A hiker’s tip led to the uncovering of three heavily decomposed corpses near the Gold Creek Campground in Colorado, the Gunnison County Sheriff’s Office announced Wednesday.

The campsite is located on land controlled by the U.S. Forest Service. 

Just before 5 p.m. local time Sunday, a hiker found one of the bodies and called law enforcement. 

Just after 8 a.m. Monday, sheriff’s deputies arrived and found the other two “fairly mummified” bodies, as Gunnison County Sheriff Adam Murdie described the corpses to The Associated Press.

The advanced state of decomposition suggested the corpses had been exposed to the elements for months, possibly since last fall.

“At this point it appears that these three individuals began long-term camping at the location near Gold Creek Campground in (approximately) mid-late July … 2022 and attempted to stay through the winter,” Gunnison County Coroner Michael Barnes told CNN.

While many camping deaths result from carbon monoxide emitted by heaters in enclosed spaces, the layout of the bodies suggested to responders that was not the culprit in this case.

Autopsy of the bodies to determine what killed them is ongoing, as is the process of identifying who the three decedents are.

“Whether they froze to death in the winter or the combination of starved or froze, that’s what it sure seems like,” Sheriff Murdie told the AP.

The discovery of the bodies does not pose any harm to other people looking to engage in outdoor activities at the campground, Gunnison County Undersheriff Josh Ashe stated on Facebook.

• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.