Vesper Peak, as seen from Gothic Peak, is the highest summit on the left. (Caleb Hutton / Herald file)

Vesper Peak, as seen from Gothic Peak, is the highest summit on the left. (Caleb Hutton / Herald file)

Anacortes man found dead near Vesper Peak identified

Adam L. Johnson, 29, didn’t return from a hike Saturday. Search and rescue found his body in a creek.

DARRINGTON — An Anacortes man who died while hiking Vesper Peak has been identified as Adam L. Johnson, 29, the Snohomish County Medical Examiner’s Office announced Tuesday.

Johnson reportedly set out for a day hike on Saturday at the peak off the Mountain Loop Highway. He was supposed to return by 8 p.m. Saturday, according to the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office. When he didn’t show up or contact his girlfriend, she reported him as missing.

Around 1 p.m Sunday, a sheriff’s office helicopter crew spotted Johnson’s body in a swift creek. A swiftwater team hiked in to recover his remains. The body was later flown out by helicopter.

Johnson died of drowning and blunt-force injuries, an autopsy showed.

The death was determined to be an accident, the medical examiner’s office reported.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

Jonathon DeYonker, left, helps student Dominick Jackson upload documentary footage to Premier at The Teen Storytellers Project on Tuesday, April 29, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett educator provides tuition-free classes in filmmaking to local youth

The Teen Storyteller’s Project gives teens the chance to work together and create short films, tuition-free.

Edmonds Activated Facebook group creators Kelly Haller, left to right, Cristina Teodoru and Chelsea Rudd on Monday, May 5, 2025 in Edmonds, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
‘A seat at the table’: Edmonds residents engage community in new online group

Kelly Haller, Cristina Teodoru and Chelsea Rudd started Edmonds Activated in April after learning about a proposal to sell a local park.

Everett
Man arrested in connection with armed robbery of south Everett grocery store

Everet police used license plate reader technology to identify the suspect, who was booked for first-degree robbery.

Anna Marie Laurence speaks to the Everett Public Schools Board of Directors on Thursday, May 1, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Will Geschke / The Herald)
Everett school board selects former prosecutor to fill vacancy

Anna Marie Laurence will fill the seat left vacant after Caroline Mason resigned on March 11.

Lynnwood
Lynnwood woman injured in home shooting; suspect arrested

Authorities say the man fled after the shooting and was later arrested in Shoreline. Both he and the Lynnwood resident were hospitalized.

Swedish Edmonds Campus on Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2024 in Edmonds, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Data breach compromises info of 1,000 patients from Edmonds hospital

A third party accessed data from a debt collection agency that held records from a Providence Swedish hospital in Edmonds.

Construction continues on Edgewater Bridge along Mukilteo Boulevard on Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett pushes back opening of new Edgewater Bridge

The bridge is now expected to open in early 2026. Demolition of the old bridge began Monday.

Jacquelyn Jimenez Romero / Washington State Standard The Washington state Capitol on April 18.
Why police accountability efforts failed again in the Washington Legislature

Much like last year, advocates saw their agenda falter in the latest session.

A scorched Ford pickup sits beneath a partially collapsed and blown-out roof after a fire tore through part of a storage facility Monday evening, on Tuesday, May 6, 2025, in Everett. (Aspen Anderson / The Herald)
Two-alarm fire destroys storage units, vehicles in south Everett

Nearly 60 firefighters from multiple agencies responded to the blaze.

Christian Sayre sits in the courtroom before the start of jury selection on Tuesday, April 29, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Christian Sayre timeline

FEBRUARY 2020 A woman reports a sexual assault by Sayre. Her sexual… Continue reading

Snohomish County prosecutor Martha Saracino delivers her opening statement at the start of the trial for Christian Sayre at the Snohomish County Courthouse on Monday, May 5, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Opening statements begin in fourth trial of former bar owner

A woman gave her account of an alleged sexual assault in 2017. The trial is expected to last through May 16.

Lynnwood
Deputies: 11-year-old in custody after bringing knives to Lynnwood school

The boy has been transported to Denney Juvenile Justice Center. The school was placed in a modified after-school lockdown Monday.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.