Bodies of 2 hikers discovered after not returning from Crowsnest Pass trail

The RCMP says two men from Lethbridge have been found dead after they didn’t return from a hiking trip near the B.C.-Alberta border.

On Wednesday, Crowsnest Pass RCMP received reports that two people hiking along the North York Creek Plane Crash Trail, outside Coleman, were “overdue” on their return.

Police worked alongside Search and Rescue (SAR) crews and began a ground and air search for the two men.

On Thursday, around 7 p.m., SAR found both hikers dead at the bottom of a ridge at Mount Coulthard, Mounties say.

A Long Line Helicopter from Fernie, B.C. attended and recovered the bodies of the two men, ages 34 and 35, they add.

Friends and family have identified the hikers as Jonah Swen and Greg Gaudette on social media.

“I know Jonah left this life doing something he loved,” one friend of Swen’s wrote on Facebook.

“Greg Gaudette was the definition of living life to its fullest, we will miss you dearly,” posted a firefighter colleague of Gaudette’s. “Your last alarm has sounded, rest easy, brother. We will take it from here.”

Swen was a paramedic and registered nurse, while Gaudette was a paramedic and firefighter, friends say on social media.

“Jonah, you were an incredible paramedic, a mentor in my early days in EMS, and since went on to be an incredible RN as well,” wrote a co-worker of Swen’s. “Rest easy friend.”

A GoFundMe has been set up in memory of the pair, with the creator saying all money raised will be placed in a trust for Gaudette’s 13-month-old son.

Alberta Conservation, Alberta Forestry, Alberta Parks, Southern Alberta Regional Search and Rescue, Lethbridge Search and Rescue, BC Search and Rescue, and Ascent Helicopters all participated in the search and recovery efforts.