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

[Officer Dibble]

Hello.

It is highly likely that after several of the fires, the earth movement of that huge rockslide at Highway 140 back in 2006, a lack of trees or shrubs to stabilize the soil on the hillside, a fissure opened up and released some toxic gases. It need be no larger than a 1-foot-wide x 1-foot-long crack to release gases from an underground fissure. It can go undetected for years as this hiking trail is not heavily traveled, or if winds are blowing and constantly dispersing gases.
But, we locals, are thinking that, with all the family and the dog dead at once - they would have had to have been exposed and died very quickly. And, just because there are few mines in the area does not mean there are no other underground fissures or channels present.

And that’s what we have so far, until further investigation is revealed.

SBM. That is very interesting!! Thanks for sharing.

 

[everybodhi]

MOO

We may live in very different parts of the world. Where I live in Sonoma County, it’s not only survivable to be out all day long in the sun when temps are 95+F, it’s routine! The ranchers around here are out with their working dogs for hours on end with no shade. Like, all the time. Our weather this summer has been mid to high 90’s for a good chunk of the summer, with the occasional 100 or 101 thrown in. Life, especially ranch life, goes on.

My son’s been having grueling high school football practices this past month starting at 3:30 in the afternoon when the temperatures are sometimes still 97F or 98F. The coaches don’t cancel them.

Here in California, we have herds of cattle and dairy cows (who also rely on respiration to cool, like dogs) that literally bake out in the open with no shade in the Central Valley and inland coastal valleys when temperatures hover around 110F.

Maybe I’m just used to a different way of life.

MOO

I'm not living there presently but still have a home in Sonoma County, a high of 95 doesn't last long there, it warms up later in the day and cools down earlier than treeless inland locations.

 

[HannahJJJ]

MOO

My best guess is that LE can’t understand why anyone would take a baby on this sort of hike, and that makes them wonder what they might be missing.

MOO

I see taking the baby and dog as being very strange.

 

[everybodhi]

snipped
p/s and besides the veteran officer there said he hasn't seen anything like this in his 15 years? of duty or something like that. Has he seen casualties from heat related causes before, I bet he did.

It's highly unusual for a family with a little baby and a fluffy dog to hike in such a brutal environment, that's for sure.

 

[HannahJJJ]

It's highly unusual for a family with a little baby and a fluffy dog to hike in such a brutal environment, that's for sure.

He was a forty-five year old man. Not a kid. She, thirty, and I read that some years ago she had a TBI. The TBI...that experience, she knew well that life is perilous, and taking a baby and dog into that environment was indeed perilous. I certainly can't see both participating in making such a bad...understatement...decision.

 

[MaryG12]

I am starting to wonder if they took any breaks at all during their hike.

And how fast they were moving.

Because when we go hiking in the heat (which is rare) I need to stop every quarter- to half-mile for a break, which means sitting on the ground and taking water.

And to take my physical limits seriously, I know precisely what my body can tolerate when it comes to outdoor activities, and heat toleration, which has diminished as I age (mid-50's).

 

[LifeIsAMystery]

People generally don't die from running out of breath. They could have stopped, rested and then continued on if they felt short of breath. Something prevented them from doing that and I don't think it was the altitude. They were on the most strenuous part of the hike with no shade and the temperature was rising. If they were exhausted and out of breath, it was likely because of the extreme heat. Imo

Air quality was poor due to the fires as well.

 

[NSamuelle]

I see taking the baby and dog as being very strange.

What enjoyment would a baby get out of a long, brutal hike that would be worth the heat risk and added exertion of carrying her? They had the means to leave her with a sitter; obviously we all wish they had.

 

[rosesfromangels]

What enjoyment would a baby get out of a long, brutal hike that would be worth the heat risk and added exertion of carrying her? They had the means to leave her with a sitter; obviously we all wish they had.

Yes. As I posted upthread, there is more to this story.
Let's hope answers are forthcoming soon. What a horrible tragedy.

Amateur opinion and speculation

 

[lotus777]

Like I said before there's a little problem with the heat related theory.
Reaction to heat exhaustion vary by person and here we got a baby and a dog.
If the dog or baby succumbed to the heat first, the man wouldn't just die in a sitting position.
And if the man died first, the woman would've taken the baby(dog could just follow) and his phone, and run for help.

That's what investigators think too, she looked to be heading in the right direction, toward their vehicle.
That's why I don't think the heat caused her death.

and at the scene, we see no sign of any struggle or panic except maybe the woman was found more in front of the trail.

