Esther and Dan - missing hiker
Discussion
Couldn't see this being discussed elsewhere.
About a week ago, the BBC ran this inspiring article about a couple who had spent the past 6 years travelling around Europe by van:-
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-5484243...
A few days after the article was published, the female, Esther, went missing while on a solo hike.
The latest news suggests that police are looking at "non-accident options", whatever that means:-
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-5514743...
I really hope she turns up safe, the initial story was so uplifting and positive but I have an awful feeling that this is not going to end well.
Fingers crossed.
About a week ago, the BBC ran this inspiring article about a couple who had spent the past 6 years travelling around Europe by van:-
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-5484243...
A few days after the article was published, the female, Esther, went missing while on a solo hike.
The latest news suggests that police are looking at "non-accident options", whatever that means:-
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-5514743...
I really hope she turns up safe, the initial story was so uplifting and positive but I have an awful feeling that this is not going to end well.
Fingers crossed.
Edited by R56Cooper on Wednesday 2nd December 10:33
I've been following this with interest too. I understand her partner has made a statement around the fact that the authorities have told him that as the terrain and weather were good they would have expected to find her had she fallen so they're now expanding their hypothesis to include the fact she may not be on the mountain.
Indeed, that is the baffling thing. If she has gone off the mountain, the options seem to be either that she chose to do it of her own accord or she has been abducted.
Given the remoteness of the area, the second option seems unlikely. The initial story mentioned that she had a history of mental health issues, perhaps she has chosen to walk away from her current life and start afresh?
Either way, it's an awful situation for the family left behind.
Given the remoteness of the area, the second option seems unlikely. The initial story mentioned that she had a history of mental health issues, perhaps she has chosen to walk away from her current life and start afresh?
Either way, it's an awful situation for the family left behind.
sebdangerfield said:
I've been following this with interest too. I understand her partner has made a statement around the fact that the authorities have told him that as the terrain and weather were good they would have expected to find her had she fallen so they're now expanding their hypothesis to include the fact she may not be on the mountain.
Surely they can track and triangulate her phone, to confirm where she was at point of last contact, ie the whatsapp? Is the partner in the frame for this? Sorry to be blunt, not read the articles!
Most likely, surely is some accident, an abduction from a mountain top sounds like Stallone would be involved!!
I think the article said that her phone was often out of service given the area so unlikely to be traceable.
I don't think the partner is in the frame for it but the police must be looking closely at him, just because this is such a strange situation. There doesn't seem to be any explanation of why she went on her own, given that they both enjoyed hiking and had completed various long distance routes.
I agree that the idea of a mountain abduction seems very far fetched. Having said that the alternative option that she walked off the mountain and just vanished with no car, no money / resources etc seems equally unlikely.
I don't know the terrain but I expect there must be gorges / ravines where an injured person could easily be missed. Maybe she has just fallen and not been found.
I don't think the partner is in the frame for it but the police must be looking closely at him, just because this is such a strange situation. There doesn't seem to be any explanation of why she went on her own, given that they both enjoyed hiking and had completed various long distance routes.
I agree that the idea of a mountain abduction seems very far fetched. Having said that the alternative option that she walked off the mountain and just vanished with no car, no money / resources etc seems equally unlikely.
I don't know the terrain but I expect there must be gorges / ravines where an injured person could easily be missed. Maybe she has just fallen and not been found.
A very unusual case. The timing seems almost uncanny. One week you're having a story published on BBC news about your unusual lifestyle, the next, you are missing.
Still, according the the bloke, the police are confident she isn't on the mountain and it seems an unlikely place to get kidnapped. Perhaps she just switched her phone off, finished her hike and after that, who knows?
Still, according the the bloke, the police are confident she isn't on the mountain and it seems an unlikely place to get kidnapped. Perhaps she just switched her phone off, finished her hike and after that, who knows?
poo at Paul's said:
Surely they can track and triangulate her phone, to confirm where she was at point of last contact, ie the whatsapp?
Is the partner in the frame for this? Sorry to be blunt, not read the articles!
Most likely, surely is some accident, an abduction from a mountain top sounds like Stallone would be involved!!
Yeah you're right, there will be work going on with her phone. That was the reason for my interest as telecoms work is what I do. The big issue with her phone will be dependent upon how remote the area is could mean there's no signal so there could be large gaps in the data when her phone has no service which won't help much. Even if there is service, the accuracy for cell siting the phone would be heavily dependent upon the technology involved, some remote places served by a 2G antennae could cover enormous distances. Is the partner in the frame for this? Sorry to be blunt, not read the articles!
Most likely, surely is some accident, an abduction from a mountain top sounds like Stallone would be involved!!
There's not much out there at the moment and the initial report said she'd been seen during the walk so I doubt her partner is implicated at this stage but in any case that's always going to be an enquiry. I've not seen the report which stated she had previous MH issues. I hope she's found safe. Must be hell for her family.
sebdangerfield said:
Yeah you're right, there will be work going on with her phone. That was the reason for my interest as telecoms work is what I do. The big issue with her phone will be dependent upon how remote the area is could mean there's no signal so there could be large gaps in the data when her phone has no service which won't help much. Even if there is service, the accuracy for cell siting the phone would be heavily dependent upon the technology involved, some remote places served by a 2G antennae could cover enormous distances.
