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BOULDER, Colo. — A Denver snowshoer is ‘paying it forward’ on the trail, after jokingly setting out to find a stranger’s lost car key — and finding it.

“I was stranded, I had no money, no purse, my cell phone was low battery,” said Jules Marie, of Louisville.

Marie said she lost her key snowshoeing near Brainard Lake and had to rely on the kindness of strangers to get home. Later, she posted about her lost key on the All Trails hiking app.

“I included my email address and said, ‘Hey, if you find my key, I lost it,” Marie said.

Jay Fenik, of Denver, said he saw her review while looking at the app for snowshoe trails to try with his friends and family.

“We were kind of like, ‘Hey, do you think we could find this key?’ And made a joke about it,” Fenik said.

Fenik said they ended up finding her key near the Brainaird Lake warming hut.

“I was really excited and couldn’t wait to get home and email her,” Fenik said.

A post about the unexpected discovery has gained early 900 likes and comments on Facebook.