Accident Database

Report ID#68976

2004-07-24
accident date
Bill Bowey
victim
48
victim age
Stevens Creek
river
n/a
section
Sylvia Falls
location
n/a
gage
n/a
water level
VI
river difficulty
Unknown
cause code(s)
Does not Apply
injury type(s)
Solo Paddling
factors
Private
trip type
Whitewater Kayak
boat type
status?
status

Description

Expert kayaker Bill Bowey, who had pioneered many runs in the Pacific Northwest, died during an exploratory run of Stevens Creek near Mount Rainier on July 24, 2004. Since Mr. Bowey was paddling alone, it is not entirely certain what happened. His body was found below Sylvia Falls, a 30-foot falls into shallow water. Some boaters have expressed the opinion that if he ran Sylvia Falls, it was not on purpose. http://www.wetdawg.com/pages/whitewater/bowey/index_ww.php http://washingtonkayakclub.org/forums/index.php?s=10f2a649d3d7ac82eff8513a306968c7&showtopic=1301http://boatertalk.com/forum/BoaterTalk/639856