Spain Jay Slater, 19, missing on holiday in Tenerife, 17 June 2024

[Loyaloil]

I believe there was a video shared of a couple who had walked and searched where his last ping was. It’s on the FB group and they got to almost a dead end on one of the paths. I don’t know if we can share it here?

Yes I also seen that. It is very remote but what I don’t u/stand is if he was on that path when he made his last phone call he could of easily just about turned and walked back, it would have led him back onto the road. It does make me wonder if he was much further into the wilderness and lost sight of the hiking trail. Maybe he screenshotted his location on that path but by the time he called her was further into the bush. I just don’t know understand his thinking behind it tbh.

 

[sundaaaay]

My gut feeling on this is he has gone off road and got into difficulty.

I agree, this is the most logical explanation. I think after taking drugs he felt full of energy but after a while the terrain got more difficult. When he attempted to retrace his steps, he got more lost, because a lot of the paths look the same. It's likely he went down in altitude, instead of up, into the shade, which could be why he said he is "surrounded by mountains". Whereas if he went up, he would see that he is not far from settlements.

People have compared this to the Michael Mosley case, but this young man has a big physical advantage compared to an older person and this climate is more favourable for survival, but it involves finding a water source. They do exist here (See image taken from Flickr of the Masca ravine), but getting down to it could be dangerous. His family have described him as street wise, but being street wise is no use in this landscape.

 

[Kittypoo]

I can’t imagine the mechanism for how he “cut all his leg up” (per Lucy Law’s interview) on a cactus, if he was on a path? Could the pin drop with his final location be inaccurate enough that he was well off the footpath at this point?

I assumed cactus would cause puncture wounds, rather than cuts. If you just brush past one cut it cause horizontal cuts?

Blood loss would intensify the effects of dehydration.

I wondered if it was an aloe Vera plant I recall seeing lots of these in Tenerife. They have the appearance of a cactus and spiky edges

 

[Earthwindfire]

I agree, this is the most logical explanation. I think after taking drugs he felt full of energy but after a while the terrain got more difficult. When he attempted to retrace his steps, he got more lost, because a lot of the paths look the same. It's likely he went down in altitude, instead of up, into the shade, which could be why he said he is "surrounded by mountains". Whereas if he went up, he would see that he is not far from settlements.

People have compared this to the Michael Mosley case, but this young man has a big physical advantage compared to an older person and this climate is more favourable for survival, but it involves finding a water source. They do exist here (See image taken from Flickr of the Masca ravine), but getting down to it could be dangerous. His family have described him as street wise, but being street wise is no use in this landscape.

And although he had a physical advantage, if he had taken drugs or was even just hung over, that will have put him at a huge disadvantage.

 

[Lincolnshirelad]

I've actually walked along the cliff edge here from Los Gigantes and then went inland to Santiago del Teide. It was a long and extremely hard walk with so many drops and rocky climbs. I took 3 litres of water with me and this was in December - I ran out 3/4 in and we had to share a bottle (walked with a friend).

I was wearing walking shoes, and felt like I had made a mistake taking the walk. Seeing that this young lad had been walking in similar terrain and not wearing walking gear - I can completely understand how easy he could get hurt / fallen or even succumbed to dehydration pretty fast if he had taken a mountain path and not a road.

I have attached some photos for you all to see what its like walking in those areas.

I hope they find him soon, but sadly I dont think its going to be a good outcome.

Only thing I feel is odd, if you had got into trouble, as long as you havent wandered up into one of the valleys towards direction of the cliff (a few miles!) then you would certainly come across little farms / buildings. Theres quite a few banana farms in those areas or always at least a building within view.

 

[Earthwindfire]

I've actually walked along the cliff edge here from Los Gigantes and then went inland to Santiago del Teide. It was a long and extremely hard walk with so many drops and rocky climbs. I took 3 litres of water with me and this was in December - I ran out 3/4 in and we had to share a bottle (walked with a friend).

