Idaho poet, kayaker William Studebaker presumed drowned Studebaker, 61, was last seen south of Yellow Pine. One of Idaho’s foremost poets and kayakers is missing and was presumed drowned Friday south of Yellow Pine while kayaking in challenging rapids with friends. William Studebaker, 61, of Twin Falls, was first seen swimming for shore Friday morning on the East Fork of the South Fork of the Salmon River and then floating face down. Friends on the road and in kayaks could not find him, though his kayak and other gear were recovered Friday. Valley County Search and Rescue, local law enforcement and emergency crews from various agencies also were unable to find him. Friends, kayakers and rescue crews continued searching Saturday, but high water runoff and the swiftness of the river hampered efforts, said Lt. Dan Smith of the Valley County Sheriff’s Office. “It’s a huge blow,” said Shelley Gardner, a friend and an owner of Idaho Guide Service, for which Studebaker worked. “He was the premier kayaker. His love for the river … he was just so passionate. He was an amazing storyteller. He will be missed.” Studebaker was a well-known Idaho poet, essayist and outdoor photographer. “He’s a great spirit,” said Paul Shaffer, executive director of The Cabin, a literary center in Boise. “He was a terrific writer, fabulous teacher, one of the most capable boaters. He was all Idaho. He really loved this state.” Studebaker was born and raised in Salmon, friends said. He spent 30 years at the College of Southern Idaho in Twin Falls, teaching English and coordinating the outdoors program before retiring in 2005. Studebaker and his wife, Judy, have four sons. “He had little patience for people who said they wanted to write if they only had the time,” said Rick Ardinger, a longtime friend, owner of Limberlost Press and collaborator with Studebaker. “He raised four kids, taught at the university, built a house, raised bird dogs. He lived to the fullest.” Studebaker worked as a correspondent and feature writer for the Times-News and as a feature writer for Idaho Magazine. He frequently published in Tertulia, an online magazine, journals and reviews. Studebaker also taught literature classes for Idaho State University. He received the Idaho Humanities Council’s Outstanding Humanist Award for 2005. “He’s the true Idaho poet laureate,” Ardinger said. “He was born in this state and has written about it so eloquently.” Studebaker’s books include “Short of a Good Promise,” which details the life of his family in the vast expanses of southern Idaho, and “River Religion,” a collection of kayaking poems and “… histories of adrenaline rushes I have waltzed through or limboed under.” “His poetry was about Idaho, the rivers the landscape,” Ardinger said. “He writes about the desert.” Ardinger, executive director of the Idaho Humanities Council, said Studebaker was engaged in the arts and in preservation of the literary heritage of Idaho. “It was not just for his own writing,” Ardinger said. “He has always had a fascination for the literature of Idaho. He was an editor, a collaborator. He’s been a wonderful friend but he’s also been a great … we’re losing a lot. We’re not just losing a friend, we’re losing a force – a literary force, a true force of nature. He put his whole heart into everything he did.” Ardinger believes Studebaker may have died doing something he loved and wouldn’t have wanted it differently. “He’d always say, ‘I’m not going to die in a bed,'” Ardinger said. Idaho Statesman TEXT ATTACHMENTS Rescue team narrows search for kayaker William Studebaker – Idaho Statesman: Edition Date: 07/07/08 The search for Idaho poet and kayaker William Studebaker has been narrowed to a 100-foot section of the East Fork of the South Fork of the Salmon River near Yellow Pine, according to Lt. Dan Smith of Valley County Sheriff’s Office. Smith said there was nothing more that could be done to recover Studebaker, who is presumed drowned, because that stretch of river is so deep, fast and rocky that the swift water rescue team could not safely go into it. “We’ll just have to keep an eye on the area, or wait until the water level has receded enough to do something,” he said. Valley County Search and Rescue, local law enforcement, and emergency crews from various agencies have searched for Studebaker, 61, of Twin Falls, since Friday morning when he was last seen swimming for shore, then floating face down, after kayaking in challenging rapids with friends. The Associated Press Edition Date: 07/07/08 BOISE, Idaho — Authorities say they have found the body of an Idaho writer who drowned in a river near Yellow Pine. The body of William Studebaker was found Monday on the East Fork of the South Fork of the Salmon River. Relatives say the poet and kayak fanatic was found under a boulder about a 1 1/2-miles downstream from the spot near some rapids where he was last seen Friday. Studebaker, 61, of Twin Falls, was seen swimming for shore, then floating face down after kayaking with friends through a difficult stretch of Class-5 rapids. Studebaker is the author of about a dozen books of poetry and nonfiction, including “Short of a Good Promise,” a 1999 reminiscence of growing up in the remote Idaho backcountry following World War II.