CA CA - Barbara Thomas, 69, from Bullhead City AZ, disappeared in Mojave desert, 12 July 2019 #6

[mtnstream]

Perhaps someone who as been to this actual spot can be more authoritative but I have been to what I think are similar locations and my quick answer would be that there are crevices like the one in this story.

My point is that many have said its impossible she just vanished so quickly without any evidence and that this lack of any sign of her is evidence she was never there: but its really not.

She gets lost, she back tracks, she climbs up on some rocks to get a better view to find her car and she falls just perfectly into a crevice. No hat, no beer, no nothing. An archaeologist will find her in 1000 yrs.

I would take the dogs up to that spot where she allegedly took the 360 picture. I might go back there if I knew I had a great view from that spot.

No. There are no crevices, it's not Mt. Everest. I've not been to that particular road, but have been around remote areas very near there. Btw: yes there are a few old mines, digging areas, etc. One can generally see them on approach though.
Edit: sp

 

[mtnstream]

Very good point about looking for RT’s footprints. I also wish that a dog could have been sent to track/trail RT. However, I’m sure that that was impossible—since they were on a mission to try to find Barbara and save her life, so they needed to use the dogs for her, not for detective work in general.

Didn't LE have a scent from her? An item of clothing, etc. As she was in the RV that day?

 

[Lilibet]

-respectfully snipped by me-



How often did BT visit the kennel, in order for them to be in the know of what her usual self was, and what not?
Daily, weekly or maybe once or twice a year?

Does the kennel have just one person working, that happened to be in touch wit BT during all her other visits to the kennel, or do they have a staff of people, all knowing BT and her usual self behavior?

BTW, if someone is not friendly as usual, because in a hurry, if someone is aggravated because of having forgotten something, or whatever, they are NOT not being their usual selves, since being annoyed, sad, aggravated, angry all is part of how we at times feel.

Still, it cannot be relyed upon what a kennel worker concludes in 5 minutes about a person who is not part of her daily life. Perhaps the kennel worker wasn't her usual self that morning, and would have something unfriendly to say about every customer who came by that specific morning.

It is also know that people sometimes ask a question in such a way, in order to get the answer they subconsciously are aiming for, and the person asked the question complying.

As in:
Did BT seem like her usual self?
Answer: yes

Would you not say that BT in the hours before she disappeared did not seem like her usual self?
Answer: yes

Since BT left in 5 min, did she seem to be in a hurry?
Answer: Yes.

Since BT left in 5 min not talking much with the staff, would you say she seemed aggravated?
Answer: Yes

IOW, this is no factual information, but question and answer, involving an outsider who cannot be considered someone in a position to state what BTs usual self was, and who may not have been her usual self unbeknownst to the person asking the question because he/she never frequents the kennel nor knows the staff personally. IMO

I expect that the questions were open ended rather than “leading” to determine Barb’s demeanor and the situation that morning at the kennel. I’m sure it would also have been determined if the employees had encountered her before and how often so that their opinion would have some validity. So questions like “How did Barbara seem when she dropped off her dog that morning?” would be answered “Normal” “Friendly”, “Pleasant” “Upbeat” or “Rushed”, “Irritated” “Stressed” etc. by the employee without coaching from the investigator or family member. The answers would simply reflect what they observed that morning and that it was a contrast with Barbara’s usual behavior at the kennel that they had observed in the past. It doesn’t seem complicated or necessary to look for other ways to explain the answers.
JMO

 

[mtnstream]

How do they get into the truck and RV? An abduction is more likely

A 1/4 of a mile away abduction? While a vehicle is running? And no sound is audible 1/4 mile away? Extremely doubtful in that area. MOO

 

[Micheline]

I expect that the questions were open ended rather than “leading” to determine Barb’s demeanor and the situation that morning at the kennel. I’m sure it would also have been determined if the employees had encountered her before and how often so that their opinion would have some validity. So questions like “How did Barbara seem when she dropped off her dog that morning?” would be answered “Normal” “Friendly”, “Pleasant” “Upbeat” or “Rushed”, “Irritated” “Stressed” etc. by the employee without coaching from the investigator or family member. The answers would simply reflect what they observed that morning and that it was a contrast with Barbara’s usual behavior at the kennel that they had observed in the past. It doesn’t seem complicated or necessary to look for other ways to explain the answers.
JMO

It is my understanding that someone from WS called the kennel, not LE.

To call a kennel to ask how a woman who has been missing for weeks, came across on a morning weeks earlier, in itself is enough for a kennel worker to assume that something must have been out of the ordinary that morning, or why else would someone explicitly call with that question.

That in itself makes the question leading.

The person calling also does no know the kennel worker in question. It could be a nice observatie person who knew BT, as well as it could have been a sensation seeking individual who likes to gossip, we do not know.

Therefor whatever this person said cannot be considered a fact. IMO

 

[mtnstream]

5th Wheel Camping - Campground or Boondock?


Kapua Thanks for your post. ^ snipped for focus. bbm
^"a nice fifth wheel" A rig like that w all the amenities - potty, shower/tub, galley/kitchen, comfy beds - why use a campground or RV park at all? Why not boondock?* Depends on RVers' mindset.

No, not everyone would necessarily want to hook-up at campground or RV park. RT & BT made the kind of stop commonly made by ppl on long car-trip, to stretch legs and/or scenery-gawk, but not to stay overnight, IIUC.

Like you, I wonder if they made a C/G reservation; did they normally do that? Common for some RVer's to free-float, i.e., make no reservations; other always decide on exact destination ahead of time.

