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

[Springrain]

These types of cases always worry me so much. So many places she could be...

 

[ZaZara]

These types of cases always worry me so much. So many places she could be...

This landscape can hide a multitude of sins...


Have there been any updates about Pattie's phone?


On Help Find Pattie Murphy Murad wrote at the end of the first update:

Other information to note: the last known text message exchange with Pattie was with me, Murphy. I received a message on Sunday, April 9 @ 8:02 AM (JST) and responded 40 minutes later and the message sent through. The earliest known text message that was not delivered to her phone was from a family friend on Wednesday, April 12 @ 2:53 AM (JST).

**If you were in contact with my mom and have had any message interactions that fall between these dates and times PLEASE CONTACT ME DIRECTLY!**


(JST is Japan Standard Time)

 

[slowpoke]

I do wish th family would reveal some more details regarding this.
Do you think the Japanese police even told the family where the itinerary was left behind? I hope so.
Let's hope those details are passed on.

The daughter who is writing the updates* wrote that her brother, dad and close friend found/saw the two papers with Pattie’s writing (itinerary and guestbook) while visiting the last guesthouse Pattie had stayed, the Minshuku Mandokoro.

* from the 4/22 update at the G F M page

 

[annpats]

I wonder where the orange fleece was lost. On the trail? Taken by someone?
Just another part of the puzzle.

I'd forgotten about that!
A fleece doesn't sound like something you'd want to lose. And most people would only have the one with them.

The daughter who is writing the updates* wrote that her brother, dad and close friend found/saw the two papers with Pattie’s writing (itinerary and guestbook) while visiting the last guesthouse Pattie had stayed, the Minshuku Mandokoro.

* from the 4/22 update at the G F M page

But where did they see them? In the same place Pattie left them?
Which was....?

 

[slowpoke]

I'd forgotten about that!
A fleece doesn't sound like something you'd want to lose. And most people would only have the one with them.

But where did they see them? In the same place Pattie left them?
Which was....?

Yes, unknown where in the guesthouse the itinerary was found. From the way it was written in the update, though, the daughter made it sound like it was her family members who found the papers, not the police, which was what I meant to be the point of my post. MOO

And since they are saying they don’t know if her mom left it there accidentally, makes me think it was not in the waste bin. If it was in the waste bin, I’d assume she meant to throw it away. MOO

 

[annpats]

Yes, unknown where in the guesthouse the itinerary was found. From the way it was written in the update, though, the daughter made it sound like it was her family members who found the papers, not the police, which was what I meant to be the point of my post.

And since they are saying they don’t know if her mom left it there accidentally, makes me think it was not in the waste bin. If it was in the waste bin, I’d assume she meant to throw it away. MOO

I see, thank you for clarifying.

The thing is her family didn't visit Japan until several days after she went missing. I'm surprised the itinerary was still around!!
Doesn't the guesthouse owner do much cleaning and tidying after his guests have gone?!

 

[Cedars]

I'd forgotten about that!
A fleece doesn't sound like something you'd want to lose. And most people would only have the one with them.

I agree, it's a major pita, but it does happen (I walked away from my rain jacket at a restaurant, and left high-tec tshirts on a hostel clothes line.) When you're moving daily from place to place, you can't go back to get something

I assume she'd have prioritized replacing it (unless she had two). It's an essential piece of clothing, you'd just take the time to find another one.

In this kind of case, when there's so much unknown, every little detail tends to be scrutinized as potentially important, but is it really?

When I try to narrow down to the causes of whatever happened, I can only see:

1. She got confused and at some point missed the trail, becoming lost. She must not have been able to call for help. So the real problem was inadequate cellphone/ coverage.
2. She slipped and fell in a dangerous place and was unable to call for help, either because of injuries, or inadequate cellphone/ coverage.
3. While on the trail, or the way to or from, she was attacked and unable to get away/call for help.

So her key possession, IMO, was her cellphone. There was debate, but I don't think it's been settled whether she could or could not use her phone when out on the trail. That detail, frustratingly, hasn't been directly discussed by the family.

