CA - Jonathan Gerrish, Ellen Chung, daughter, 1 & dog, suspicious death hiking area, Aug 2021 #3

[rahod1]

They'd taken the baby on hikes before, including one in the Himalayas. It was part of their plan for raising their child--to introduce her to nature and hiking from the start.

Are you sure about this? Just want to verify. Thanks.

 

[RickshawFan]

<modsnip - quoted post was removed>
I always get nervous when family says a missing hiker has "experience". They almost never seem to have in any kind of relevant way.
Though there are few, here's good example of someone who was indeed "experienced", Tatum Morrell. Could she maybe have been a bit more conservative in choosing her adventure? Sure. But this evidently wasn't the first time she had an outing like this. She was killed in a rock slide: Found Deceased - MT- Tatum Morrell, 23, West Fork Trailhead, Carbon Co, 1 Jul 2021
Sometimes athletic fitness is confused with "experience". We had a case here recently on WS that occurred in the Pyrenees, where "experience" was splattered all over the media, when in fact, the hike demonstrated little; it did demonstrate fitness (as in speed of hiking). Experience has a lot to do with judgment, planning, ad hoc resourcefulness, matching skill to terrain, knowledge about how to use safety essentials (like paper map and compass, PLB, GPS, even how to set up your tent), correctly-fitting and appropriate gear, and apparel and boots compatible with conditions. Real "experience" is all those as well as fitness.
Note: "experience" has ZERO to do with length of trip. "Experienced" folks tend to hike a lot (or ski backcountry, or whatever), but hiking many miles does not automatically make you experienced. You really have to have the whole package IMO.

<modsnip>

 

[Bekind89]

Yes, I realize that but do not understand why they weren't reported missing that morning when they failed to return home.

 

[EndoraXplorer]

They'd taken the baby on hikes before, including one in the Himalayas.

Hi, I don't think they took the baby to the Himalayas. The baby was born in August, 2020 (Login • Instagram). They went to the Himalayas in June, 2018 (Login • Instagram).

 

[Deleted member 292879]

Familiarity? Youth? It is only recently that I have come to realize some of the potentially fatal situations I have put myself in. It is true that the younger we are the more likely we are to dismiss potentially dangerous situations, by that I mean how quickly something like a day hike can turn deadly and become fatal.
It is human nature, we all make mistakes. If we are lucky they do not cost us our life.
The husband was 45? I would have thought he would be more cautious being the older parent. I am not judging him at all and mean no disrespect. I just find this all very baffling and am curious about their relationship dynamic. Who was the decision maker. I suppose we will never know. I am also curious about why they were not reported missing Monday morning.

I wonder if they weren’t reported Monday AM because (we think?) Ellen’s phone was at the house and still would have been receiving messages. If the person(s) texting Ellen saw messages going through they might not have worried and thought she was just busy.

But…what about the nanny? Is it possible she had access to get into the house? Would she go in if she was worried and saw the truck missing? Or was she newer to them and didn’t want to seem to be overreacting? Who was she directed to contact, if anyone, by the couple in the event she couldn’t reach them?

There are a few details like this, as you laid out @Bekind89, that trouble me because it seems we have to stretch our imaginations so much to be be able to justify the things that happened and the things they did. These details are the things that still make me question if heatstroke is the answer.

 

[NSamuelle]

Yes, I realize that but do not understand why they weren't reported missing that morning when they failed to return home.

And they weren’t even reported missing on Monday morning - it was Monday at 11pm. To LE’s credit, they started looking that night.

 

[Bekind89]

I always get nervous when family says a missing hiker has "experience". They almost never seem to have in any kind of relevant way.
Though there are few, here's good example of someone who was indeed "experienced", Tatum Morrell. Could she maybe have been a bit more conservative in choosing her adventure? Sure. But this evidently wasn't the first time she had an outing like this. She was killed in a rock slide: Found Deceased - MT- Tatum Morrell, 23, West Fork Trailhead, Carbon Co, 1 Jul 2021
Sometimes athletic fitness is confused with "experience". We had a case here recently on WS that occurred in the Pyrenees, where "experience" was splattered all over the media, when in fact, the hike demonstrated little; it did demonstrate fitness (as in speed of hiking). Experience has a lot to do with judgment, planning, ad hoc resourcefulness, matching skill to terrain, knowledge about how to use safety essentials (like paper map and compass, PLB, GPS, even how to set up your tent), correctly-fitting and appropriate gear, and apparel and boots compatible with conditions. Real "experience" is all those as well as fitness.
Note: "experience" has ZERO to do with length of trip. "Experienced" folks tend to hike a lot (or ski backcountry, or whatever), but hiking many miles does not automatically make you experienced. You really have to have the whole package IMO.

<modsnip>.

Excellent, salient post.

