Found Deceased Spain - Esther Dingley, from UK, missing in the Pyrenees, November 2020

[CoverMeCagney]

Is it only due to the entry on Facebook by Esther that we know about the existence of “the other hiker”?

Yes, and I guess she may have mentioned it personally to friends and family, but all the newspapers have picked the story up now too. They need to find him.

 

[Tortoise]

The hikers that saw her last claimed nobody else was going up the mountain. Only Esther.

But she may have paired up with someone further up. Have they said if the witness who saw her said there was no one behind him and he was the last one down?

 

[Grouse]

The hikers that saw her last claimed nobody else was going up the mountain. Only Esther.

Yes they'd know whether anyone went up after her, but they wouldn't know if there was anybody up there who had gone up via a different route to the one they went down on (arriving up there after they set off down).

 

[Tortoise]

Is it only due to the entry on Facebook by Esther that we know about the existence of “the other hiker”?

Yes as far as I know.

(Sorry I see Cags already replied)

 

[Satchie]

Yes they'd know whether anyone went up after her, but they wouldn't know if there was anybody up there who had gone up via a different route to the one they went down on (arriving up there after they set off down).

I posted a report about the hike between the refuge and the summit, above: there's only one route up to the summit, and the peak is surrounded by cliffs (as are most summits), there's only one safe trail up and back.

The French police have said there are very few hikers around that particular route into France because of the lockdown.

The FB page for the refuge announced in late September they were 'unguarded' ie no caretaker/restaurant, and there's been no announcement that they're back open. Refuge de venasque

 

[ZaZara]

I am aware that there are headlamps for hikers. Is there any evidence Esther used one?

Is there any evidence to the contrary? To me, it would be obvious that she had a headlamp as part of her gear.

She arrived at Angel Orus refuge on November 17, around 6 pm. Sunset was at 17.32 hrs on that day. If she did not have a lamp, she surely must have noticed that she needed one then.

Also, she had a tent and passed some night in the outdoors. Day length in November in the Benasque area is 9.35 hours on November 19, and slowly becoming less. New Moon was 15 - 16 November.

That would leave her in the dark for +/- 14.30 hours each day. 8 hours sleep, and 6 hours of yoga to pass the time?

Sunrise, on the other hand, is around 8 am in the second half of November. Yet Esther did not leave the Angel Orus refuge until 10.00 am. She appeared to be in no rush.

 

[Auntie_Seagull]

Is there any evidence to the contrary? To me, it would be obvious that she had a headlamp as part of her gear.

I don't know. I won't be assuming she had to have one, assumptions can be painfully wrong.

 

[Satchie]

If Esther did make a friend on the day she disappeared, after passing the hiker she asked for fruit, it might be confusing to other hikers trying to think back to whether they saw a lone woman, and perhaps dismissing seeing a 'couple' hiking.

IMO, the focus on the one friend she made on the 19th is not very balanced: she also said she hadn't spoken to anyone for two days.

I noticed in the E&D facebook page, on November 11, she says she went up one peak several days in a row, that she found comfort in doing something familiar.

IMO Esther writes with an exceptional sensitivity to her own moods, feelings and intuition, that's very common in the female-dominated yoga world. It's the opposite of bragging on social media about how awesome one is. I think for people unfamiliar with that kind of narrative, it's possible to over-react to those expressions of sensitivity, to assume it means she was completely unconfident and incompetent. Whereas I think she was modest about how capable she was.

 

[CoverMeCagney]

I posted a report about the hike between the refuge and the summit above: there's only one route up to the summit, and the peak is surrounded by cliffs (as are most summits), there's only one safe trail up and back.

The French police have said there are very few hikers around that particular route into France because of the lockdown.

The FB page for the refuge announced in late September they were 'unguarded' ie no caretaker/restaurant, and there's been no announcement that they're back open. Refuge de venasque

Satchie, thanks for this. I had assumed people went up one side of the mountain and down the other. So, on the "loop" that Esther is said to have been walking, climbing Sauvegarde would be like an added extra thing to do while she was passing? Rather than an essential part of it?

