ACTIVE SEARCH JAPAN - Patricia "Pattie" Wu-Murad, 60, US Citizen, on hiking trip Kumano Kodo Trail, didn't arr next stop Osaka, 10 Apr 2023

[ZaZara]

Yes, that would be helpful to know her behaviours.
Not only her toilet behaviours, but also her typical pace and style of hiking. Did Pattie generally drive forward at a good speed with no distractions? Or did she usually go at a slightly slower pace to take in her surroundings? Did she take many/any photos? How fast was she likely to make it to the Miura peak?

Did she typically stop to help others? or was she reticent and shy, staying to herself? Her family recently indicated that it's possible she could let her guard down to help others.

Her husband told in an interview that he knows all that after all the hikes they did together. He hiked the trail and he knows where she would have stopped to take a picture.

As for Pattie's toilet behaviours.... should we really discuss those after all the searches that have been done already by professionals?

In Japanese culture, good manners are extremely important and at any time, one should strive not to give offense or cause distress.
The presence of toilets along the trail, even on lone mountain passes, is self explanatory: Use those.
Japanese culture is not about YOU or how YOU feel, but about the rules of society and preserving harmony.

Hope this helps.

 

[Snoopster]

Thanks for the lead to this YT account.
For those looking for them and wanting to watch them, note that when searching the video number is 2 digits and there is no space after the word "foot".

To save you some time, on video 09, it's only late in the video that the hiker reaches that last village where Pattie was seen. At about 1:15:00 in the video the person arrives in the village and is approaching the old 2-storey school. Just past that, at 1:16:25 you can see Minshuku Mandokoro guesthouse, where Pattie stayed. At 1:24:34 in the video you come to the split in the road to the new 'bypass' to the right and the road to the trailhead to the left..and the video ends at the Miura Pass trailhead marker.

Video 10 starts at the trailhead marker.
A couple of things I noticed in video 10:
- 00:02:39 provides a look back across the Funtobashi pedestrian bridge toward the town. You can see the newer 'bypass' road descending on the left side and you can see a bright blue 'tarp' roof slightly to the right of the bridge in the image. A trail hiker would walk right past this building.
- 00:03:07 immediately after the bridge there is a slight split in the trail; one going higher (the Kohechi trail) and one going flat. The flat one is the trail that apparently had banners by it at the time that Pattie would have hiked it. Some speculated that this might have caused her to follow that incorrect trail to the left.
- at the same timestamp as above you can see a trail worker. At first I thought it was a construction worker, but not too much further along the trail (maybe another 5 minutes along) there was another woman dressed similarly (with a hardhat), sweeping and tidying the trail.
- 00:09:22 - 00:09:52 there is a largish house with a bike parked outside. as you walk along the trail and curve around it there is lots of men's laundry hanging up. So clearly someone lives here. Did they see or hear anything the day Pattie went missing?

In that first part of the trail up to miura pass I was surprised to see a few houses. How do these people get stuff into their place? They seem only accessible by foot.


That's as far as I've watched, and fewer places exist as you climb upward toward the peak. (Of note: No other hikers appear on the trail during this phase of the video.)

ETA: one more observation that I forgot to share...as the hiker stepped on the Funtobashi bridge I noticed that it was quite loud as they walked. I think it would potentially catch the attention of some people in the area (residents/workers) if the loud construction equipment wasn't operating. If someone had ill-intent, they might have seen her on the bridge above and then followed her. Having said that I still lean toward an accident. But you never know.

quoting my own post, since I've had a follow-on thought regarding the noisy bridge...

I presume police interviewed everyone in the village as well as any 'workers' in the area. Did ANY of them see Pattie? or hear any hikers on the bridge? It seems that they didn't or else that would have likely been mentioned by the family. Do locals generally ignore the hikers? If 4 or 6 or 8 walk the trail each day, do they simply not notice anymore?

Pattie was walking south, as was the Australian and the trail runners. Were there any people hiking the route in the other direction that day? They would have come over the pass much later in the day, likely early-mid afternoon. Were there only 4 people overall on that section of the trail that day?

Sorry, just more ramblings in my mind.

