Guatemala - Nancy Ng, 29, from Monterey Park CA, missing during Yoga Retreat, 19 Oct 2023

[AnyNameIWish]

I'm noticing this description:

"About this tour
Rent a kayak or stand up paddleboard (SUPs) and explore Lake Atitlan with absolute freedom."

"Absolute freedom"- definitely gives one the the sense that exploring miles and miles of the lake via kayak is a possibility. (And sounds lovely but with no motorized backup and no PFD it's as if safety precautions are a mere afterthought...)

I heard the interview. Sounds like it was choppy waters that day. (This can also make one seasick.. makes me ill thinking about it..) the owners seemed surprised the entire group skipped town within a day, and didn't even pay the bill for the rentals. She mentioned that the person who saw NN go into the water and not come out was being walked out of the kayak rental area by the head yogi, in distress.

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[musicaljoke]

I'm noticing this description:

"About this tour
Rent a kayak or stand up paddleboard (SUPs) and explore Lake Atitlan with absolute freedom."

"Absolute freedom"- definitely gives one the the sense that exploring miles and miles of the lake via kayak is a possibility. (And sounds lovely but with no motorized backup and no PFD it's as if safety precautions are a mere afterthought...)

I heard the interview. Sounds like it was choppy waters that day. (This can also make one seasick.. makes me ill thinking about it..) the owners seemed surprised the entire group skipped town within a day, and didn't even pay the bill for the rentals. She mentioned that the person who saw NN go into the water and not come out was being walked out of the kayak rental area by the head yogi, in distress.

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It appears in the video that the wind is picking up. The waves, although still small, are coming in fast. As a canoeist, I would have read that as a "stay within 10 metres of shore" warning. Although there is no mention of NN getting into trouble because of the wind, it does confirm that her kayak would have been moving from the forces of the wind when she dove into the water. Is it possible that she was struck by her own kayak?

 

[RickshawFan]

I feel it’s only natural and human of Nancy’s family to want to know as much information as possible to bring their Nancy home. As her sister said, their father is wondering if she could have been kidnapped, and keeps his phone close in case of a ransom call. That is because the information given is so scant. IMO
—-

Snipped for focus

But the known details don’t in the least bit point to a kidnapping. She evidently jumped into a lake and never resurfaced. There was a witness. Her kayak has been found. We have more information about this death than thousands we’ve had here on WS.

 

[RickshawFan]

It appears in the video that the wind is picking up. The waves, although still small, are coming in fast. As a canoeist, I would have read that as a "stay within 10 metres of shore" warning. Although there is no mention of NN getting into trouble because of the wind, it does confirm that her kayak would have been moving from the forces of the wind when she dove into the water. Is it possible that she was struck by her own kayak?

If her poor companion was trying to stay in the same area, so she could keep track of the swimmer, it would be very difficult because of the wind.

 

[RickshawFan]

They pointed out that elements of Men Frog, Sololá Region Rescue Brigade, Canine Section and Air Section, will carry out a search in Lake Atitlán, they are in charge of continuing the search for the tourist.

Socorristas reanudan búsqueda por agua, tierra y aire, de la turista de EE. UU. que se extravió en el Lago de Atitlán - Guatevision

La joven llegó a Sololá a participar de un retiro de yoga, pero aparentemente subió a kayak y cayó al Lago de Atitlán.

www.guatevision.com

*there‘s a video showing a canine searching through brush

That’s “frog men”, aka scuba divers.

 

[RickshawFan]

So far, no mention of the role getting too much sun plays in all of this. You’d want to be very covered up, with wide brim hat, sun shirt. The sun is more overhead than LAX. The wind will exacerbate the feel. And the water will reflect it. You couldn’t be more exposed.

I’d be hallucinating if I was out there any time at all.

 

[charminglane]

Video shows last time SoCal woman was seen alive before disappearing in Guatemala

Video of the last time a Southern California woman was seen alive before she disappeared on a yoga retreat in Guatemala was released as her family remains desperate for answers. The family of Nancy…

ktla.com

 

[RickshawFan]

I don't know if anyone posted this yet, but it has great photos. They will give a flavor of the lake and surroundings. It is light years away from a world of paddling kayaks, yoga, new-age dogma, yuppie money, weeklong "retreats".

What I see when I see that lake, is a monster-god rising from the water in a violent gust of wind. And those volcanoes? Home to future violence from the bowels of the earth. Scares me big-time. I can't imagine going kayak paddling.

