CA CA - Barbara Thomas, 69, from Bullhead City AZ, disappeared in Mojave desert, 12 July 2019 #11

[cazador]

Just up the road on Kelbaker.. Mohave Lava Tube
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[MsBetsy]

I think it would depend how often they saw her. My kennel is at my vet's office and they know me. Chances are they knew her too.

If she was usually smiling and talkative but wasn't that morning, most people would pick up on that.

Wasn't it the neighbor who said she seemed like her normal self that morning? I would think they would know her better since they saw her every day. Imo

 

[cazador]

The other direction is the Amboy Crater.
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[cazador]

RT and BT could have been at either place in about 20 minutes from where RT said they were when BT went missing ..
My purpose.. To find alternate search locations because of the missing time issue that has been mentioned many times..

 

[10ofRods]

Good ideas, @cazador. Maybe 30 minutes to the Lava Tube - but again, there is that missing time. PLUS, we've never been told where they were supposed to be going that day. VI said that his family was told (by Barbara) that they'd be gone "a few days." Out of touch for a few days. They drove right past the Amboy Crater (and presumably got off at that exit to go up Kelbaker Road). They would have also passed some interesting features near the Essex offramp.

 

[cazador]

Check out the other videos created by Oddity Odyssey on You Tube ..They explore many abandoned mines and I hope they did some close to the area we are interested in..

But back to basic.. I do hope BT is where RT said she went missing and that somebody finds her and brings closure to the family of Barbara Thomas.

 

[Chingaling]

Thank you for sharing your experience. People sometimes think they'll sense the symptoms and act accordingly, but that's not usually how it works. My daughter's case was similar and if her husband hadn't taken appropriate action, I think she might not still be here.

As we get older, many factors influence our vulnerability to stroke, heat stroke and heat exhaustion.

So glad you survived.

Thank you

 

[cazador]

Good ideas, @cazador. Maybe 30 minutes to the Lava Tube - but again, there is that missing time. PLUS, we've never been told where they were supposed to be going that day. VI said that his family was told (by Barbara) that they'd be gone "a few days." Out of touch for a few days. They drove right past the Amboy Crater (and presumably got off at that exit to go up Kelbaker Road). They would have also passed some interesting features near the Essex offramp.

You are right ... 30 or 40 minutes

 

[Chingaling]

I've had mild heat stroke. Not something I noticed, the people I was hiking with did. I was apparently starting to show some confusion. So who knows what I would have done without friends to sit me in the shade and get me to cool off a bit.

Where a confused person goes is not where a person thinking normally would go.

There is no way I would believe a person suffering heat exhaustion could walk 2 or 3 miles.Never in a million yrs.At this point the only way I'll believe she is out there is if she is found there.

 

[PaulR]

There is no way I would believe a person suffering heat exhaustion could walk 2 or 3 miles.Never in a million yrs.

A Common Symptom of Heat Illness: Denial

Years ago as a high school student, I attended a summer running camp in Pennsylvania. During a routine six-mile run, I stumbled, and a coach stopped me and asked me if I was okay. “I’m fine,” I assured him, and kept running.

But I wasn’t fine. By the end of the run I had collapsed with heatstroke and had fallen unconscious.

Apparently the coach didn't even pick up on the heat exhaustion, and they got pretty far. How far could BT have gotten by walking? Who knows?

 

[rosesfromangels]

A Common Symptom of Heat Illness: Denial
Apparently the coach didn't even pick up on the heat exhaustion, and they got pretty far. How far could BT have gotten by walking? Who knows?

I hope every one reads this article Paul has posted. It really explains how Barb could have collapsed. I had a very close call in July in 115f in Phoenix. One of my colleagues recognized I was in the danger zone and intervened. I was too delirious to really process what was going on.
It’s very real.

Amateur opinion and speculation

 

[MsBetsy]

A Common Symptom of Heat Illness: Denial



Apparently the coach didn't even pick up on the heat exhaustion, and they got pretty far. How far could BT have gotten by walking? Who knows?

Yes, as I've said before my aunt kept pressing on even though we all could tell something was not right.

We were walking to an historic Racetrack that day, and she didn't want to miss the first horse race. She did admit to not feeling great, but said it was probably "just the heat," and that she would be fine.

