Searchers find body of missing Olympic hiker

Missing hiker Jim Griffin, 60, of Port Angeles. (Photo released by National Park Service)



OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK, Wash. (AP) — Searchers have recovered the body of a 60-year-old Port Angeles hiker who went missing in Olympic National Park in December.

The National Park Service says searchers with dog teams on Sunday found James Griffin in steep, rugged terrain near the Boulder Creek trailhead where he had gone for a day hike on Dec. 22.

Park officials say there were no indications of foul play or wildlife interactions.

Griffin was last seen leaving the Olympic Hot Springs that night. His friends reported him missing after he failed to show up at a Christmas Eve dinner.

Nearly two dozen searchers looked for him during an intensive five-day search last month.

Park spokeswoman Barb Maynes says Griffin's body was discovered in a densely forested area nearly 1,000 feet above the trail. She says there was nothing at the scene to suggest "anything other than someone who became lost, disoriented and hypothermic."