In terms of where she is, IMO the only searches that would potentially find her, are below where she might have fallen off the trail. It sounds like that might be what searchers are focused on.

JMO

 

[houndpounder]

The other 2 people in the photo that is cropped, is the Australian tourist/hiker and the woman that owned the Mandokoro Guest House. She may have lost her orange fleece but she also had a pink one with her. As far as her leaving her itinerary at the guest, perhaps she was off that morning or not focused.

 

[neesaki]

I'd forgotten about that!
A fleece doesn't sound like something you'd want to lose. And most people would only have the one with them.

But where did they see them? In the same place Pattie left them?
Which was....?

I also thought it seemed a bit odd she would “lose” her fleece. She apparentl had few items with her. It wouldn’t be hard to keep up with. Or shouldn’t. IMO
I’m honestly starting to question if she could have had some undiagnosed early onset dementia going on. There are just too many things that seem a bit off kilter, IYKWIM. . And, JMO

 

[neesaki]

I see, thank you for clarifying.

The thing is her family didn't visit Japan until several days after she went missing. I'm surprised the itinerary was still around!!
Doesn't the guesthouse owner do much cleaning and tidying after his guests have gone?!

There seem many oddities in this case. JMO

 

[slowpoke]

I see, thank you for clarifying.

The thing is her family didn't visit Japan until several days after she went missing. I'm surprised the itinerary was still around!!
Doesn't the guesthouse owner do much cleaning and tidying after his guests have gone?!

Good point. Maybe the minshuku owner found it while cleaning the room and put it aside somewhere in case Pattie called them about it, not knowing if it was an important paper (guessing the owner doesn’t read English writing.)

 

[slowpoke]

I agree, it's a major pita, but it does happen (I walked away from my rain jacket at a restaurant, and left high-tec tshirts on a hostel clothes line.) When you're moving daily from place to place, you can't go back to get something

I assume she'd have prioritized replacing it (unless she had two). It's an essential piece of clothing, you'd just take the time to find another one.

In this kind of case, when there's so much unknown, every little detail tends to be scrutinized as potentially important, but is it really?

When I try to narrow down to the causes of whatever happened, I can only see:

1. She got confused and at some point missed the trail, becoming lost. She must not have been able to call for help. So the real problem was inadequate cellphone/ coverage.
2. She slipped and fell in a dangerous place and was unable to call for help, either because of injuries, or inadequate cellphone/ coverage.
3. While on the trail, or the way to or from, she was attacked and unable to get away/call for help.

So her key possession, IMO, was her cellphone. There was debate, but I don't think it's been settled whether she could or could not use her phone when out on the trail. That detail, frustratingly, hasn't been directly discussed by the family.

In terms of where she is, IMO the only searches that would potentially find her, are below where she might have fallen off the trail. It sounds like that might be what searchers are focused on.

JMO

 

[slowpoke]

What I read regarding cell phone service was that there was cell service the whole trek, from the Mandokoro to Taiyo-no-yu guesthouses. (This is according to the daughter’s 4/22 update at G F M.)

Oops, I was replying to Cedars’ post. Guess I messed up.

 

[StillDiggin]

The family of a missing Storrs woman is hoping new equipment will help find their loved one. Pattie Wu-Murad was last seen hiking in Japan nearly a month ago and hasn’t been heard from since.

<modsnip: Copyright violation; no more than 10% of any article can be copied>

Family of Missing Hiker Leaves Japan, But Search Continues

The family of a missing Storrs woman is hoping new equipment will help find their loved one. Pattie Wu-Murad was last seen hiking in Japan nearly a month ago and hasn’t been heard from since. “This is a very difficult time for us. We want her back. We want her back as soon as possible.” Day by...

www.nbcconnecticut.com

 

[Springrain]

How old was Pattie?

 

[neesaki]

How old was Pattie?

I think it was reported that she is 60 y/o.

ETA: I found a link.