 

[j_in_c]

Her husband told in an interview that he knows all that after all the hikes they did together. He hiked the trail and he knows where she would have stopped to take a picture.

As for Pattie's toilet behaviours.... should we really discuss those after all the searches that have been done already by professionals?

In Japanese culture, good manners are extremely important and at any time, one should strive not to give offense or cause distress.
The presence of toilets along the trail, even on lone mountain passes, is self explanatory: Use those.
Japanese culture is not about YOU or how YOU feel, but about the rules of society and preserving harmony.

Hope this helps.

This is a good note for those of us used to hiking in US to make note of. Pattie clearly researched the proper etiquette and norms for the region she was hiking in.

 

[neesaki]

Bathroom breaks are typically quite frequent for long distance hikers because most drink a lot more water than on a non-hiking day. Any amount of dehydration makes the walk harder. People often drink lots before setting out, to reduce the amount they have to carry, so the urge can happen within an hour of setting off.

JMO

I was about to say that. I’m like, what? Yes, you have to hydrate often, and I drink a lot of water anyway. Where’s it going to go? Although in the old days , no problemo. These days? I might want to consider some of those fancy new diaper pant things, lol. Just sayin’.

 

[justtrish]

Her husband told in an interview that he knows all that after all the hikes they did together. He hiked the trail and he knows where she would have stopped to take a picture.

As for Pattie's toilet behaviours.... should we really discuss those after all the searches that have been done already by professionals?

In Japanese culture, good manners are extremely important and at any time, one should strive not to give offense or cause distress.
The presence of toilets along the trail, even on lone mountain passes, is self explanatory: Use those.
Japanese culture is not about YOU or how YOU feel, but about the rules of society and preserving harmony.

Hope this helps.

I meant no offense in my questions and I wasn't intending to be disrespectful of Pattie or the Japanese culture.

I wasn't aware they had toilets along the trail. The photos I've seen look really remote except for the few areas of city streets and even those cities look tiny and secluded. If there are many places along the trails with a bathroom available, then I am sure Pattie would use those so again I meant no disrespect, I was not are the bathrooms were there.

My knowledge was simply that of US hiking and it just isn't common to have any facilities along a trail. Maybe at the trail head if it's starting in a park, but along the trail I've never encountered one. If we hike 10 miles we will need to go so the only option is to find a place to go.

 

[Interested_But_Confused]

There are at least three toilets along the 18km trail, one at the top of the Miura-toge Pass, one at the bottom of the mountain where it meets the winding road, and at least one on the 8km road section.

Given the fact that these are pilgrimage trails, it might almost be considered sacrilegious to "defile" them by not using the proper bathroom facilities.

I presume police interviewed everyone in the village as well as any 'workers' in the area. Did ANY of them see Pattie? or hear any hikers on the bridge? It seems that they didn't or else that would have likely been mentioned by the family. Do locals generally ignore the hikers? If 4 or 6 or 8 walk the trail each day, do they simply not notice anymore?

Pattie set out at 7:00am so the workers were probably not there yet. Many of the villagers may have only just been waking up, also. I suspect there were very few witnesses in the village; if there had been, that information would most likely have come out by now.

 

[Cedars]

I was about to say that. I’m like, what? Yes, you have to hydrate often, and I drink a lot of water anyway. Where’s it going to go? Although in the old days , no problemo. These days? I might want to consider some of those fancy new diaper pant things, lol. Just sayin’.

Especially for women, it is hard to be discreet. Some photos of the trail showed wide open forest, without shrubs. Just for info, there are devices for women that let you stay standing, say behind a tree.

ETA: I expect most Japanese pilgrims have traditionally been male, just from what Japanese women who've moved to the west have told me. And I'm not sure whether, traditionally, Japanese men on pilgrimage would have expected to find and use trailside bathrooms. It seems to me possibly not. On the contrary, most temples/shrines wouldn't be considered an appropriate place to leave your waste, for the temple attendant to have to deal with....

JMO

 

[MsMarple]

About 10 days after Wu-Murad went missing, a man approached a solo female hiker near the trail asking if she’d go home with him to practice his English, a post reads.

“We still believe there is a possibility that Pattie’s trust in people could have made her a victim of foul play and all stories and suggestions are welcome,” the post reads. “We remain determined in our pursuit to find Pattie, to find answers.”

