August 17th— Susana DeForest, a student from Collegeville, PA, took a vacation to visit three friends who had moved out to Colorado.
The group decided to hike the popular Conundrum Trail outside of Aspen, which runs for 17 miles out-and-back at altitudes of 8,000 to 11,200 feet.  A set of hot springs sit at the end of the route, and take 6-8 hours to get to, and 3-6 hours to exit from.
But before the friends reached their destination, DeForest fell ill, and began to vomit.  The group set up a tent and put her inside.  Two descended back down the trail for help, while a third stayed with Susana.
By the time the duo reached the bottom and called for help, it was already 10:45 PM, said the Pitkin County Sheriff’s office.  Rescuers were sent out on foot and by helicopter, which could not land due to strong winds in the area.
A second helicopter was dispatched and finally reached DeForest and her friend at 3:30 AM; but by that time, DeForest was dead. Â
The Pitkin County Coroner has not yet released a cause of death, but DeForest’s mother wrote in a public Facebook post that her daughter suffered from acute altitude sickness. Â
Although, acute mountain sickness (AMS) is not what kills people.  Its more developed forms, called high altitude pulmonary edema (HAPE) and high altitude cerebral edema (HACE), are the culprits. Â
A similar case happened earlier this month as well, when an 18 year-old Boy Scout died of altitude sickness in Utah.Â