We made it to the first race, and it was not until the second or third race that she collapsed and had to be rushed to the hospital. She was treated for heat exhaustion and after that her Doctor advised her to invest in an air- conditioner and to stay indoors when it gets very hot.

It didn't stop her from going to the races, but she did get the air conditioner.

 

[PaulaDC]

So I've been dwelling on this case, like everyone, I don't know why. I always feel people are creatures of habit. Let's say Barbara did have a swimsuit on. Most people swim in a swimsuit. Could the original destination that the trip was supposed to be, possibly be a lake that they enjoyed in the past? Is there a lake within an hour or so of the exit she was "last seen by RT"? A lake that they frequented and she felt comfortable around? I was reading about Mono Lake and Black Point Fissures and just got this feeling that they were headed towards a lake as it's just too hot for any other activities at that time of year. That made more sense to me than taking a hike to nowhere. Moo

 

[Seajay]

Thanks for reading the media thread! There were at least two independent sightings of BT right before the trip.

1. At around 8:10 that morning, BT dropped their dog Lexi off at a kennel near their home. A staff member there said she seemed aggravated and unlike her usual friendly self.

(Some here have argued that posts by our VI @dbdb11 indicate that a second staff member said BT seemed not to be aggravated, but I think the sighting in which her demeanor was seen as unremarkable is the next one I will list. While our VI (BT's nephew) could presumably settle that question, he lives in Hong Kong and his father there is very ill; I think this is why lately he hasn't checked in here very often in the past couple of weeks.

2. At around 8:15 that morning, a neighbor or neighbors have told our VI that they saw RT and BT leaving for their trip. I think they may have said the departure was caught on surveillance video, but I'm not sure about that and if it was video, I don't think LE ever got it.

My guess is that those times are somewhat approximate.

Finally, many have wondered whether BT went on that walk in the desert at all. IIRC, RT has said that they took photos on their walk that show that she was there. RT also spoke with BT's Hong Kong family (I think with BT's brother, the one who is ill) in a conversation that was overheard by our VI's sister (BT's niece). RT said that on the morning that they went to the desert, BT took a 360 photo from a hill.

LE has told our VI that RT's photos show that RT and BT were where and when they said they were. However, we don't know exactly what that means. In the conversation overheard by the VI's sister, RT's timeline is different from what he told the media. Some here have argued that the VI's sister must have misunderstood or misremembered what he said. In any event LE would presumably mean that the photos corroborate whatever RT told them about his location/timing. We don't know what RT told LE.

Whatever the exact timeline/location, what LE told the VI implies that (assuming any time/date stamps associated with the photos are accurate) RT and BT were indeed in the desert at that location on that day.

JMO

LAHiker, you are a rockstar for taking the time to clue me in on some of the issues I brought up.

So according to the timeline, BT was seen that morning by others and that there are supposedly pictures of RT & BT on that day, out in the desert. All good to know. It buttons up some f the more nefarious possibilities about how things went down in Barbara’s day.

I usually will only come in on a discussion when it’s at the beginning of a case, not an established case like this one. I am interested in this one because it’s in my relative neck of the woods, So Cal. I missed the beginning of it because I was recovering from lung surgery and sleeping all the time. My apologies for being annoying and asking questions.

Back to the case. It’s suspicious that Robert did not report to her son Matthew, or her family in Hong Kong about her missing until so long after she disappeared.

I still have to wonder about the logic in hiking in a bikini in the Mojave Desert. So dangerous.

Still to not see anything of her or find any clues of her out there after 3 months, I don’t believe she’s with us anymore. It had been over 100* out there. And even with shade and water, she still would need food. She had nothing with her for survival.

 

[Seajay]

So I've been dwelling on this case, like everyone, I don't know why. I always feel people are creatures of habit. Let's say Barbara did have a swimsuit on. Most people swim in a swimsuit. Could the original destination that the trip was supposed to be, possibly be a lake that they enjoyed in the past? Is there a lake within an hour or so of the exit she was "last seen by RT"? A lake that they frequented and she felt comfortable around? I was reading about Mono Lake and Black Point Fissures and just got this feeling that they were headed towards a lake as it's just too hot for any other activities at that time of year. That made more sense to me than taking a hike to nowhere. Moo

Exactly! Her being in that bikini, hiking, in the day, in the desert makes zero sense to me. Most hikers cover up. Even if she was headed towards water to cool down, she would have needed to cover up for her hike to get to the water source. The bikini thing bothers me, it’s just not practical on so many levels. IMO

 

[MsBetsy]

LAHiker, you are a rockstar for taking the time to clue me in on some of the issues I brought up.

