Gosh you guys are fast hikers. I think it would have taken them a lot longer than 3 1/2 hours, even with everything going right. In that heat, with the dog and baby in a pack, I don’t believe they would be that fast or even to expect being that fast. MOO. I must be a slowpoke!
What do you believe is inadequate? I agree in extreme temperatures the correct answer is to wait for cooler weather, but I’m not sure if telling people to abstain works, in many areas of life.
Yes, this is important IMO. Now we know they did leave early which makes WAY more sense. Still it heated up FAST, so leaving early wasn’t going to help much, sadly. Since they went in the morning though, it makes it even more likely IMO that this was a heat related tragedy. It was a bad idea to do that hike at all that day but understandable. I could not understand at all if they had actually left in the afternoon. I really think this was a tragic heatstroke event for all of them. It’s possible toxic water could have begun this event, but I think the heat did them in.
I'm doing 12, all flat and shaded, in a couple weeks. It'll be 95 degrees/80% humidity, we've budgeted 5 hours.
If you're used to going to a hot, miserable, inhospitable environment (Burning Man) where the guidance for water is 5.7L per person per 24 hours, then bringing 8L (4L each) for a 4hr hike might have felt excessive. That said, it's possible they had the Camelback and some Nalgene bottles and other sources of liquid (juicebox, applesauce, etc. for the baby). LE has not disclosed everything they had in the backpack.
I talked to my BF who is an experienced hiker. Prior to the pandemic, he would go out on all day, very strenuous hikes every weekend. He usually brings 5-6L, but said he hardly ever drinks more than 3L. He said he ran out of water once, in 2019, when the return leg of a hike he had done many times before (Mt. Baldy) was much hotter than had been predicted in the weather report. (He was with friends who shared water.) He also told me that he has had to share his water with random people multiple times on trails.
All this to say, I think even the most experienced hiker can make a mistake. Underestimate how much water is needed, overestimate their own ability. There but for the grace of god, etc.
They were hiking close to home, so perhaps they didn’t think it was necessary to tell someone the details of their hike. They assumed it was not a dangerous hike. Besides, they were new residents in the area. It was probably hard to get to know people in the area because of Covid. They most likely kept to themselves. Sometimes I don’t hear back from people right away when I text or call. I don’t think it is unusual.
Yes, experienced hikers can make mistakes.If you're used to going to a hot, miserable, inhospitable environment (Burning Man) where the guidance for water is 5.7L per person per 24 hours, then bringing 8L (4L each) for a 4hr hike might have felt excessive. That said, it's possible they had the Camelback and some Nalgene bottles and other sources of liquid (juicebox, applesauce, etc. for the baby). LE has not disclosed everything they had in the backpack.
I talked to my BF who is an experienced hiker. Prior to the pandemic, he would go out on all day, very strenuous hikes every weekend. He usually brings 5-6L, but said he hardly ever drinks more than 3L. He said he ran out of water once, in 2019, when the return leg of a hike he had done many times before (Mt. Baldy) was much hotter than had been predicted in the weather report. (He was with friends who shared water.) He also told me that he has had to share his water with random people multiple times on trails.
All this to say, I think even the most experienced hiker can make a mistake. Underestimate how much water is needed, overestimate their own ability. There but for the grace of god, etc.
I agree. Heat stroke would probably affect the baby, then Ellen, then John. You would think John would have made a mad dash to get help if somebody was overwhelmed.