The Murad family forwarded the information to local police and the FBI. The hiker is willing to help with the investigation.

Family of Storrs woman missing in Japan gets tip about man near trail

STORRS, Conn. (WTNH) — An international effort to raise awareness about a Storrs woman who went missing last month while hiking in Japan has led to a tip about a man near the trail she was pl…

www.wtnh.com

So it’s been clarified that only one man approached a hiker and not two? One would be very unusual but two would be the rarest of rare. IMO

Anyway, I’ve been following along but haven’t posted until now, mostly because my youngest daughter lives in Osaka and the case makes me uncomfortable.

I travel to Japan frequently and have never felt unsafe, even late at night catching Pokémon. Drunken businessmen stumbling down the street pay no attention to other people, including women. Most Japanese are pretty tolerant of non Japanese and many are quite friendly. But some are xenophobic. I’ve seen women scooch away from me on a subway seat for no reason other than I’m a foreigner.

So the thought of a man not only approaching a strange foreign woman but asking her to go home with him is unnerving. I understand though that crimes happen even in a safe country and some can be quite horrific.

And unfortunately there’s a lot of red tape required for even simple tasks and actions so I’m not surprised that the investigation into Pattie’s disappearance had a bumpy start. And surprise, technology in Japan isn’t exactly cutting edge so let’s hope something of value will be discovered once they have her phone records.

In any case I hope Pattie is found safe but that hope fades each day

 

[annpats]

Yes, that would be helpful to know her behaviours.
Not only her toilet behaviours, but also her typical pace and style of hiking. Did Pattie generally drive forward at a good speed with no distractions? Or did she usually go at a slightly slower pace to take in her surroundings? Did she take many/any photos? How fast was she likely to make it to the Miura peak?

Did she typically stop to help others? or was she reticent and shy, staying to herself? Her family recently indicated that it's possible she could let her guard down to help others.

Excellent thoughts. It could possibly help narrow down where she may have disappeared.

 

[Interested_But_Confused]

I was just looking at the Instagram account of Pattie's daughter for the first time, and I couldn't help noticing her Mother's Day post for Pattie. In the post, Pattie's daughter mentions that Pattie's life has not always been easy or kind, and that Pattie has had to overcome obstacles to be happy and healthy.

If Pattie's daughter is referring to racial or gender-related prejudice that Pattie has faced, it can probably be discounted as having any relevance to Pattie's disappearance. But if Pattie has had any physical or mental health difficulties in the past, those could potentially have some bearing on her disappearance.

There have been a few recent cases where the family initially said there was nothing wrong with the missing person, only to subsequently reveal they had withheld important information that answered a lot of questions. I have no idea if that could be the case with Pattie, but her daughter's post raised some questions for me.

 

[StillDiggin]

Still no news. Pattie’s daughter wants the trail runners to come forward then we can fully understand there route.
**URGENT** We are trying to locate 3 local trail runners that were on the Kohechi trail on April 10. They started around Koyasan and ran to Wakayama. They passed by Imoze around 7:35 am. Please spread the word! We're hoping one of them reaches out to us so we can better understand their route. This piece of information will help us better direct our search efforts. #helpfindpattie

Help Find Pattie | ‪Update: We have been connected with one of the trail runners ‬ | Facebook

‪Update: We have been connected with one of the trail runners ‬ **URGENT** We are trying to locate 3 local trail runners that were on the Kohechi trail on April 10. They started around Koyasan and...

www.facebook.com

 

[kittythehare]

Still no news. Pattie’s daughter wants the trail runners to come forward then we can fully understand there route.
**URGENT** We are trying to locate 3 local trail runners that were on the Kohechi trail on April 10. They started around Koyasan and ran to Wakayama. They passed by Imoze around 7:35 am. Please spread the word! We're hoping one of them reaches out to us so we can better understand their route. This piece of information will help us better direct our search efforts. #helpfindpattie

Help Find Pattie | ‪Update: We have been connected with one of the trail runners ‬ | Facebook

‪Update: We have been connected with one of the trail runners ‬ **URGENT** We are trying to locate 3 local trail runners that were on the Kohechi trail on April 10. They started around Koyasan and...

www.facebook.com

Gosh, I had assumed that all relevant people had been tracked and found by now.
Hopefully they come forward or at least identify themselves.

