JACKSON HOLE, Wyo. — A kayaker from Teton Valley, Idaho died Sunday on a river in northwest Montana.
Steven Koning, 50, died in an accident on the Yaak River, just upriver from its confluence with the Kootenai River.
Lincoln County Montana Sheriff Darren Short said his office received an SOS message from a GPS device at approximately 12:19pm Sunday. A 38-year-old member of Koning’s party was able to make a 911 call as well. He reported Koning had fallen out of his kayak on a tough stretch of the river. Members of the group were unable to rescue him.
Koning’s body was recovered three hours later near the Montana-Idaho state line.
Koning was an extremely accomplished kayaker. He was well-known and respected in the river community in Jackson Hole. Koning once owned and operated Yellowstone Geyser Kayak Tours out of Jackson.
