Cover photo by Bridget Murphy
Ian Stasko and Andrew Porter were experienced hunters and outdoorsmen from North Carolina and Utah. They were physically fit, knew what they were doing, and were well prepared when they set off for an eight-day elk hunting trip in Colorado’s South San Juan Wilderness. But sometimes, despite people doing everything right, tragedy strikes. The work that county sheriffs and backcountry search and rescue (BSAR) teams do to rescue and recover recreationists is not just for those who made a mistake or took shortcuts. It’s for everyone.
People get reported overdue from backcountry adventures all the time, and it often turns out to be merely a miscommunication between family members. So when the families of two elk hunters in Conejos County reported them out of contact on September 12th, 2025, the Conejos County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) was not immediately concerned, although they did ask for personnel from the US Forest Service and Colorado Parks and Wildlife to check the trailhead where the hunters had reportedly parked. By the following day, it became clear that search efforts were necessary. Family members said the two 25-year-olds were reliable and had been checking in via Garmin inReach every 24 hours, as agreed in advance. They had last checked in at 3:30 on the 11th.
On Saturday the 13th, the Conejos County undersheriff found that the men’s car at the Rio De Los Pinos trailhead had large backpacks and tents inside. Concern mounted. He hiked to a ridge above the trailhead, but a severe lightning storm cut his search short. Afternoon lighting storms are common in Colorado in the summer. Later that day when the weather cleared, the CCSO search and rescue team, including ten people on foot and another ten on horses, went back out to search the area. A Flight for Life helicopter also searched that night.
On Sunday, there were more people searching via foot and horseback, including a dog team from La Plata County Search and Rescue (LPCSAR), and more efforts from Flight for Life. There were still no clues as to what was beginning to look like a mysterious disappearance. Family members, including parents and Andrew’s fiance, began to arrive in Colorado. CCSO enlarged the search area further into the basin and began ordering more resources to help manage the search, including from LPCSAR and from New Mexico SAR, as they were adjacent to the state border. There were more dogs on the ground and some drones in the air. Desperate family members got online to seek public intel and to post a reward.
Over the next few days, civilian volunteers showed up to help, and LPCSAR began mapping lightning strikes in the area so search teams could investigate them. By Wednesday, there were hundreds of people in the area along with helicopters, drones and dogs. The New Mexico teams needed to report back to their state for an incident of their own, so CCSO requested assistance from the Colorado Search and Rescue Association (CSAR). CSAR’s state coordinators usually work remotely, but this was a case in which the sheriff requested that CSAR assume local incident command for the next operational period. CSAR’s chief coordinator agreed to send a CSAR overhead team and personally deployed to Conejos, along with two state coordinators in training. It was day five of the search, and exhaustion was setting in for some of the organizations that had been involved since the beginning.
The CSAR overhead team arrived at the Antonito firehouse, which was generously provided by the South Conejos Fire Protection District, on Wednesday evening, and spent the night planning for day six’s operations. Together with state coordinators working remotely across Colorado, they activated 93 professional volunteer rescuers from ten Colorado BSAR teams. They created four divisions, with teams of searchers in each division also assigned to bring some of the civilian volunteers with them and help ensure their safety. They interviewed and incorporated responders from New Mexico and the US Forest Service to ensure they were fully in the loop on all previous search efforts and had assignments for the day six operation. By 9:00 am on Thursday morning, most of the search teams were in the field.
At approximately 11:15 am, one of the teams reported finding two deceased men under a tree about two miles from the trailhead. A privately contracted Blackhawk helicopter that had been assisting the search efforts transported the Conejos County sheriff and undersheriff, along with CSAR’s chief state coordinator, part way to the scene to investigate and recover the bodies. (CSAR’s chief coordinator also happens to be a certified death investigator for another county and processed the scene on behalf of, and at the request of, the Conejos coroner).
The men did not have any visible signs of trauma during the on-scene exam. The cause of death was not confirmed until the autopsies were conducted days later. It was an indirect lightning strike, otherwise known as a ground strike, in which the electricity is conducted through the ground. The Conejos County coroner said they would have died instantly.
The CSAR State BSAR Coordinator Program is grateful for the opportunity to assist on this incident and recognizes the tremendous effort put forth by the Conejos County Sheriff’s Office deputies and staff, as well as the hundreds of volunteer hours spent resolving this incident, both prior to and during CSAR’s involvement. It is awe inspiring when you think about how much the BSAR community gives to and cares for those who need our help. We send our deepest condolences to the loved ones of Ian Stasko and Andrew Porter, who worked tirelessly to gather more support for the search efforts.
National Weather Service data since 1980 shows lightning has caused an average of two fatalities and 12 injuries per year in Colorado.