 

[woods]

I probably said this in thread #1 (what year is it again?) but I can vouch for the first year as a new parent being a very difficult (yet blissful) time. I had my first baby six months before them. I think impaired judgment from sleep deprivation is not that far-fetched. On top of that, the frustrations and monotony of life during covid. Yes, they had a nanny, but I wonder if they were just itching to get out, and given that Jonathan could only go on Sat/Sun, and presumably her too with school, they just went for it, and thought they were being cautious enough by leaving at 8. Maybe they didn’t even make it all the way down the steep trail before turning around.

I guess what troubles me is that as a new parent, there’s heightened anxiety about the baby that in most cases is just natural and normal (of course sometimes, as it was for me for awhile, the anxiety can be debilitating). What were the circumstances that weekend and morning that quelled their anxiety for the baby, the dog, themselves? Was one of them more game for the hike than the other? Is it possible they wanted to go Saturday but delayed for some reason (weather?), making them even more stubborn about going on Sunday?

A local allegedly saw the family in a museum on Friday (2 days before their Sunday hike), and they remember the dad carrying the baby around and very interested in the climbing exhibit.

 

[rahod1]

IMO only, being an experienced hiker means different things to different people. Family & friends often times are not good judges of this when they speak to it.

I found this info very informative.
A Guide To Hiking Skill Levels - What Type Of Hiker Are You? | The Simple Hiker
For purposes of this discussion I'm talking about this level:

"Advanced Moderate: This person has experience with many hikes lasting at least half a day. This type of hiker is able to handle elevation gains of several thousand feet. Hiking takes place at a moderate place but the hiker also has enough experience of when to slow the pace to conserve energy. Hikes can last all day. An advanced moderate hiker also has experience hiking in different weather conditions and has a general idea of what to prepare for in colder and hot conditions."

 

[LifeIsAMystery]

No doubt sufficient water supply is critical, but having enough water will not insure prevention of heat stroke, especially if it's very hot with no provision for shade on a steep slope. It takes time to absorb the water and once the core body temperature exceeds a threshold, the body itself must be cooled down quickly and simply drinking water won't accomplish this. MOO

Exactly.

The trail photos in that blog are lovely, of course it was spring, so wildflower season, and in 2015, so before all the trees burned down. It does give a sense of the change in elevation.

 

[bpeterson912]

<modsnip>

The family enjoyed hiking. They decided to go for a hike on a Sunday morning. They underestimated the conditions and died. It's sad and tragic.

<modsnip>
A family is dead. When the toxicology reports come back, perhaps we'll learn more and there will be lessons to take away. <modsnip>

 

[LifeIsAMystery]

They'd taken the baby on hikes before, including one in the Himalayas. It was part of their plan for raising their child--to introduce her to nature and hiking from the start. According to early reports, they'd told friends they moved from SF to the Yosemite area in order to raise their child in nature, away from the bustle of urban areas. So it was second-nature to them to take her along. Their starry-eyed dream for their child apparently overrode that heightened anxiety you speak of.

Now that you put it that way, though, I'm scratching my head. I'm starting to wonder if all this hiking was initially his idea, since he could afford to take the family on world-travel hiking trips. Maybe he talked his wife into the fact that the baby would be safe, because they had a fair amount of hiking experience, and she (the baby) did fine in the Himalayas. Maybe she was enamored of him in part because of his dreams and his ability to make them happen.

More speculation, but what are we to make of the situation? You raise a good point. Most parents treat an infant like a delicate creature, as well they should. Anything can happen to an infant, usually unexpectedly: Sudden Infant Death Syndrome in the crib, to name just one completely unpredictable risk.

Is there a link to the info about the baby going hiking in the Himalayas? TIA.

 

[Auntie Cipation]

There's a blog by a hiker who did the SL trail with a friend a few summers ago. She said, her friend brought her dog, then became concerned that they didn't bring enough water for the dog. A group of Boy Scouts passed them heading back to the trailhead, having already completed their hike in the morning. The two women were only just setting out. This gave them pause, too. Eventually, the friend pushed to quit the hike; the day was heating up, the trail was steep on the way down, so it didn't bode well for the return climb upward, and she was afraid they'd run out of water. The blogger was reluctant to quit, because she'd never quit a hike before. It was a matter of pride to her. But she listened to reason, and agreed to turn back.

Those ladies were smart. Being able to admit they'd misgauged the situation, rather than mushing on due to a sense of pride in meeting challenges, or overconfidence, or whatever, saved their lives.

Here's that blog, if anyone's interested.
First Time for Everything

Good find! Not only was their hike before the fire, but it was roughly FORTY DEGREES COOLER on their hike than it was for this family.

Forty degrees difference!

I think sometimes people mentally think "oh, summertime temperatures, hiking in hot weather" and don't always appreciate that there is hot and then there is record-breaking, "climate change new normal" hot. That may indeed be what happened to them -- they planned for being out in 80F "lower case hot" but not for "109F in the bleeping shade hot".

