Lutsen snowboarder likely died from hitting a tree

A Canadian snowboarder on a northern Minnesota slope likely died from hitting a tree on the way down the mountain, police said Wednesday.

Cook County Sheriff Pat Eliasen said deputies from his department and Lutsen Mountains staff found Andrea Matyuska, 32, of Thunder Bay, Ontario, near one of the snowboard runs on Monday morning.

She was reported missing late Sunday night by her mother after she did not return from a trip to snowboard in Minnesota.

Authorities found Matyuska's car in the Lutsen parking lot, but it was too late at night to gather people for an extensive search, Eliasen said.

The initial search began in the dark, but didn't find anything. The next morning they brought in more help and Eliasen said they found Matyuska quickly.

"She was on a trail that connects two runs, and on one side of the trail, it's a pretty steep drop, and it appears that she went off the side with the drop and into a tree, and it looked like probably a broken neck," Eliasen said.

She was wearing a helmet but apparently it wasn't enough to protect her, Eliasen added. He said no foul play is suspected.

Police said she was snowboarding alone.

Eliasen said the county doesn't track skiing-related deaths. He said an autopsy had been ordered at the Cook County North Shore hospital and he expected initial results quickly.