Klamath Fishing Guide Dies In Accident

Tragedy out of the Eureka/Crescent City area. Fishing guide Gary Farley, 63, died after a Klamath River accident.

The Daily Tripilcate of Crescent City on the details:

Farley was leading two old friends from Ferndale on a fishing trip up the river. Witnesses said Farley was thrown from his boat after hitting a gravel bar and could not be resuscitated. 

 Yurok Tribal Police and sheriff’s deputies from Del Norte and Humboldt counties responded to the incident. The coroner’s office in Eureka is expected to release an autopsy report later today. 

“It’s tragic, and it’s a huge loss to this community,” said Richard Mossholder, one of Farley’s many friends and fellow fishing guides. “Gary has been on this river almost all his life. He was a great boat captain and the best guide on the river, always has been. He was the nicest guy and always helped everybody. … I’m sure at some point in time there’s gonna be a book written about that man.”

Mossholder owns Rivers West Lodge, about 20 miles upstream from the mouth of the river and 150 yards downstream from the site of Farley’s accident. 

“I was on the deck and saw his boat go by. It sounded like he had gone past the lodge. I thought I heard him slowing down, so I got in my truck to go pick him up, but something didn’t sound right. The people that were with him had already pulled his boat up to the shore and were shouting. They had pulled him out of the water and it was very obvious that he didn’t make it,” said Mossholder.

Farley’s younger brother, Jeff, said that a broken steering cable is likely to blame. 

“They were heading up the river, pretty full bore, and went around a corner. The guys with him said he hit his head and fell out over the back of the boat. They said he didn’t seem to swim when he fell in the water so they thought he got knocked out,” he added. 

Condolences to Farley’s family and friends.