There's not much out there at the moment and the initial report said she'd been seen during the walk so I doubt her partner is implicated at this stage but in any case that's always going to be an enquiry. I've not seen the report which stated she had previous MH issues. I hope she's found safe. Must be hell for her family.
Absolutely, cannot think of anything worse than not knowing whether your loved one is alive or not. There are quite a few cases of people just dropping out of life and choosing to disappear. In some instances they re-surface years later. There's not much out there at the moment and the initial report said she'd been seen during the walk so I doubt her partner is implicated at this stage but in any case that's always going to be an enquiry. I've not seen the report which stated she had previous MH issues. I hope she's found safe. Must be hell for her family.
R56Cooper said:
There doesn't seem to be any explanation of why she went on her own, given that they both enjoyed hiking and had completed various long distance routes.
From the BBC article, it looks like he was happy to stay house-sitting in France, whilst she went off on her own:"We realised that during the coronavirus we had not been apart from each other for a year so decided to each just do our own thing for a bit. This whole thing has been really good for us individually and our relationship; we are genuinely happy now."
I don't know whether they were being paid a modest sum to occupy the house (or more likely just allowed free stay in return for the house-sitting), or perhaps with his prior health issues he prefers a bit more stability.
I read the inspiring original BBC article and was saddened to see the update a week later.
Re-reading that quote above, it's very sad & worrying indeed - hope she turns up safe & well.
UnclePat said:
From the BBC article, it looks like he was happy to stay house-sitting in France, whilst she went off on her own:
"We realised that during the coronavirus we had not been apart from each other for a year so decided to each just do our own thing for a bit. This whole thing has been really good for us individually and our relationship; we are genuinely happy now."
I don't know whether they were being paid a modest sum to occupy the house (or more likely just allowed free stay in return for the house-sitting), or perhaps with his prior health issues he prefers a bit more stability.
I read the inspiring original BBC article and was saddened to see the update a week later.
Re-reading that quote above, it's very sad & worrying indeed - hope she turns up safe & well.
Ah thanks, missed that bit. "We realised that during the coronavirus we had not been apart from each other for a year so decided to each just do our own thing for a bit. This whole thing has been really good for us individually and our relationship; we are genuinely happy now."
I don't know whether they were being paid a modest sum to occupy the house (or more likely just allowed free stay in return for the house-sitting), or perhaps with his prior health issues he prefers a bit more stability.
I read the inspiring original BBC article and was saddened to see the update a week later.
Re-reading that quote above, it's very sad & worrying indeed - hope she turns up safe & well.
The story itself is fraught with sadness and then a happy spin but then to have it plunged in sadness again with Esther going missing is terrible for the chap and family. As stated she must now be out of the mountains if the search and rescue haven't found her. That said she was wearing grey and black (not the best colours for hiking solo) so I'd argue there's a good chance she's still out there.
I can't imagine she's attempted to go missing but you do hear of it and I know of two "failed" attempts with people with mental health concerns close to me; the Pyrenees would be an ideal place to do it.
I can't imagine she's attempted to go missing but you do hear of it and I know of two "failed" attempts with people with mental health concerns close to me; the Pyrenees would be an ideal place to do it.
UnclePat said:
I read the inspiring original BBC article and was saddened to see the update a week later.
Re-reading that quote above, it's very sad & worrying indeed - hope she turns up safe & well.
Yes the sameRe-reading that quote above, it's very sad & worrying indeed - hope she turns up safe & well.
I read the original article and thought good luck to them. Shame it all seems to have turned bad in a week.
Solo hiking is not a good idea for young women sadly. Too many weirdos out there.
Edited by JagLover on Wednesday 2nd December 17:28
This is a sad story. Like a number of us I saw the BBC article on them. I'm a seasoned traveller myself & as someone who struggles to generally be indoors & in one place for weeks on end (yep - lockdown not great for minds like mine) I found their story really interesting.
Not much else to add - other than I hope she turns up safe and well.
Not much else to add - other than I hope she turns up safe and well.
I read the original article before she vanished, and whilst it was written to be positive I thought some of it was a bit odd, both of them having had quite difficult ups and downs.
Her mental health issues.
I imagine they got quite a bit of focus & attention from the article - who knows if it was positive or not.
Maybe she's just decided to take herself out of the focus for a little bit. Hopefully just by going off grid for a little while. Sadly though I think it might not be such a happy ending.
Her mental health issues.
I imagine they got quite a bit of focus & attention from the article - who knows if it was positive or not.
Maybe she's just decided to take herself out of the focus for a little bit. Hopefully just by going off grid for a little while. Sadly though I think it might not be such a happy ending.
There's simply something not right with this story. Publicising your ventures one minute and then within a week, disappears?
Given that, it is inherently difficult to search mountainous areas given the terrain, even when using helicopters, mountain rescue search teams and thermal imaging. It is very easy to not spot a body in such areas.
Given that, it is inherently difficult to search mountainous areas given the terrain, even when using helicopters, mountain rescue search teams and thermal imaging. It is very easy to not spot a body in such areas.
Looks like it will be a sad outcome to this case - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-5795418...
The most likely outcome throughout seemed to be that she had come to grief in the hills, rather than being abducted, disappearing on her own etc
Assuming it is her, at least it will give a sense of closure to those involved.
The most likely outcome throughout seemed to be that she had come to grief in the hills, rather than being abducted, disappearing on her own etc
Assuming it is her, at least it will give a sense of closure to those involved.
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