 

[ZaZara]

I don't know. I won't be assuming she had to have one, assumptions can be painfully wrong.

Let me put it like this: you would probably feel safe to assume that she was wearing shoes. And you'd be surprised if she didn't.
In the same vein, I feel quite safe assuming that she had a headlight. Given their gear, and the gear that I see on their blog, I'd be surprised if this was not the case.

 

[CoverMeCagney]

Here's a good website - shows the exact loop that Esther was due to take, and does indeed suggest that Sauvegarde is off to the side of the loop, rather than part of it.

Now. The suggested starting point is at the north of the loop, but I believe Esther started from the south. Do we know exactly where her campervan was parked in relation to this map? And/or where she slept on the Saturday night?

Pic de Sauvegarde depuis Le Venasque

 

[Auntie_Seagull]

Let me put it like this: you would probably feel safe to assume that she was wearing shoes. And you'd be surprised if she didn't.
In the same vein, I feel quite safe assuming that she had a headlight. Given their gear, and the gear that I see on their blog, I'd be surprised if this was not the case.

A flashlight, no matter if carried in the hand or on the head, still has pretty limited range. Missing landmarks and trail markings while hiking with a flashlight is still very huge risk. There is very good reason no SAR ever recommended nocturnal hikes.

 

[ZaZara]

Here's a good website - shows the exact loop that Esther was due to take, and does indeed suggest that Sauvegarde is off to the side of the loop, rather than part of it.

Now. The suggested starting point is at the north of the loop, but I believe Esther started from the south. Do we know exactly where her campervan was parked in relation to this map? And/or where she slept on the Saturday night?

Pic de Sauvegarde depuis Le Venasque

I'll repost this. This is the route to the Sauvegarde / Salvaguardia from la Besurta in Spain. You'll easily recoginize the zig-zag trail going uphill, and next sharp to the left. Both trails meet at Puerto de Benasque.

IMO there also is another trail that goes around the lakes, haven't found it yet, but I saw one, if i remember well.

 

[RickshawFan]

Maybe because I'm from Eastern Europe and English isn't my first language, I am somewhat unclear on what is considered victim blaming here in Websleuths, where the majority of you are from the US. In my opinion, if a woman gets raped because she wore a short shirt and was out late at night - it is victim blaming to say it was her fault. If somebody climbs into the cage of the tiger and gets eaten - it is not victim blaming to acknowledge that he was careless and made a deadly mistake, and, even if it is considered not nice to say so, what happened to him was the result of his own not so wise decision of climbing into the tigers cage.

Snipped for focus.

I can't believe English isn't your first language!
This is so well said, and something I've been trying to articulate and haven't been able to, 'cos I couldn't quite put my finger on the issue.
Many risks are objectively crazy. E.g. diving into the Niagara Falls. In one respect or another, all of us are prone to taking these kinds of risks: we all have blind spots. Some of us are inherent risk takers, some are prone to suggestibility and go along with a wild crowd, some of us think we know what we're doing when we don't, some of us chronically underestimate danger. I could go on...
These are points of human nature. And, yes, they get us into trouble. All of us. This is not a "blaming" position. It's recognizing what is.

I think it was Forrest Gump who said "Stupid is as stupid does." Have I got that right? But everyone in that movie brings something "stupid" to the table, including Forrest Gump, whom many would characterize stereotypically as "stupid". One lesson: stupid sometimes works and sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes stupid brings blessings, sometimes it leaves you with, well, being "stupid" and not much else, and sometimes it's harazardous.
IMO we're in this territory here in this case. Human is as human does.

 

[RickshawFan]

A flashlight, no matter if carried in the hand or on the head, still has pretty limited range. Missing landmarks and trail markings while hiking with a flashlight is still very huge risk. There is very good reason no SAR ever recommended nocturnal hikes.

Important point. I can't hike at all in the darkness, even with a light. I once had to bivouac in place for this very reason, and I was only a mile out of town.
A big risk in the Pyrenees would be slipping on scree in the darkness. A light really doesn't help with that.