It looks more as if they suffocated in their sleep rather than hikers dying in heat related causes.
The woman seems to be the last survivor but she just couldn't make it to their vehicle.

Why?

She couldn't breath climbing up.

p/s and besides the veteran officer there said he hasn't seen anything like this in his 15 years? of duty or something like that. Has he seen casualties from heat related causes before, I bet he did.

This has been covered previously from various angles. The baby and dog would have been more susceptible to heat in the first place. The man and woman were found 30 yards apart. She could have stopped to wait with him if he needed to rest (for who knows how long). If she was already in distress when she started up the trail again, she wouldn't have made it very far. Someone else posted that finding a person in a sitting position after dying from heat stroke isn't unusual.

 

[Smokingun]

This is an interesting account of a young woman hiking the Savage-Lundy trail in May 2015. The picture gives you a sense of the change in elevation.

https://califraven.com/2015/06/04/first-time-for-everything/

 

[MrsColumbo79]

Has anyone else considered this family didn’t all leave for the hike together? what if LE believe their hike began in the afternoon because one stayed behind? An argument, sickness, phone call could all be reasons one Stays behind but it does feel sinister. Like one parent questions the whereabouts of the other and upon searching (afternoon) stumbles across something utterly shattering

 

[Sunny Day]

Amid the heat, the possibility of lightning, plus toxic algae blooms, it's almost like this poor family encountered a trifecta of danger.
Brit family found dead on hiking trail may have been killed by LIGHTNING

 

[NSamuelle]

Has anyone else considered this family didn’t all leave for the hike together? what if LE believe their hike began in the afternoon because one stayed behind? An argument, sickness, phone call could all be reasons one Stays behind but it does feel sinister. Like one parent questions the whereabouts of the other and upon searching (afternoon) stumbles across something utterly shattering

I think they assume they left together because only one car was found at the trail head and they found footprints consistent with 2 adults and a dog. If EC or JG had gotten an Uber or asked a friend to drive them, there’d be a record of that.

 

[minazoe]

Amid the heat, the possibility of lightning, plus toxic algae blooms, it's almost like this poor family encountered a trifecta of danger.
Brit family found dead on hiking trail may have been killed by LIGHTNING

well reading this article from Sun, made me feel anxious..I can't say why..just a vibe I get. I don't know...the lightening thing is plausible but we need a better article on the matter..it is possible sure..

mOO

 

[arrogantcat]

What enjoyment would a baby get out of a long, brutal hike that would be worth the heat risk and added exertion of carrying her? They had the means to leave her with a sitter; obviously we all wish they had.

It may seem strange, but it’s not all that unusual. My sister-in-law was taking her baby on similar types of hikes and expeditions almost from birth.

Either a conviction not to let having a baby force a change in parental lifestyle, or a belief that it’s enriching and beneficial to the baby to stay close to parents and experience nature would be fairly normal justifications. I don’t see anything inherently suspicious in their choice to take the whole family along.

If mom was breastfeeding, it might not have been possible to leave baby for long with a sitter either.

 

[arrogantcat]

well reading this article from Sun, made me feel anxious..I can't say why..just a vibe I get. I don't know the lightening thing is plausible but we need a better article on the matter..it is possible sure..

mOO

to be fair, The Sun’s “source” here is most likely just this forum and the discussions being had

 

[MrsColumbo79]

I think they assume they left together because only one car was found at the trail head and they found footprints consistent with 2 adults and a dog. If EC or JG had gotten an Uber or asked a friend to drive them, there’d be a record of that.

Aaah yes, for some reason I thought the trail was within walking distance of their home.

 

[NSamuelle]

Amid the heat, the possibility of lightning, plus toxic algae blooms, it's almost like this poor family encountered a trifecta of danger.
Brit family found dead on hiking trail may have been killed by LIGHTNING

I was disappointed to see that this article draws from the old NYT article - no new information. Lightning is possible but the odds are astronomical. I can understand why the media is running with the “trail of terror” stuff rather than focusing on plain old heat stroke (click bait), but I don’t think algae and lightning are more likely than heat (or something more sinister, given the shocking parameters of the route that LE “believes” they took (7M of an 8.5M route)).

 

[Sunny Day]

Has anyone else considered this family didn’t all leave for the hike together? what if LE believe their hike began in the afternoon because one stayed behind? An argument, sickness, phone call could all be reasons one Stays behind but it does feel sinister. Like one parent questions the whereabouts of the other and upon searching (afternoon) stumbles across something utterly shattering

I think I read that a witness reported seeing the family in their vehicle at 7:45 am heading toward the trails.