PORT ANGELES – A 55-year-old kayaker who was reported missing about 6 p.m. Saturday was located at 11 p.m. that night by a Coast Guard helicopter, said an representative said Sunday.
Robert Pickard of Kent was found wrapped in a blue tarp filled with leaves to stay warm on the west bank of the Elwha River, about a half mile from its mouth, said Lower Elwha Police Sgt. Sam White.
Pickard was hoisted into a Coast Guard HH65 Dolphin helicopter from Seattle and was taken to Olympic Medical Center suffering from slight hypothermia, said Coast Guard Public Information Petty Officer Shawn Eggert.
He was treated and released Sunday.
White said Pickard had been visiting a friend, Thomas William of Port Angeles, and went kayaking alone Saturday.
When he failed to return by nightfall, William reported Pickard missing to PenCom 9-1-1.
“He went down and got sucked into a log jam,” White said of the reason Pickard didn’t make it back.
The search was conducted on the ground by officers from the Lower Elwha Police Department and the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office and by air by the Coast Guard.
