Hikers find suspected human remains

CLARK FORK — A jawbone that appears to be human was found on the exposed bed of Lake Pend Oreille earlier this month.

“It’s suspected that the jaw is human,” said Bonner County Sheriff’s Capt. Ror Lakewold.

Lakewold said the mandible and other bones that were discovered in the vicinity are in the possession of county Coroner Kitt Rose and await laboratory analysis.

Preliminary indications suggest the bones are decades old and don’t immediately appear to be connected to any recent disappearances or crimes.

“Based on the condition, it’s certainly nothing we’re thinking is consistent with anything recent,” Lakewold said.

Lakewold said the bones could be 30 years old or perhaps significantly older than that.

Steve Beal found the bones on March 7 while hiking on the lake bed with his sons, Sage, 12, and Sam, 8. Beal said they were exploring the lake bed because the deep winter drawdown has exposed vast sections of it.

The lake was drawn down to a deeper winter pool to facilitate work to restore the Clark Fork Delta.

The trio started out at Denton Slough and began making their way to the Clark Fork Driftyard when they came across the bones.

“All the molars were in the jaw and the rest of the teeth were all laying close by,” said Beal.

Beal said the bones were old and gray. The teeth did not have any dental work.

Beal called authorities and while waiting for them to respond found additional bones in a 100-foot radius of where the jaw was found. Beal figures they could have washed down the Clark Fork River from Montana.

It’s unclear how long it will take to determine how old the bones are and if all of them are human.

A human skull fragment was found in the Hoodoo Valley in June 2014, but lab analysis has moved at a glacial pace.

“We’re exploring other testing facilities,” said Lakewold.

Beal called the discovery “pretty exciting.”

“It’s an adventure that we’ll never forget that’s for sure,” he said.