AK AK - Mary Dawn Wilson, 69 - 2-YO Grandchild Found Locked in Abandoned Car, Healy, 12 July 2022

[Stunned]

I agree - all the articles say the report of abandoned vehicle/child came in at 1:30 a.m. Who was out on Stampede Trail at 1:30 am? Why? Were they already looking for MDW? Or is that when it was discovered she was missing?

I don’t think that was when she was reported missing. I think that was when her car was found. IMO

 

[Den56]

No news yet?

 

[Knox]

Nothing! When LE gave up searching for Mary, it was the kiss of death in terms of public interest in her case

 

[RickshawFan]

Well, the only factual clue I've seen in 3 pages is "some articles of clothing (Mary Wilson's) were found about a mile away". Why are the police so vague about the specific items of clothing? Was it a sweatshirt/sweater/jacket or something more intimate? Only question I can think of is how do they know the clothes were Grandma's?

They could have been abandoned due to hypothermia.

 

[RickshawFan]

Pics show how dangerous it would be to try to drive a car on the trail. Stampede Trail II

I wonder if Google sent her there? Last winter, Google sent a couple in a motorhome down a desolate road in Nevada. One died.

 

[RickshawFan]

She supposedly spent the night at someone's house the night before and left that morning. I'm sure they told LE what she was wearing. I'm curious who she spent the night with and why.

I wonder if she had a stroke or something and that impaired her thinking as well as her mobility.

 

[OddOneOut]

Given the rain, mud, and cooler temperatures, she may have decided the child was safer in the shelter of the car. I suspect she went looking for help not realizing there were no houses nearby. Also, I suspect she perished from hypothermia. Removing clothing is often done by people that get too cold.

 

[LaborDayRN]

I wonder if she had a stroke or something and that impaired her thinking as well as her mobility.

Or had dementia and became confused. ??

 

[azure]

Or had dementia and became confused. ??

I think this is most likely. One would have to be in a state of mental confusion to continue for 6+ miles down that road and then search for help in the opposite direction of the highway.

 

[Spyralflare]

Maybe because I work with seniors who are up to 103 years old, I don’t think of 69 as being as “elderly” as many people in this discussion do. I also haven’t read anything in MSM to indicate this woman had a serious medical condition. I don’t have any answers, but I’m not convinced that her age was a big factor in whatever happened.
Hoping this case is solved soon.

 

[ConundrumPonderer]

JIMO my first thought; she got stuck, tried to get traction, realized she needed help, locked the baby up safely and went. It feels from the articles she knew the area, but thinking about the visit with friends… Just as an example, I have gone back many times to visit the family I lived with at Uni, in another city. At one time I had a great grasp of the area; after not going for 15 years, if my friends returned and I went to visit them, I could see me getting into a similar situation. Making it to their house, then leaving and having a brainwave. eg I know, that little waterfall in the meadow we used to go to, my Granddaughter will love it! She starts going the route she thinks she remembers, gets stuck. The reason she walks away from the road, not along it/stays with the car, is because she thinks she knows where she is. Since baby was fine, she cracked the windows, gave the baby a full bottle or sippy cup, locks up and starts to walk to a Ranger station/couple of houses/fire tower/Tribal hall, whatever she thought was nearby. I don’t see anything in the story about medical issues, she’s only 69, so if she wandered off the obvious answer to me is genuinely getting lost.

The only other thought I had is darker. Please correct me if I’m wrong, or not seeing it, but I cannot recall any mention of Mary’s key ring. If it’s gone and not located with her items, that would be very concerning to me. Keys are heavy, they get found. If you can find clothes, the keys should be in a pocket or with them. That’s my darker idea. Mary was accosted, when trying to dig out. Approached, frightened or uneasy she locked the door and threw the keys as far as she could, to keep the baby safe, then went with or ran from the hypothetical assailant
Either way, the SARs team certainly put a lot of effort in. I’m just sorry the couldn’t search for a bit longer. Sorry for the long post, I couldn’t think of a more concise way to explain my thought.

 

[Stunned]

Given the rain, mud, and cooler temperatures, she may have decided the child was safer in the shelter of the car. I suspect she went looking for help not realizing there were no houses nearby. Also, I suspect she perished from hypothermia. Removing clothing is often done by people that get too cold.

I just find it odd that she was a musher (Sp?) and from what I’ve found about her a seasoned outdoors woman (does that make sense?) going up a trail and not going too the road for help does not make sense. Unless she was hiding. IMO.

 

[Stunned]

I know this information is probably here somewhere, but is where she went missing tribal land?

 

[ConundrumPonderer]

I know this information is probably here somewhere, but is where she went missing tribal land?

As far as I can tell, not the trail where she went missing. I can be completely wrong, but it looks like Healy Lake Village in Healy is closest. Near Denali National Park. I wonder when was she last there, before changes in tours, the bus removal?

Stampede Trail - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Healy, Alaska - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Healy Lake Village

www.alaskan-natives.com

 

[Stunned]

Just wondering about tribal police involvement.

 

[Den56]

she looks like an intelligent healthy woman.
why do we not hear anything from her family or anything more for this story?

 

[ConundrumPonderer]

Just wondering about tribal police involvement.

I’d have been much happier if it had been Tribal land, they’d have tracked her right away.

 

[Stunned]

she looks like an intelligent healthy woman.
why do we not hear anything from her family or anything more for this story?

Good point. Nothing. Very strange indeed.

 

[OddOneOut]

Maybe, she was a victim of road rage on the highway. She could have turned off the highway to get away from them not knowing how this road/trail deteriorated.

 

[Stunned]

Maybe, she was a victim of road rage on the highway. She could have turned off the highway to get away from them not knowing how this road/trail deteriorated.

Maybe. If so where is she?