Three decomposed bodies found in the woods near a remote campsite in western Colorado were the focus of a Gunnison County sheriff’s investigation Wednesday.
A hiker found one of the bodies Sunday evening in the woods near the Gold Creek Campground, located in Gunnison County about 7 miles from Ohio City. Gunnison County sheriff’s deputies went to the site and found two more bodies, Undersheriff Josh Ashe said.
All three were in an advanced state of decomposition.
“I don’t think they’ve been there for 10 years, probably within a year,” Ashe said Wednesday morning. “It appears these three people had been living out of a tent for a prolonged period.”
There was no vehicle at the site and investigators were considering “whether they were homeless, or just extended recreation,” Ashe said.
“It does appear they may have wintered there,” he said.
Autopsies will be done, he said. “Hopefully that will give a clearer indication of the cause and manner of death. At this point, we have no evidence that is pointing towards foul play.”
The campground is open, and the bodies have been removed, Ashe said. It sits 27 miles northeast of Gunnison near the 13,266-foot Henry Mountain at the southeastern edge of the Fossil Ridge Wilderness.
Updated 10 a.m. July 12, 2023: This story has been corrected after originally misreporting the number of bodies discovered near a Gunnison County campsite. Three bodies were found.
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