Husband of Connecticut mom missing in Japan says search intensifying, involves Japan, US law enforcement

Patricia “Pattie” Wu-Murad was last seen on the morning of April 10.

nypost.com

 

[ZaZara]

I also thought it seemed a bit odd she would “lose” her fleece. She apparentl had few items with her. It wouldn’t be hard to keep up with. Or shouldn’t. IMO
I’m honestly starting to question if she could have had some undiagnosed early onset dementia going on. There are just too many things that seem a bit off kilter, IYKWIM. . And, JMO

Why would you think that?

Pilgrims lose or forget stuff all the time. They also throw things away or dump them for anyone who might be interested.
Social media for the Camino in Spain for instance have separate sections for lost and found.

socks, towels, earpods, wallets, pilgrim documents, sunglasses, sunglasses, sunglasses, T-shirts, fleece jackets, backpacks, underwear, iPads, iPods..... you name it and they lose it.

At the end of the season, the hospitaleros in the albergues and guesthouses usually have a basket full of forgotten towels. Pilgrims simply walked on, sometimes they were reunited with their lost items, especially when these are valuable. Missing towels are replaced by towels forgotten in the next place. Socks, T-shirts and fleece jackets can be bought in a store if the pilgrim feels the need to replace the item. That is not always the case btw.

IMO the fleece jacket was not a great loss, and not an item for which you would turn around or take the bus back to the place where you might have lost it. Also, Japan being the country that it is, they would have fleece (and other) jackets in stores.

 

[neesaki]

Why would you think that?

Pilgrims lose or forget stuff all the time. They also throw things away or dump them for anyone who might be interested.
Social media for the Camino in Spain for instance have separate sections for lost and found.

socks, towels, earpods, wallets, pilgrim documents, sunglasses, sunglasses, sunglasses, T-shirts, fleece jackets, backpacks, underwear, iPads, iPods..... you name it and they lose it.

At the end of the season, the hospitaleros in the albergues and guesthouses usually have a basket full of forgotten towels. Pilgrims simply walked on, sometimes they were reunited with their lost items, especially when these are valuable. Missing towels are replaced by towels forgotten in the next place. Socks, T-shirts and fleece jackets can be bought in a store if the pilgrim feels the need to replace the item. That is not always the case btw.

IMO the fleece jacket was not a great loss, and not an item for which you would turn around or take the bus back to the place where you might have lost it. Also, Japan being the country that it is, they would have fleece (and other) jackets in stores.

She’s been described as a meticulous, exacting, perfectionist planner.
Her leaving behind her itinerary, losing her fleece, being guided to the trailhead, then essentially vanishing into thin air….. all combined and rolled into one…. cause me to believe something (who knows what exactly) was amiss.
All MOO of course. I have mine as you do yours, which is ok here on WS, right?

 

[slowpoke]

She’s been described as a meticulous, exacting, perfectionist planner.
Her leaving behind her itinerary, losing her fleece, being guided to the trailhead, then essentially vanishing into thin air….. all combined and rolled into one…. cause me to believe something (who knows what exactly) was amiss.
All MOO of course. I have mine as you do yours, which is ok here on WS, right?

This orange fleece was important enough to her that she mentioned it to a family friend via message.

Not important to this discussion, but if Pattie wanted to get her fleece jacket back, there’s a good chance she could have. From what I hear about Japan, most people routinely and automatically turn in anything they find, even money!

 

[Cedars]

What I read regarding cell phone service was that there was cell service the whole trek, from the Mandokoro to Taiyo-no-yu guesthouses. (This is according to the daughter’s 4/22 update at G F M.)

Oops, I was replying to Cedars’ post. Guess I messed up.

Thanks. It seems then, if she got lost, she would have had the ability to call or text for help.

The vision of Patti, wandering lost and confused for days in the woods, only applies if she had no cellphone coverage, or if she had chosen to go on a pilgrimage without cell capability.

It occurs to me, even if one arrives in Japan with only a wifi-enabled phone, one would normally buy cell access after arriving. Even if it's only kept for an emergency, it's the smart thing to do.

JMO