Officials identify climber who died on Capitol Peak

A climber who died on Capitol Peak over the weekend has been identified. The Aspen Times reports the Pitkin County deputy coroner Wednesday identified the climber as 21-year-old Zackaria White.

Deputy Coroner Jennifer Diamond says the official cause of death is under investigation.

Police say White was climbing Saturday with Brandon Wilhelm, when he decided to attempt a shortcut down the North Face of Capitol Peak against Wilhelm's advice. White later fell approximately 600 feet (183 meters) when the shortcut ended at a cliff band.

Police say Wilhelm, who followed the standard route on Capitol Peak down the mountain, told deputies White had never climbed a 14,000-foot peak before and was stubbornly insistent about trying the shortcut.

White is the fifth person to die on Capitol Peak this summer.

Authorities say another person has died at Capitol Peak, a prominent mountain summit in the Elk Mountains range of the Rocky Mountains.

A 21-year-old man was separated from his climbing partner after a dispute Saturday on how to descend from the summit and later fell 600 to 700 feet (183 to 213 meters) to his death.

Patrol Director of the Pitkin County Sheriff's Office Jesse Steindler confirmed Mountain Rescue Aspen was involved Sunday in the recovery of the climber's body.

The man's death is the fifth in the past six weeks on the mountain.

His name has not been released, pending notification of his family.

The man's body was recovered in the same area where an Aspen couple fell to their deaths a week ago.

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