Backcountry Trip Ends in Tragedy

Fishermen Drown in Yellowstone

By Gil Brady, 9-10-07

YELLOWSTONE, Wyo. - Two Idaho men drowned after their canoe flipped in Shoshone Lake in Yellowstone National Park, federal officials reported in a press release.

The victims have been identified as Fred Kisabeth, 74, and Charles Peters, 80, both of Boise, Idaho.

The men had fishing permits and a backcountry permit for Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday night at three different campsites along the shore of Shoshone Lake, located in the backcountry southeast of Old Faithful.

On Friday night, a group camping along the lakeshore used a cell phone just before 7:00 p.m. to report finding an overturned red canoe. They had been unable to find anyone associated with the watercraft.  A second party retrieved the canoe and brought it to shore.

Rangers from Grant, the South Entrance, and Old Faithful immediately responded to the location on foot and by canoe and kayak.  They had to suspend their search shortly after arriving because of nightfall.

A search of the recovered canoe uncovered a partial backcountry permit, which helped rangers focus their search Saturday.  The first victim was discovered in the water near the eastern shore of the lake around noon Saturday; the other victim was discovered further out in the lake about an hour later.

Kisabeth and Peters were experienced canoeists. They were discovered wearing life jackets.  Windy conditions had been reported on the lake. Moving between campsites would have required the pair to make several open water crossings of the lake. Both the date and the cause of the accident remain under investigation.

They are the first accidental deaths in Yellowstone National Park this year, and the first to have drown in the park since July 2005.

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