A 20-year-old climber died Saturday near Aspen after being struck in the head by a rock and tumbling about 600 feet into a culoir.

Spencer James Nelson, a student at the University of Colorado at Boulder and a member of its nationally-ranked ski team, already had summited one of the 14,000-foot Maroon Peaks and was headed back down with seven other people, including his father.

On the traverse between the north and south peaks, at about 13,000 feet, Nelson was struck by a falling rock and fell into the Bell Chord couloir, said deputy Alex Burchetta, spokesman for the Pitkin County Sheriff’s Office.

He was wearing a helmet at the time.

His companions lost sight of him.

Members of Mountain Rescue Aspen, the Aspen Volunteer Fire Department, the Pitkin County Sheriff’s Office, the U.S. Forest Service and Flight for Life, began a search at 11:45 a.m., Burchetta said. A Blackhawk helicopter from the Colorado National Guard also helped transport equipment and personnel for the effort.

Republicans Ben Quayle, left, and Vernon Parker are shown at a candidates forum Thursday in Phoenix. Both men are seeking to fill the Arizona Congressional District 3 seat be vacated by eight-term Rep. John Shadegg, R-Ariz. Photo by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Matt York