 

[Satchie]

I'll repost this. This is the route to the Sauvegarde / Salvaguardia from la Besurta in Spain. You'll easily recoginize the zig-zag trail going uphill, and next sharp to the left. Both trails meet at Puerto de Benasque.

IMO there also is another trail that goes around the lakes, haven't found it yet, but I saw one, if i remember well.

Some things I have learned from my searching:

Benasque is the Spanish spelling for Venasque. So it differs depending on whether the source is Spanish or French.

There are three things called Benasque/Venasque:
1. The town Benasque in Spain where she parked. That is below the map in the quote above. It's a couple of hiking hours downhill/south of La Besurta on your map. IMO she would have parked there because she was hiking a loop that would not return her to La Besurta, but to the town.

2. The Port Venasque/Puerto Benasque, this is a pass (doorway) over the spine of the Pyrenees, and also over the border.

3. The refuge Venasque, on the French side, shown as a hut on this map.

IMO the newspaper maps are incorrect, they assume she returned to exactly the same height she reached before the 19th, then turned east and reached Sauveguard. But that makes no sense, contradicts her own posts and SAR, and would not have been possible in the time she had.

I believe she went up Sauveguard on the 21st as a dayhike. Returned to sleep at her campervan, then spoke to her father/Colegate and packed up her gear for another short backpack trip that would take her to the refuge Venasque, per the map above, and continue from there on the red path, on a loop heading east through the French side of the border, and back over the border/spine of the mountain at the pass called Port du Glere, and downhill back to her van at Benasque. This is what the SAR explained, I've quote in other posts above

I haven't been able to find one map that shows all these things, so am reluctant to post anything that might confuse the situation further.

ETA: so to sum up, I believe she started her multiday trip on the 22nd, hiked the 2 or 3 hours from Benasque to the Port Venasque, but being less than an hour from the Refuge, she decided to take a scenic side trip and hike up Sauvegard again, as she had done the previous day.

 

[RickshawFan]

A piece of fruit to eat there and then would not have added much to her payload IMO. The other hiker said in his statement that they didn't have any food left.
Edit: it might have indicated she was low on energy though.

I took it to mean she might have realized suddenly that she forgot to bring gas or left her stove behind in the van by mistake. Fruit doesn't have to be cooked or reconstituted.

If that was the situation, and the other hiker was unable to offer any supply, an experienced overnight hiker would have hiked right back to town, since the hike would be untenable.
So, ED might have just hiked right back?

 

[irkban]

I took it to mean she might have realized suddenly that she forgot to bring gas or left her stove behind in the van by mistake. Fruit doesn't have to be cooked or reconstituted.

I recall she asked about fruit or other fresh food. Perhaps she was just sick of whatever dried provisions she carried? I'm not a hiker, but I have taken trips where I ate a lot of energy bars and other shelf stable food, and by the end I would have killed for a green salad.

 

[RickshawFan]

Following this with interest from the UK. I see that there seems to be no evidence that ED made it it to the refuge but is it possible that she did but just left no sign that she had been there? I presume the hut is closed and she would camp, probably no one else there. Could she have continued on from the hut and an accident happened further along her planned route?
I still hope for a good outcome, fingers crossed.

I think even with a very strong "leave no trace" ethic, there would have been a trace left in the refuge under those conditions. For instance, it might be normal to expect ashes in the fireplace, but SAR found no ashes. There might normally have been a patch on the floor indicating a ground cloth had been there. There might normally have been a crumb or two on the table. Or a sniffer dog might normally have picked up on fresh pee or excrement. If SAR found no sign of her at the refuge, I would think we'd have to go with that.

 

[RickshawFan]

I recall she asked about fruit or other fresh food. Perhaps she was just sick of whatever dried provisions she carried? I'm not a hiker, but I have taken trips where I ate a lot of energy bars and other shelf stable food, and by the end I would have killed for a green salad.

Being willing to "kill for a green salad" would classify you as an "experienced" hiker.