I was wearing walking shoes, and felt like I had made a mistake taking the walk. Seeing that this young lad had been walking in similar terrain and not wearing walking gear - I can completely understand how easy he could get hurt / fallen or even succumbed to dehydration pretty fast if he had taken a mountain path and not a road.

I have attached some photos for you all to see what its like walking in those areas.

I hope they find him soon, but sadly I dont think its going to be a good outcome.

Only thing I feel is odd, if you had got into trouble, as long as you havent wandered up into one of the valleys towards direction of the cliff (a few miles!) then you would certainly come across little farms / buildings. Theres quite a few banana farms in those areas or always at least a building within view.

I think the complicating factor here is likely having had a heavy night the night before.

 

[Lincolnshirelad]

I think the complicating factor here is likely having had a heavy night the night before.

Yep, I slept like a rock when I got in from this walk - its crazy exhausting on your body.

Ive done a few big walks in the lake district in the UK, 4-6 hour hikes and this one was completely different.

 

[Ocalasunrise]

Yes I also seen that. It is very remote but what I don’t u/stand is if he was on that path when he made his last phone call he could of easily just about turned and walked back, it would have led him back onto the road. It does make me wonder if he was much further into the wilderness and lost the hiking trail.

Agreed. IMO and experience (ex-Mtn Rescue), lost people are unwilling to retrace their steps especially when it involves going back up a steep hill as in this case.
Not seen that many details of the search but it appears competent and methodical. Families will always naturally feel that you are not doing enough to find their loved one who is missing. By this stage the search will likely have exhausted the most likely places (although you should still recheck incase the person goes back into an already searched area, and it easier than you'd like to miss someone who has sheltered under a rock etc for shade). That leaves the areas that are harsher/further away from the initial set-out and it looks like they've drafted in more local knowledge which is good because you're looking for anomalies ('what do I see in this area that I'm not expecting?') and with the best will in the world non-locals don't pick up those things.
Re - cactus/aloe vera cuts, these aren't likely to be deep or significant, but the small blood loss will contribute to any dehydration.

 

[suzyjackson]

I agree.

As sleuthers we have a tendency to look for complexities in cases like this that, 9 times out of 10, are eventually shown not to exist.

IMO the simplest and most tragic explanation here is that this is exactly as it appears to be. Lost in inhospitable surroundings a long way from help. Raves typically go on into the small hours and many (most?) people use drugs of some kind to fuel their fun at them, in my experience. At 8am he may well have still been under the influence of anything consumed the previous night, which might explain any poor choices and irrational thinking.

Totally, there is a common tendency for people to say "I would have done ..." "I wouldnt have ...." which means nothing, no one can predict what would happen in an unexpected situation under the influence of drink or drugs or in a potentially dangerous situation.

This is a young lad on his first trip out of the country to a rave, of course he isn't going to act rationally at all times

We see this time and time again with young people on nights out, no one sets out thinking the worst will happen but sometimes circumstances conspire against us.

Sadly I think this will end like so many other cases

 

[lji]

I agree.

As sleuthers we have a tendency to look for complexities in cases like this that, 9 times out of 10, are eventually shown not to exist.

IMO the simplest and most tragic explanation here is that this is exactly as it appears to be. Lost in inhospitable surroundings a long way from help. Raves typically go on into the small hours and many (most?) people use drugs of some kind to fuel their fun at them, in my experience. At 8am he may well have still been under the influence of anything consumed the previous night, which might explain any poor choices and irrational thinking.

Completely agree. I remember making a comment in the Nicola Bulley thread that Occam's Razor would prevail (the most obvious answer is the right answer) and it did turn out to be true, her falling in the river. I think it's the same here, of course we all look into every single bit of information and things will sometimes crop up that seem suspicious but if we break it down we have:
- A 19 year old lad
- Him attending an event known to be 'insane' (assuming that hints towards people getting off their head on drink/drugs)
- Waking up (presumably feeling a little worse for wear) in a villa a 45 minute drive away from where he was staying, this villa being in quite a remote part of the island with lots of windy roads and treacherous terrain.
- By his own admission to Lucy he was thirsty, dehydrated, lost and had cut his leg. He also told her he missed his bus so was going to attempt the 11 hour walk back.
- His last pinned location showed him off of the main road, looks like on some kind of trail (although admittedly we're not sure how accurate this is).