So according to the timeline, BT was seen that morning by others and that there are supposedly pictures of RT & BT on that day, out in the desert. All good to know. It buttons up some f the more nefarious possibilities about how things went down in Barbara’s day.

I usually will only come in on a discussion when it’s at the beginning of a case, not an established case like this one. I am interested in this one because it’s in my relative neck of the woods, So Cal. I missed the beginning of it because I was recovering from lung surgery and sleeping all the time. My apologies for being annoying and asking questions.

Back to the case. It’s suspicious that Robert did not report to her son Matthew, or her family in Hong Kong about her missing until so long after she disappeared.

I still have to wonder about the logic in hiking in a bikini in the Mojave Desert. So dangerous.

Still to not see anything of her or find any clues of her out there after 3 months, I don’t believe she’s with us anymore. It had been over 100* out there. And even with shade and water, she still would need food. She had nothing with her for survival.

You really didn't miss much, at least not in terms of what's been reported.
LE has not said much since they ended the search for her and there has been barely any media interest.
All the rest has been pages and pages of speculation!

 

[MsBetsy]

Exactly! Her being in that bikini, hiking, in the day, in the desert makes zero sense to me. Most hikers cover up. Even if she was headed towards water to cool down, she would have needed to cover up for her hike to get to the water source. The bikini thing bothers me, it’s just not practical on so many levels. IMO

The VI said that when he went camping with them by the Colorado River several years ago, Barbara was dressed in a similar outfit and they never went swimming.
Apparently a bikini and a beer were typical for her when walking in the desert. Imo

 

[Cherwell]

It’s suspicious that Robert did not report to her son Matthew, or her family in Hong Kong about her missing until so long after she disappeared.

I don't find it suspicious that he waited a few days before calling Barbara's family in Hong Kong. Putting myself in his position, I would be hoping hour by hour that she would be found. With Barbara's brother being so seriously ill, I wouldn't want to cause them any further worry and stress until it was absolutely necessary. I would be dreading making that call and breaking the news that she was almost certainly dead.

As for her son, yes, someone should have informed him, but to some degree the same applies. I don't get the impression that they were on good terms.

 

[PaulaDC]

LAHiker, you are a rockstar for taking the time to clue me in on some of the issues I brought up.

So according to the timeline, BT was seen that morning by others and that there are supposedly pictures of RT & BT on that day, out in the desert. All good to know. It buttons up some f the more nefarious possibilities about how things went down in Barbara’s day.

I usually will only come in on a discussion when it’s at the beginning of a case, not an established case like this one. I am interested in this one because it’s in my relative neck of the woods, So Cal. I missed the beginning of it because I was recovering from lung surgery and sleeping all the time. My apologies for being annoying and asking questions.

Back to the case. It’s suspicious that Robert did not report to her son Matthew, or her family in Hong Kong about her missing until so long after she disappeared.

I still have to wonder about the logic in hiking in a bikini in the Mojave Desert. So dangerous.

Still to not see anything of her or find any clues of her out there after 3 months, I don’t believe she’s with us anymore. It had been over 100* out there. And even with shade and water, she still would need food. She had nothing with her for survival.

Wasn't it the neighbor who said she seemed like her normal self that morning? I would think they would know her better since they saw her every day. Imo

The VI said that when he went camping with them by the Colorado River several years ago, Barbara was dressed in a similar outfit and they never went swimming.
Apparently a bikini and a beer were typical for her when walking in the desert. Imo

The VI said that when he went camping with them by the Colorado River several years ago, Barbara was dressed in a similar outfit and they never went swimming.
Apparently a bikini and a beer were typical for her when walking in the desert. Imo

By the Colorado River.

 

[PaulaDC]

Wasn't it the neighbor who said she seemed like her normal self that morning? I would think they would know her better since they saw her every day. Imo

Did the neighbor actually see her or just see the vehicle leave on their video? And I've read confusing comments about who said she was acting normal, I also read that person was the other kennel employee? And the photos are hearsay as no one has seen them? Just looking for clarity on these things.