The body of a 72-year-old Homer man and long-time commercial fisherman, Ken Jones, was discovered floating in the waters of Cook Inlet near the Anchor Point Bluffs early Monday morning.

Jones had gone out kayaking in Kachemak Bay on Sunday afternoon, as he had done many times before. Jones would often kayak through the Beluga Slough too Mariner Park at the base of the Homer Spit two miles distant.

But, something went awry this particular Sunday, and his son would call police to report his father overdue from what normally would have been a two-hour trip.

Homer police reported the overdue kayaker to troopers and the U.S. Coast Guard and a helicopter was dispatched to search for Jones. Searchers also walked the shorelines near the area where Jones was believed to been kayaking. They were unsuccessful in their search.

Then, at 2:30 am, 12 hours after he had departed from the slough, and 20 miles distant, searchers would locate Jones floating in the waters of the Anchor Point Bluffs near his kayak. When found, Jones was wearing his life preserver.

Although a determination as to the cause of death has yet to be made, adverse weather may have been a contributing factor in Jones’s death. Winds were observed to be 2o miles per hour with occasional gusts in the 30s.

The State Medical Examiner has yet to order an autopsy on Jones and his remains are currently being held at the South Peninsula Hospital.[xyz-ihs snippet=”Adsense-responsive”]

  accident, Alaska, anchor point, beluga slough, bluffs, death, deceased, floating, homer, kayaking, ken jones, search, weather