If someone gave you those facts without any other information at all, I'd imagine 99% of us would go "Yep, he's got lost while attempting to walk back to his accommodation after a night out of heavy partying and has succumbed to the elemnts/injuries he may have got along the way".

 

[Ruthbullock]

I think the complicating factor here is likely having had a heavy night the night before.

But not so heavy not to have a moment where he thought what have I done, I’m not prepared for this. This is more than a lot of people do and at this point he hadn’t been out for long, so questionable how far away from the path he could be. Especially when it’s being implied he walked to the viewpoint, so a chunk of the walk would have been via the road. The walk through the gorge starts from the village, but wouldn’t seem logical from the apartment as that was not in the village. I wish they knew where to search, after calling for help and being up all night, it would make sense to nap and wait in some shade nearby, or backtrack, as at that point he was being logical and rational with his decisions, more so than many other people have been in that situation.

 

[lji]

I've actually walked along the cliff edge here from Los Gigantes and then went inland to Santiago del Teide. It was a long and extremely hard walk with so many drops and rocky climbs. I took 3 litres of water with me and this was in December - I ran out 3/4 in and we had to share a bottle (walked with a friend).

I was wearing walking shoes, and felt like I had made a mistake taking the walk. Seeing that this young lad had been walking in similar terrain and not wearing walking gear - I can completely understand how easy he could get hurt / fallen or even succumbed to dehydration pretty fast if he had taken a mountain path and not a road.

I have attached some photos for you all to see what its like walking in those areas.

I hope they find him soon, but sadly I dont think its going to be a good outcome.

Only thing I feel is odd, if you had got into trouble, as long as you havent wandered up into one of the valleys towards direction of the cliff (a few miles!) then you would certainly come across little farms / buildings. Theres quite a few banana farms in those areas or always at least a building within view.

If I wasn't already 100% on my opinion he's had a fall while trying to make his way back then this has definitely settled it. I imagine some parts of the route he probably tried to go were very similar to the ones in your photo. A little bit unsteady on his feet after a night of partying and a fall down a slope like the one in your first photo could be fatal, and unfortunately if you end up in a bush or something at the bottom of it then it could take days to find.

 

[Ocalasunrise]

I've actually walked along the cliff edge here from Los Gigantes and then went inland to Santiago del Teide. It was a long and extremely hard walk with so many drops and rocky climbs. I took 3 litres of water with me and this was in December - I ran out 3/4 in and we had to share a bottle (walked with a friend).

I was wearing walking shoes, and felt like I had made a mistake taking the walk. Seeing that this young lad had been walking in similar terrain and not wearing walking gear - I can completely understand how easy he could get hurt / fallen or even succumbed to dehydration pretty fast if he had taken a mountain path and not a road.

I have attached some photos for you all to see what its like walking in those areas.

I hope they find him soon, but sadly I dont think its going to be a good outcome.

Only thing I feel is odd, if you had got into trouble, as long as you havent wandered up into one of the valleys towards direction of the cliff (a few miles!) then you would certainly come across little farms / buildings. Theres quite a few banana farms in those areas or always at least a building within view.

Good post and really helpful photos. I think the concern is that - from where he was pinned as last being - that track leads down a steep-sided (and steep) valley where there aren’t any farms or buildings. If he'd gone down a parallel valley (Barranco de Masca) then there are a few buildings, better tracks, occasional trickles of water and a visited beach. But the one that he may have ended up with is a much harsher place.

 

[Earthwindfire]

Yep, I slept like a rock when I got in from this walk - its crazy exhausting on your body.

