DENVER (AP) -- Authorities say a man who was hiking Maroon Bells near Aspen is dead after falling 600 to 1,000 feet.

Alex Burchetta, a spokesman for the Pitkin County Sheriff's Office, says the man was about 300 feet from the summit of North Maroon Peak when he fell Saturday morning.

The sheriff's office began coordinating Mountain Rescue Aspen at about 9:30 a.m., and a flight team was launched around noon while a separate group of hikers were able to get to the man's body.

The Denver Post reports the man, who appears to have been hiking alone, is thought to have been in his 30s.

His name has not been released.