Several posters expressed surprise at leaving 5th wheel unattended while parked temporarily on a highway turn-out. That did not startle me, but I'm scratching my head about a bikini clad 69 y/o, w or w'out beer, walking thru spiney cholla in 95F sun, more so than an RV left parked for a few hours. Personally seen plenty of the latter, never the former. but from this thread, I've picked up a bit of info about desert rats.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Boondocking = overnight RV'ing w no elec or water hookups, not in C/G or park.
Common for some RVers whether full-timers or vacationers-/weekenders-only not to use, and not want to use campgrounds/RV parks. Some ppl buy bigger self-contained RVs like this specifically to avoid campgrounds/RV parks. W approp equipmt and using elec & water conservatively, RVer can stay 'out there' for one to two weeks, even longer. No neighbors on doorstep, 'close to nature,' & saving C/G fees (after spending beaucoup bucks on truck & rig). ime.
^ Based on full-time motorhome and Airstream living for several yrs post-retirement. Seen it all in terms of RVer practices & quirks. Or pretty darn close. Several yrs, never made a reservation, but not claiming it is the norm for RVer's.

That road isn't a highway turnout. It's far off the beaten track.

 

[oceanstarryeyes]

That road isn't a highway turnout. It's far off the beaten track.

Earlier a local said that the road is a well traveled road on a Friday as a shortcut toward Vegas.

 

[mtnstream]

The older one gets, the more things one 'forgets'. Newer vehicles, out in the desert, temperatures soaring above 'typical', maybe they did not want to chance their getting back in to their vehicle(s) by relying on remembering a code. A key is a guarantee.

So they hide the key under a rock? Why not take it with them? They had a camera (or cell phone) a six pack, some water, and they did start out their hike together, correct?

Missing Hiker's Husband Says Police Are Eyeing Him As Suspect

 

[Cherwell]

Right. But since I have a Ford, with the same kind of keyless code entry, that RT has in his Ford truck, I never place my keys in my flip-flops on the sand. I hide them under my car seat, lock my Explorer, and use the code to get them when I am ready to leave.

So I don't understand why he'd put the keys to 100k worth of vehicles, under a rock, instead of locking them inside his truck.

Can anyone explain why he would invent this story, though?
Way back, somebody said he needed to explain why Barbara wouldn't have been able to gain access. But if he was lying, he could just say she had her own key. Or indeed that they could both use the code to get in.

 

[mtnstream]

Earlier a local said that the road is a well traveled road on a Friday as a shortcut toward Vegas.

Ok, so at noon Friday, she was missing? And how many people going to Vegas at that time, on a minimally used 2-lane blacktop (in summertime temps of 90-100+) do you think were on that road?

 

[mtnstream]

Can anyone explain why he would invent this story, though?
Way back, somebody said he needed to explain why Barbara wouldn't have been able to gain access. But if he was lying, he could just say she had her own key. Or indeed that they could both use the code to get in.

I'm still wondering why he goes back to the place she went 'missing' and turns over rocks. What is he looking for?

 

[Cherwell]

So a car driving down the road, picking the wife up, then going back to the RV? Maybe. You would think anyone within a mile or so, would have definitely HEARD that.

No. The suggestion was that she might have wandered more than a mile from the vehicles, to a point much further down the road. If someone abducted her at that point, under the pretext that they were going to take her back to the RV, they wouldn't have actually gone back to it.

I wouldn't be at all surprised if they had had an argument and she flounced off, which might explain why she didn't necessarily take the direct route back. Understandable that RT wouldn't want to mention it in those early media interviews, and we've heard nothing from him since. But he might have admitted it to the police.

 

[oceanstarryeyes]

Can anyone explain why he would invent this story, though?
Way back, somebody said he needed to explain why Barbara wouldn't have been able to gain access. But if he was lying, he could just say she had her own key. Or indeed that they could both use the code to get in.

He also said way back, that they hid the key under a rock in case they became separated and one would arrive back at the RV first.

 

[Cherwell]

He also said way back, that they hid the key under a rock in case they became separated and one would arrive back at the RV first.

Yes, that's the "story" I was referring to. Read the post I was replying to, for more clarity.

I have said in an earlier post that this sort of thing can become a long-standing habit, dating from long before the invention of keypad entry or other tech advancements.

 

[Micheline]

So they hide the key under a rock? Why not take it with them? They had a camera (or cell phone) a six pack, some water, and they did start out their hike together, correct?

Missing Hiker's Husband Says Police Are Eyeing Him As Suspect

Why would he make it up?

 

[Skigh]

He also said way back, that they hid the key under a rock in case they became separated and one would arrive back at the RV first.

We only have his word for this.Some men can be very controlling.
He could have had the keys in his backpack.

 

[Cherwell]

We only have his word for this.Some men can be very controlling.
He could have had the keys in his backpack.

But I ask again, why would he invent a story about stashing the key under a rock?
There's no need. He only has to say she has her own key, or knows the code.

 

[Cherwell]

Ok, so at noon Friday, she was missing? And how many people going to Vegas at that time, on a minimally used 2-lane blacktop (in summertime temps of 90-100+) do you think were on that road?

WS member sroad visited the site while the searches were taking place, and said that there were cars passing every few minutes.
CA - Barbara Thomas, 69, from Bullhead City AZ, disappeared in Mojave desert, 12 July 2019 #2

 

[Cherwell]

So he only needs to say that she knows the code for entry. Nobody can prove otherwise.

 

[proctorelites]

It's also possible LE found that key, under a rock and why is your RV key under a rock dear man?
I can think of more than one reason like they were expecting company or HE was expecting company. Maybe BT did go missing right out of the camper if there was a key right outside, she wasnt safe, did she know the key was under a rock? Did anybody establish whether hiding the key was normal behaviour for them?