The family of a Norwegian hiker whose body was recovered on the weekend from the shores of the Hayes River in northern Manitoba says an autopsy shows he drowned.
Steffen Skjottelvik, who was 29, was on a cross-continental journey of the Canadian wilderness when he set out on foot with his two dogs from Fort Severn, Ont., to travel to York Factory, Man.
Police had said Skjottelvik may have tried to cross the swift-moving Hayes River and got swept up.
Ground and air searchers found his body Sunday near York Factory, Man., and it was sent to Winnipeg for an autopsy.
Family spokesperson Christian Dyresen said police told Skjottelvik’s relatives in Norway that the autopsy was complete and that he had drowned.
Dyresen said the family is preparing to travel to Canada to bring him home and meet some of the people who searched and took care of him before he disappeared.
