KUSA — The Boulder County Coroner’s Office has identified the remains found in the Brainard Lake Recreation area as Ernest Macaulay of Boulder, who had been missing for nearly seven years.
According to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Macaulay was last seen on September 28, 2011, when he was 72 years old. The Boulder County Coroner's Office will conduct an anthropological examination of the remains. The cause and manner of death have not been determined.
The hikers who found the remains were near Left Hand Reservoir, which is just south of Brainard Lake off Left Hand Reservoir Road, according to the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office.
The hikers initially told the sheriff’s office they found a skull, but when deputies met them near the trail to investigate the remains later that afternoon, their search came up short.
Volunteers with Front Range Rescue Dogs joined the sheriff’s office and coroner’s office on Tuesday morning, and used a photo from the hikers to ultimately find the skull.
While searching the area, they also found additional remains that were confirmed to be human.
