[KevinP73]

JOHANNESBURG – A pair of Northwest kayakers watched in horror as a crocodile snatched their guide from his kayak while he led an expedition from the source of the White Nile into the heart of Congo. South African Hendrik Coetzee, 35, an acclaimed outdoorsman who wrote movingly about testing himself against nature, is presumed dead after the attack. His body has not been recovered. The two Americans — Ben Stookesberry and Chris Korbulic — paddled unharmed to safety after the Tuesday morning attack on the Lukuga River in Congo. They expect to return home to the U.S. shortly. Korbulic is from Rogue River, Ore., and Stookesberry is from Mount Shasta, Calif. The stretch of river where the trio was traveling is notoriously dangerous because of its whitewater, and the high density of crocodiles and hippos.