 

[annpats]

Gosh, I had assumed that all relevant people had been tracked and found by now.
Hopefully they come forward or at least identify themselves.

The trail runners had already been sighted on CCTV, but I don't know what details they could provide that would help. I think they're interested in which route/, direction they took or may have gone.

 

[slowpoke]

Gosh, I had assumed that all relevant people had been tracked and found by now.
Hopefully they come forward or at least identify themselves.

The police know but don’t share names with the family for privacy reasons, likely.

I don’t think the Australian man‘s name who stayed at the Minshuku Mandokoro has been given to the family,either.

 

[Snoopster]

Still no news. Pattie’s daughter wants the trail runners to come forward then we can fully understand there route.
**URGENT** We are trying to locate 3 local trail runners that were on the Kohechi trail on April 10. They started around Koyasan and ran to Wakayama. They passed by Imoze around 7:35 am. Please spread the word! We're hoping one of them reaches out to us so we can better understand their route. This piece of information will help us better direct our search efforts. #helpfindpattie

Help Find Pattie | ‪Update: We have been connected with one of the trail runners ‬ | Facebook

‪Update: We have been connected with one of the trail runners ‬ **URGENT** We are trying to locate 3 local trail runners that were on the Kohechi trail on April 10. They started around Koyasan and...

www.facebook.com

I'm confused by this. Imoze isn't on the way between Koyasan and Wakayama. As I understand it, Koyasan is where the Kohechi trail starts and Imoze is 2 sections of the trail heading SSW from there, while Wakayama is straight to the west of Koyasan. I may be mixed up since these are not only cities, but also regions. But it still doesn't make sense to me.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

The three runners would have been on the Kohechi route of the Kumano Kodō trail on April 10. The group started at Koyasan and ran to Wakayama, passing by Imoze at 7:35 a.m., according to a post from Wu-Murad’s daughter on a Facebook page for the search.

Family of missing Storrs woman trying to track down trail runners

STORRS, Conn. (WTNH) — The family of a Storrs woman who went missing in Japan is hoping to find runners who were on the trail she was planning to hike. Patricia Wu-Murad was last seen on Apri…

www.wtnh.com

 

[ZaZara]

Help Find Pattie via Twitter:

Update: We have been connected with one of the trail runners

 

[StillDiggin]

Patricia Wu-Murad's family, rescue workers, and locals are all baffled that no clues have emerged​

Growing Concern That Connecticut Mom Who Disappeared in Japan Is Victim of Foul Play (Exclusive)

Patricia Wu-Murad's family, rescue workers, and locals are all baffled that no clues have emerged

themessenger.com

 

[annpats]

Patricia Wu-Murad's family, rescue workers, and locals are all baffled that no clues have emerged​

Growing Concern That Connecticut Mom Who Disappeared in Japan Is Victim of Foul Play (Exclusive)

Patricia Wu-Murad's family, rescue workers, and locals are all baffled that no clues have emerged

themessenger.com

I don't think "no clues left = foul play".

If she disappeared deep in a forested mountainous area, there wouldn't be any clues.

And to be fair, they don't even know exactly where she went missing.

 

[Curiousobserver]

Keeping an open mind on this one.

She doesn't fit the normal lost hiker profile: ill experienced, poorly prepared, young and foolish

“The trail was rather solid and easy to understand,” he tells The Messenger. “So I got the impression that getting lost on that trail was not very likely.”

He also calls it “a strange case” and seemed skeptical about the accident theory.

“There are not many places on the Kumano Kodo trail where you can fall off the trail to the point where no one can see you,” Ohnishi, 68, explains. “Since it is a mountain, there are many trees growing there. And when a person falls off the trail, he or she often gets caught in one of the trees, and searchers can spot that. But there was no sign of that at all.”

Growing Concern That Connecticut Mom Who Disappeared in Japan Is Victim of Foul Play (Exclusive)

Patricia Wu-Murad's family, rescue workers, and locals are all baffled that no clues have emerged

themessenger.com