I agree there is definitely something here that is different than I'd originally "assumed," and also what I have seen in other missing persons cases. I try often to "devil's advocate" myself and try to see how this could just be a tragic wrong time/wrong place deal that BL happened to be caught up in. But, I really struggle in doing this. Putting aside assumptions about who he is as a person, just considering what little we know about what went down, two people went on a trip and only one returned. The one who returned would not disclose any information about the person who did not return, and then that person went missing.
The only way I am able to give BL the "benefit of the doubt" is when I think about his family -- this is MOO based upon the little facts released to the public, but still MOO -- they were the ones who replied BL was "not available" to speak with LE or anyone these past few weeks. Did they imply he was around, whether in the home or the state, and was he really? (Can anyone answer or corroborate this?) They are also the ones who reported him missing several days after-the-fact, seemingly following a notification from their lawyer, so who knows whether without that they would have reported anything at all.
They are also the ones who last saw him wearing a backpack with a buckled hip-strap, which again I feel is 1) a weird thing to wear on a short day hike when the load shouldn't be too heavy and 2) a weird thing to tell cops you last saw your kid wearing, as whether or not the hip buckle would be fastened is inconsistent and therefore not an obvious detail in identifying anyone.
Plus, at this point, his photo is everywhere. We'd know him, backpack-hip-buckle or not. Previous posts I've made about this strange (to me, IMO) detail have been met with the utility of backpack hip-belt-buckles. Yes, they're sure handy in reallocating weight and making it easier to carry heavy loads for longer time and over longer distance. Got it. So then, I continue to ask, why this individual was wearing this (buckled and all, as his parents were careful to point out) on a DAY HIKE.