Ive done a few big walks in the lake district in the UK, 4-6 hour hikes and this one was completely different.

Good post and really helpful photos. I think the concern is that - from where he was pinned as last being - that track leads down a steep-sided (and steep) valley where there aren’t any farms or buildings. If he'd gone down a parallel valley (Barranco de Masca) then there are a few buildings, better tracks, occasional trickles of water and a visited beach. But the one that he may have ended up with is a much harsher place.

We made an error of judgment in southern India once and decided to embark on a walk that looked amazing (and was in many ways). But it was 30+ degrees heat, we ran out of water far quicker than we thought and large parts weren't shaded. To top it off we arrived at this beautiful beach and the one cafe at this place was no longer in existence, so no chance for a drink. Worth hindsight it was an awful decision.

We weren't even that young. We were 32 I think but made a massive error in judgment.

 

[San111]

My gut feeling on this is he has gone off road and got into difficulty. I think that suggesting otherwise provides hope in a way, where as someone without access to food and water will most certainly be very well unwell by now.

That said, I remembered a relative of mine around his age got into difficulty a year or so ago in Tenerife having gone back with some men to a house and they escaped over a wall.

Agree. Lucy was obviously very concerned by the nature of the call. Somehow getting a cut leg, not waiting for a bus or following a road perhaps he could have been still strongly under the influence of something, JMO.
Friend of mine actually hiked for hours across Ibiza at dawn without water when his battery went dead after a night out, this sort of thing happens all the time

 

[Earthwindfire]

Agree. Lucy was obviously very concerned by the nature of the call. Somehow getting a cut leg, not waiting for a bus or following a road perhaps he could have been still strongly under the influence of something, JMO.
Friend of mine actually hiked for hours across Ibiza at dawn without water when his battery went dead after a night out, this sort of thing happens all the time

I can easily see how it seemed the best or maybe only option to him. He maybe wasn't planning on the full 10 hour hike, but thought he could get closer and then get his own phone charged.

 

[Inthedetails]

I can easily see how it seemed the best or maybe only option to him. He maybe wasn't planning on the full 10 hour hike, but thought he could get closer and then get his own phone charged.

This is very possible - optimism and confidence of "I'll figure it out as I go along." In many situations, that works.

 

[Knitty]

MOD NOTE:

Hey folks,

Links to and discussion of fundraising is not allowed unless it is a fundraiser run by close friends or family AND even then, the only thing allowed is a possible snippet of a previously unknown fact regarding the specifics of the case itself (i.e. wearing black sneakers, or ??). The actual money figures, how it is progressing, and what the money will be used for are off limits.

Let's remember that a young man is missing, and that his mother is frantic to find him.

Thanks.

Knitty,
Moderator

 

[Ruthbullock]

So according to the sun (I know, I know)- and Lucy’s conversation with the 2 new friends- there was no hurry to leave. He went to the shop, purchased cigarettes and returned to the flat, he then spoke to the neighbour who said there was a bus every 10 minutes. So he was confident asking for help from strangers and went to the shop. The bus stop was by the apartment, but he didn’t return and he decided to walk, but didn’t go and purchase some water before setting off. I realise he could have misinterpreted 20 minutes drive as walking time- but if you did not have a view of the coast and could see the hairpin road, you would know it’s not 20 minutes walk away. In this article it also states he had only been walking for 30 minutes before he rang and said he was in trouble. This could also have been the point he realised it wasn’t 20 minutes walk away, but why then move.

 

[sundaaaay]

I think the concern is that - from where he was pinned as last being - that track leads down a steep-sided (and steep) valley where there aren’t any farms or buildings

True - There is some information on the descent into the Barranco Juan López gorge here (Link).

It it described as,

"An adventure and definitely not suitable for everyone"

"You are unlikely to find any other hikers on these rough stretches."

"A difficult hike with many small “climbs” for which you need a very good physical condition as well as absolute freedom from vertigo and sure-footedness"