Ridge to attempt to ascertain the skiers’ location, point last seen, and/or direction of travel."

The Goodwin Green Hut is almost a dozen miles south of Aspen and part of the famed Alfred Braun hut system. It is located at 11,680 feet and surrounded on three sides by the Collegiate Peaks Wilderness Area.

The area is prone to avalanches. Between two and three feet of snow has fallen in Aspen since Sunday.

The one-level Goodwin Green Hut sleeps 10 and includes propane burners for cooking, photovoltaic lighting, mattresses and pillows, eating and cooking utensils, toilet paper, matches and cleaning supplies. Hut users typically melt snow for water. Guidebooks say that routes to and from the hut are not well marked or maintained.

It is reportedly the most remote and hardest to find of the Alfred Braun huts.

River Name / Location	Stream flow, ft3/s	Gage height ft
Gore Creek
At Upper Station, Near I-70 Twin Bridges	n/a	4 ft
Booth Creek	n/a	4 ft
Abv Red Sandstone Creek At Vail	199	6 ft
At Mouth Near Minturn	225	7 ft
Beaver Creek
At Avon	21	2 ft
Lake Creek
Near Edwards	79	1 ft
Cross Creek
Near Minturn	98	4 ft
Homestake Creek
At Gold Park	127	5 ft
Eagle River
East Fork Eagle River Near Climax	n/a	2 ft
At Red Cliff	30	3 ft
Near Minturn	234	4 ft
Wastewater Treatment Plant At Avon	671	5 ft
Below Gypsum	826	5 ft
Colorado River
Near Kremmling	402	4 ft
Near Dotsero	1,620	3 ft
Below Glenwood Springs	3,080	5 ft
Near Cameo	3,740	6 ft
Below Grand Valley Div Nr Palisade	2,160	5 ft
Near Colorado-utah State Line	4,080	4 ft
Near Cisco, Ut	4,100	3 ft
At Lees Ferry, Az	12,100	9 ft
Near Grand Canyon, Az	12,000	9 ft
Yuma Main Canal Ww At Yuma, Az	997	10 ft
Roaring Fork River
Abv Lost Man Cr Near Aspen	n/a	n/a ft
Ab Difficult C Nr Aspen	53	1 ft
Near Aspen	77	1 ft
Near Emma	464	6 ft
At Glenwood Springs	1,150	3 ft
Hunter Creek
Near Aspen	57	2 ft
At Aspen	49	4 ft
Frying Pan River
Near Ruedi	111	2 ft
Crystal River
Abv Avalanche Crk, Near Redstone	610	2 ft
Arkansas River
Ef Arkansas R At Us Highway 24, Nr Leadville	46	3 ft
Near Leadville	85	5 ft
Below Empire Gulch Near Malta	156	3 ft
Below Granite	453	4 ft
Near Nathrop	451	4 ft
At Parkdale	469	3 ft