Missing Colorado man’s body recovered near Lake Powell

Lake Powell
Lake Powell in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, date not specified | Photo courtesy of the National Park Service, St. George News

ST. GEORGE — The body of a missing Colorado man was found near Lake Powell Saturday, according to the National Park Service.

On Saturday around 6:30 p.m., Robert Sanders, a 50-year-old male from Centennial, Colorado, took a hike from the houseboat he was staying on in Mountain Sheep Canyon on Lake Powell and did not return. He was part of a group of seven who stated Sanders wanted to get a better vantage point to look at another houseboat in the area that had flags displayed.

At 7:42 p.m., the party reported him as missing to the NPS Glen Canyon Communications Center via marine band radio.

On Sunday, NPS Rangers responded to Mountain Sheep Canyon where an extensive search took place with ground crews, a helicopter from Classic Lifeguard, and the NPS fixed-wing aircraft. The search continued on land Monday and Tuesday. On Tuesday the NPS Dive Team was also activated to conduct a water search of the area.

At approximately 3 p.m. Tuesday, Sanders’ body was located. He was found on land about two hours by foot away from the houseboat, and 15 minutes from the shore. Searchers found tracks, and it appears he hiked along the shore of Lake Powell before turning inland. The cause of his death is under investigation.

NPS rangers transported the individual to the Halls Crossing Marina where he was transferred to a San Juan County Sheriff’s Office Medical Investigator. He will be transported to the Utah State Medical Examiner’s Office in Salt Lake City, Utah. The incident is under investigation by the National Park Service and San Juan County Sheriff’s Office while awaiting the findings of the medical examiner.

No further details are available at this time.

Mountain Sheep Canyon is located two canyons upstream of Dangling Rope Marina. It consists of a waterway side canyon from the Main Channel of Lake Powell inside San Juan County, Utah. Terrain in this area is made up of sandstone slopes and cliffs and water depths ranging from a few feet to 80 feet.

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2020, all rights reserved.

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