Woman climber falls to terrible death in Rocky Mountain National Park

A woman fell to her death about 500 feet while climbing a ridge in Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado, officials said on Monday.

The woman, 26, whose identity is being withheld pending notification of her next of kin, was free-solo climbing on Sunday on the Four Acres of Blitzen Ridge on Ypsilon Mountain on the park's eastern edge. She was from Boulder, Colorado, according to officials.

The area is "rather committing," according to The Mountain Project, a website that lists hiking destinations and can be scaled without or with ropes.

The woman was climbing with a 27-year-old Boulder resident. After she fell, he called park rangers, and by Sunday night, members of the Rocky Mountain National Park Search and Rescue Team had arrived.

He was not hurt and was taken away from the scene by helicopter.

Rescue team members hiked to the area above Ypsilon Lake on Monday morning to retrieve the woman's body.

Her remains were moved by helicopter to a different part of the park, and after that, the body was brought to a nearby coroner's office so that the cause of death could be determined, CBS reported.

Over 4 million hikers visit Rocky Mountain National Park each year, which is spread across 400 square miles of rugged mountains and high tundra.

In the same park earlier this month, a 25-year-old Rhode Islander passed away. The National Park Service issued a warning to visitors on July 2 after a man fell and was dragged underwater at a waterfall. At this time of year, rivers, streams, and waterfalls can be hazardous, chilly, and swift.