He sent a selfie from a Colorado summit, and then disappeared

Ian O'Brien, 28, from Page, Ariz., was reported missing after he failed to return from a solo hike while camping.

A hiker who was last seen in a selfie he took atop a Colorado peak in June was found dead by two people fishing on a remote stretch of river.

Ian O’Brien, 28, from Page, Ariz., was reported missing after he failed to return from a solo hike while camping on June 24 near Durango, in Colorado’s southwest corner.

The body was discovered Sept. 2, said the Montezuma County sheriff’s office. The cause of death was said to be accidental drowning.

The day he disappeared, O’Brien left the Echo Basin campsite he was sharing with his girlfriend for a 7½-mile hike up Hesperus Mountain, a route he was reportedly familiar with. About 4½ hours later, around 6:30 p.m., he shared a photo from the 13,238-foot summit. When he hadn’t returned by 12:30 a.m., his girlfriend notified the sheriff’s office.

After a week of extensive searching, the operation was put in “limited continuous mode,” meaning the official search-and-rescue crew wouldn’t be called out unless there was new evidence, the sheriff said.

The route from Echo Basin to Hesperus Mountain — with about 3,000 feet of elevation gain — is not an established trail. It requires navigational skill, and hikers have to bushwhack, scramble on boulder fields and cross the West Mancos River on fallen logs.

Overnight temperatures in late June were in the 30s. O’Brien wore shorts and a tank top, and possibly had a long-sleeved shirt as well.

The body was found by people fishing in the West Mancos. The identification was made on Sept. 7 and announced by the Montezuma County sheriff the following day.