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  1. #1
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    Default Geraldine Largay - The Final Campsite

    I news article about Geraldine Largay posted today. http://www.wcsh6.com/entertainment/t...site/492863159
    Everyone has a photographic memory. Not everyone has film.

  2. #2
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    Sad.


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  4. #4
    Registered User cneill13's Avatar
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    I hate to bash a dead person but she was an absolute idiot who should never, ever have hiked alone.

    No directional skills. Her actions alone since being lost made no sense. Didn't follow the stream downward. Didn't climb to a peak for cell phone usage.

    But worst of all, she couldn't build a sustainable fire.

    It's hard to feel sorry for someone so completely devoid of common backpacker knowledge.
    Last edited by cneill13; 11-20-2017 at 18:13.

  5. #5

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    If that links to the broadcast I saw the tail end of on WCHS (local channel for me) recently, then it's worth watching. I should go watch the whole thing. Best description of how and why of the incident your going to get.

    Her fatal mistake was trying to climb to get a cell signal. Unfortunately, no matter how high she could have climbed, it's unlikely she could have gotten a signal. Following a stream down hill will always get you to a road eventually.
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    Quote Originally Posted by Tipi Walter View Post
    Her story makes me rethink the purchase of a PLB, especially as I get older.
    If I recall correctly, she had a SPOT but either forgot it or chose not to carry it.

    In any event, this poor woman had serious cognitive issues and should never have been backpacking alone.
    Last edited by cmoulder; 11-20-2017 at 18:44.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by cneill13 View Post
    It's hard to feel sorry for someone so completely devoid of common backpacker knowledge.
    In fairness, a very large number of thru hikers aren't skilled in backcountry off trail travel. In fact, probably the majority. Definitely including me - I don't know much about off trail travel. Her major mistake was going too far off the AT to relieve herself and then she couldn't find the trail. That modesty cost her life.

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by Coffee View Post
    In fairness, a very large number of thru hikers aren't skilled in backcountry off trail travel. In fact, probably the majority. Definitely including me - I don't know much about off trail travel. Her major mistake was going too far off the AT to relieve herself and then she couldn't find the trail. That modesty cost her life.
    from things ive read she could have been 5 feet off the trail and not found her way back.

    which i suppose could happen to any of us. i think other things she did or didnt do are more of an issue.

    but i wouldnt call it death by modesty.

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by tdoczi View Post
    from things ive read she could have been 5 feet off the trail and not found her way back.
    which i suppose could happen to any of us. i think other things she did or didnt do are more of an issue.
    but i wouldnt call it death by modesty.
    What I always do is find points of reference when walking deep into woods to dig a cat hole. It is definitely easy to get turned around in some places. Also, I point one of my trekking poles in the direction of the trail before I start digging. If the woods are really deep, I'll take a compass bearing as I head off the trail.

    In any case, R.I.P. to the deceased.

  10. #10
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    Whatever issues she may have already had with sense of direction, experience, and knowledge, being stressed, exhausted, and hungry and exacerbate the situation. You're not at your sharpest under such circumstances.

  11. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by Coffee View Post
    In fairness, a very large number of thru hikers aren't skilled in backcountry off trail travel. In fact, probably the majority. Definitely including me - I don't know much about off trail travel. Her major mistake was going too far off the AT to relieve herself and then she couldn't find the trail. That modesty cost her life.
    and nobody carries paper maps any more. very foolish not to. very foolish to count on electronics

  12. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by Lone Wolf View Post
    and nobody carries paper maps any more. very foolish not to. very foolish to count on electronics
    Yeah, I feel like a dinosaur with paper maps and at least a primitive understanding of a compass ... tons of people "see no need" for them anymore. "There's an app for that ... "

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    Quote Originally Posted by Coffee View Post
    Yeah, I feel like a dinosaur with paper maps and at least a primitive understanding of a compass ... tons of people "see no need" for them anymore. "There's an app for that ... "
    a map and even a casual ability to read one (know which way north was, read topo lines, etc) would have gotten her out of there

  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by Coffee View Post
    Yeah, I feel like a dinosaur with paper maps and at least a primitive understanding of a compass ... tons of people "see no need" for them anymore. "There's an app for that ... "
    i don't own a "smart phone" or any other devices

  15. #15

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    Every time this unfortunate woman's name is mentioned, it's the proverbial "dead horse" all over again...

  16. #16

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    The big difference between Largay and myself? When I have to take a Turd break I dump my pack on the trail and go off the trail about 8 feet and dig a proper cathole and release the festering Stool, all the while eyeballing my pack on the trail.

    She got lost on July 23, 2013 and her body wasn't found until October 2015. Wow. She survived at least 26 days.

    Her last camp was 2 miles from the Appalachian Trail. Two miles in the Maine woods might as well be 50.

  17. #17

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    This whole story will never make sense to me, I’ll never understand how someone could take a pea break and end up 2 miles from where they need to be.

  18. #18

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    ...and stay there for 26 days while all around you is the most notable search going on in Maine’s history, sumthin’ dosent add up.

  19. #19

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    Quote Originally Posted by rocketsocks View Post
    ...and stay there for 26 days while all around you is the most notable search going on in Maine’s history, sumthin’ dosent add up.
    Maine Ranger Deb Palman said, "This is some of the worst country in Maine. It's hard to understand how logistically difficult this area was on any given day, by the time a searcher would get close to where Largay was found, they'd have to turn around to make it back to their vehicles by nightfall."

    This I find perplexing. I would assume searchers could backpack in and spend the night and continue the search---so they won't have to turn around and "make it back to their vehicles by nightfall."

    About 20 years ago I went on a backpacking trip in Pisgah NF with a friend and he had the worst balance of anyone I've ever known. Each step on the trail, some of it rugged, was like watching someone soaked in molasses moving in slow motion. It was mind blowing and infuriating but I kept my mouth shut.

    I imagine Geraldine had the same sort of impediment---not lack of balance but maybe terrible spatial awareness.

  20. #20
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    Quote Originally Posted by cneill13 View Post
    I hate to bash a dead person but she was an absolute idiot who should never, ever have hiked alone.

    No directional skills. Her actions alone since being lost made no sense. Didn't follow the stream downward. Didn't climb to a peak for cell phone usage.

    But worst of all, she couldn't build a sustainable fire.

    It's hard to feel sorry for someone so completely devoid of common backpacker knowledge.
    I know who to feel sorry for.

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