OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK — Olympic National Park officials recovered the bodies of three people in three different areas of the park over Independence Day weekend.
Two of the people found appeared to not have been missing long, said Penny Wagner, acting spokesperson for the park.
The body of a 60-year-old man was found in a boulder field near the Norwegian Memorial Saturday; a woman’s body and a vehicle were found 200 feet down an embankment along Obstruction Point road Sunday, she said.
The Peninsula Daily News reported Tuesday the body of missing hiker Zach Krull was believed to have been found Saturday.
The Mason County coroner said that the body found about 2 miles north of Lake Cushman on Saturday is likely to be that of Krull.
The park had not responded to requests for comment about Krull until Wednesday, when the Peninsula Daily News also asked about two other bodies after having received a tip.
Wagner said the park would not identify either the 60-year-old man or the woman until their families are notified. She did not know Wednesday if the families had been notified. She also said autopsies would be done before identifications are released.
Wagner said a hiker found the 60-year-old man and notified park officials Saturday.
Rangers and firefighters tried to recover the man’s body the same day, but because of the terrain they waited at the scene until morning to recover the body by helicopter.
The man had a recent backcountry permit showing that he was a solo hiker in the coast area, Wagner said, adding she did not have more information about the permit.
She said the park hopes to have the man positively identified sometime next week. She was not aware of him having been reported missing.
His cause of death will be determined by an autopsy, she said.
Obstruction Point
Wagner said the woman’s body was recovered after a park visitor reported Sunday seeing what he thought was a trash dump down an embankment along Obstruction Point Road.
Wagner said the woman was reported missing from Issaquah, but did not know when she was reported missing.
When rangers arrived, they found the woman’s body and a vehicle down the embankment.
Rangers rappelled down the 200-foot embankment the same day to recover her body, Wagner said.
Wagner said the park does not believe the woman’s body had been there for an extended period of time, though the park doesn’t believe she was recovered the same day she died.
“Due to the nature of the scene, it seems we can assume it was a matter of days before she was discovered,” Wagner said.
An autopsy is scheduled and Wagner said the woman should be identified next week.
Zach Krull
Officials said Monday they believe they recovered missing-hiker Zach Krull’s remains Sunday from an area near Flapjack Lakes, about 2 miles north of Lake Cushman, according to Mason County Coroner Wes Stockwell.
The body was found by Eric Davis of Tacoma, who was hiking in the area Saturday, Stockwell said.
Stockwell said an autopsy was rescheduled for Friday and he hopes to have the body positively identified following the autopsy.
Missing hiker Jacob Gray, who disappeared in April, still has not been found. His bike and camping equipment were found in the brush along Sol Duc Hot Springs Road.
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Reporter Jesse Major can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56250, or at jmajor@peninsuladailynews.com.