MOO

 

[LifeIsAMystery]

They were seen driving toward the trail at 7:45 am, it was in a recent update article that was linked in thread 2.

 

[Bekind89]

Good find! Not only was their hike before the fire, but it was roughly FORTY DEGREES COOLER on their hike than it was for this family.

Forty degrees difference!

I think sometimes people mentally think "oh, summertime temperatures, hiking in hot weather" and don't always appreciate that there is hot and then there is record-breaking, "climate change new normal" hot. That may indeed be what happened to them -- they planned for being out in 80F "lower case hot" but not for "109F in the bleeping shade hot".

MOO

As someone who lives in the fetid furnace of the South, I couldn't agree more with this. Heat kills and kills quickly. Add humidity to the heat and it is deadly.
Just 10 degrees makes a significant difference. The sun is more deadly with global warming and it seems too many people are not taking this into account.

 

[woods]

They went backpacking in the Himalayas in 2018; the baby was born in 2020, so she was not on that hike. What evidence is there that they took her on hikes? She had just turned 1 years old, and Ellen didn’t post any hiking pictures with the baby (or even without - her posting slowed way down) after she was born.

Most of her baby pictures were likely posted on her private Facebook account. When you type in their names on Google images, there are new pictures of the baby (pulled from a family friend) that was never posted on her public IG.

 

[EndoraXplorer]

I wonder if they weren’t reported Monday AM because (we think?) Ellen’s phone was at the house and still would have been receiving messages. If the person(s) texting Ellen saw messages going through they might not have worried and thought she was just busy.

But…what about the nanny? Is it possible she had access to get into the house? <snip>

There was a Washington Post article about this on 8/23 that has been republished by various other sites. (https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/08/23/mariposa-family-death-mystery/). The non-paywalled abstract is: "John Gerrish and Ellen Chung's home in Mariposa, Calif., was quiet on Aug. 16 when their 1-year-old daughter's nanny arrived. The family — including their dog, Oski — was nowhere to be found. Their truck was missing, too. As the hours wore on without a word from Gerrish or Chung, who had set out for a hike the day before, a sense of panic began to set in."

There's other articles that talk about their property manager also being alerted + Jon not showing up for his remote work being another warning sign.

I don't have any answers or speculation as to why they were not reported missing until 11pm. Contrary to popular belief, you can report someone missing anytime, you don't have to wait 24 hours. (California Missing Persons) "...There is NO waiting period for reporting a person missing. All California police and sheriffs' departments must accept any report, including a report by telephone, of a missing person, including runaways, without delay and will give priority to the handling of the report."

 

[NSamuelle]

Most of her baby pictures were likely posted on her private Facebook account. When you type in their names on Google images, there are new pictures of the baby (pulled from a family friend) that was never posted on her public IG.

True, I assumed the baby pics were from Jonathan’s account because EC was so open on her IG pre-baby and had posted pics of the baby there already (with J, not with her), but I have no idea what she posted privately.

 

[mickey2942]

I think that the decision making process when under severe circumstances and stress merits review. We do this at work when there is a critical incident, not to "armchair quarterback" the people who made decisions, but to review the thought process, and what occurred as a result. If a better decision could have been made, to improve process, this is added to "response to critical incident" trainings.

As I review this situation, objectively, if we make the assumption that, "Oksi", the dog, was the first one in distress due to the heat, a logical assumption, as he had very thick fur, (Akita Mix), or if he had become seriously ill due to drinking or playing in the water.

At this point, when Oksi needed help to get back to the car, either Mom or Dad had to carry him. Thus, putting them in stress. And risk for heat stroke.

This is where the review of the decision made...helping Oksi, was this decision part of the cascade that lead to the entire family dying?

No judgment on the decision. But it merits review.

 

[Bekind89]

There was a Washington Post article about this on 8/23 that has been republished by various other sites. (https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/08/23/mariposa-family-death-mystery/). The non-paywalled abstract is: "John Gerrish and Ellen Chung's home in Mariposa, Calif., was quiet on Aug. 16 when their 1-year-old daughter's nanny arrived. The family — including their dog, Oski — was nowhere to be found. Their truck was missing, too. As the hours wore on without a word from Gerrish or Chung, who had set out for a hike the day before, a sense of panic began to set in."

There's other articles that talk about their property manager also being alerted + Jon not showing up for his remote work being another warning sign.

I don't have any answers or speculation as to why they were not reported missing until 11pm. Contrary to popular belief, you can report someone missing anytime, you don't have to wait 24 hours. (California Missing Persons) "...There is NO waiting period for reporting a person missing. All California police and sheriffs' departments must accept any report, including a report by telephone, of a missing person, including runaways, without delay and will give priority to the handling of the report."

Thank you for the information. Many people feel they must wait 24 hours, unfortunately, as you pointed out. But I especially think that with one of the missing being a baby that definitely would not apply.