FWIW The hotel shown was the only one when I was there, and trust me, it was a lot less fancy.

Lake Atitlán - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Knox]

Per the video linked above. There were ten people in the kayak group. Nancy and another woman ventured out, further away from the shore into the lake. Eight of the ten returned. Then, "eventually the other woman returned alone". The group left the retreat within 12 hours of Nancy's disappearance, without paying for the kayak rental or saying a word. No one in the group has spoken to the family.

As curious as the details are regarding the kayak group and their behavior. Unless other details are revealed - I don't see anything nefarious, as in someone in that group is responsible for her presumed drowning.

I would think authorities in the US will interview them and come up with a conclusion for the family?

 

[ifindedout]

Could she (and the rest of the party) have been doing hot yoga that morning, and when she went in the water, the thermal shock incapacitated her because her body hadn't yet readjusted? MOO

 

[Inthedetails]

I don't know if anyone posted this yet, but it has great photos. They will give a flavor of the lake and surroundings. It is light years away from a world of paddling kayaks, yoga, new-age dogma, yuppie money, weeklong "retreats".

What I see when I see that lake, is a monster-god rising from the water in a violent gust of wind. And those volcanoes? Home to future violence from the bowels of the earth. Scares me big-time. I can't imagine going kayak paddling.

FWIW The hotel shown was the only one when I was there, and trust me, it was a lot less fancy.

Lake Atitlán - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

It is sooooo deep! The depth scares me, tbh. Thanks for that link - very interesting geography.

jmo

 

[charminglane]

Could she (and the rest of the party) have been doing hot yoga that morning, and when she went in the water, the thermal shock incapacitated her because her body hadn't yet readjusted? MOO

Great question!

 

[slowpoke]

Gray Hughes Investigates contacted Kayak Guatemala and got a lot of detail on the sequence of events that is very helpful.

The Kayak business owner says (andI am paraphrasing) it’s a straightforward case of drowning, and that bodies often do not resurface on this lake. The woman that was with Nancy is an attorney, and did paddle to the shoreline to give the alert (at house Paxanax?) and within 5 min boats went out to search.

The kayak owner said the yoga group left without the authorities’ permission.

Watch from around 48:00

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[slowpoke]

Another thing Gray said was that he asked about life vests. The kayak owner said they have them available for anyone, but there’s no law there saying you must wear one. No one in the yoga group took one.

 

[Inthedetails]

Another thing Gray said was that he asked about life vests. The kayak owner said they have them available for anyone, but there’s no law there saying you must wear one. No one in the yoga group took one.

Even if nobody else is, even if you feel like the dork among the cool people, put on the life vest when in a boat. Seriously. Wear the vest.

jmo

 

[tarabull]

Even if nobody else is, even if you feel like the dork among the cool people, put on the life vest when in a boat. Seriously. Wear the vest.

jmo

You don't have to look like a dork...these are more fashion forward and less cumbersome...FWIW.

Inflatable Belt - PFD

ETA: + they r an easy fit in your luggage.

 

[musicaljoke]

It would be interesting to know why the group left the country without paying for the use of the kayaks. Were they afraid of being detained? I can understand if it was an oversight because of the trauma of their group member drowning. But the whole world knows now that they didn't pay. How hard would it be to call in a credit card number? Their hasty exit makes them look suspicious and irresponsible even if they had done nothing wrong related to the drowning. Could the survivor have offered some legal advice telling them to get home asap and say nothing lest they be sued?

 

[musicaljoke]

Another thing Gray said was that he asked about life vests. The kayak owner said they have them available for anyone, but there’s no law there saying you must wear one. No one in the yoga group took one.

I live on a large island with 200 lakes that attract a host of tourists each summer. I don't recall ever seeing anyone on the water without a life jacket. It's the common sense thing to do. It's a legal requirement but I doubt that's the main reason people put them on.

All ten yoga people went out on the water without life jackets. It's beyond understanding. It must be as @10ofRods mentioned above, that they felt empowered.

 

[musicaljoke]

It's sad to hear from the video above, that Ng likely will never be found, that bodies usually do not come to the surface.

 

[slowpoke]

At the HelpUsFindNancy IG page, there is a new post thanking the beautiful, kind locals who are complete strangers to the Ng family, but are out there searching daily.

There are several messages included, written to Nancy’s sister from these searchers, that have loving and encouraging words.

“If there’s a silver lining in all this,…”