<p>Rescuers found two 14-year-old Georgia boys dead Monday in the Gulf of Mexico, two days after they became separated from their group during a spring break kayaking and canoeing trip off the northern Florida peninsula, authorities said.</p><p>The bodies of Sean Wilkinson of Acworth, Ga., and Clay McKemie of Rome, Ga., were found about eight miles out from the mouth of Suwannee River. Their overturned canoe was found about 5 1/2 miles west of the river, the Coast Guard said in a statement.</p><p>They had become lost Saturday while on an outing in an area about 100 miles north of Tampa. They were believed to have been wearing life vests.</p><p>The boys had not been seen since they set out with eight other people who traveled to Dixie County from Darlington High School in Rome on the paddling and camping trip.</p><p>The other eight were found Sunday about seven miles offshore, said Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission spokeswoman Karen Parker.</p><p>In a letter to students, parents and alumni, Darlington interim President Jim Hendrix said he was conveying "the saddest possible news.</p><p>"We must turn to prayer and to each other to support these grieving families and ourselves," Hendrix wrote.</p><p>The group had headed north in the Gulf of Mexico and intended to skirt the coastline for 4 1/2 miles until arriving at Coon Island, where they planned to spend Saturday night, said FWCC Capt. John Burton. The group, which included three kayaks and three canoes, was led by a motorized catamaran raft.</p><p>During the trip, the choppiness of the water and the inexperience of the paddlers led some boats to get separated from the group, Burton said.</p><p>When the group set out on Saturday, weather in the area seemed to fine, said Marty Trexler, a senior meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Tallahassee.</p><p>"Waves at the mouth of the Suwannee were 1-to-2 feet, really not too much, and there was no rainfall," said Trexler. "There were no storms even on Saturday night. The weather really didn't come in until Sunday."</p><p>But they were in an area where storms can quickly become dangerous for people in small boats, and if they were fighting weather Sunday morning, it could have been difficult.</p><p>"It's shallow and so storms, when they kick up, can immediately turn into steep-kicked waves," said Jerrie Lindsey, director of the FWCC's Office of Recreation Services. Also, the open water has very few islands that boaters can seek shelter behind, Lindsey said.</p><p>"The nature of the coastline _ its being exposed, its being shallow, and having sudden storms ... make it particularly problematic," Lindsey said.</p><p>As the catamaran neared Coon Island, a chaperone on board began circling back to try to round up some of the lagging boats. But the boat's motor quit as it began to get dark.</p><p>All but one of the kayaks and canoes tied up to the raft, as 2- to 3-foot waves developed in the gulf amid scattered rains and high winds, Burton said.</p><p>About 9 p.m. Saturday, one of the chaperones and a teenager, began searching for the missing canoe because they thought they saw a light in the distance.</p><p>But they became lost as well, and the two paddled for three to four hours until the chaperone was finally able to use his cell phone. He called his wife in Georgia, who then called the Coast Guard.</p><p>A Coast Guard helicopter located those tied up to the raft at about 3 a.m. Sunday and a rescue boat brought them to shore. About an hour later, the helicopter located and hoisted the kayak with the chaperone and teenager aboard.</p><p>The Coast Guard found Wilkinson and McKemie's bodies around noon Monday.</p><p>The tour was led by an English teacher at the private Darlington School, Steve Hall, who is a licensed outdoor tour guide and leads several weekend adventure trips for teens throughout the year. A spokeswoman for the school said Hall, who has 25 years in outdoor education experience, has led a similar trip to that area for seven years and never had any safety problems. According to Hall's outdoor education trip Web site, he is an experienced river rafting guide.</p><p>The students were on spring break from the school, a Darlington spokeswoman said.</p><p>A prayer service was being held Monday evening at the school. Officials said counselors were on hand to help students, parents and friends cope with the losses.</p><p>___</p><p>On the Net:</p><p>Darlington School: www.darlingtonschool.org</p><p>HASH(0x28634ec)</p>
