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A nameless hiker and the case the internet can’t crack

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Re: A nameless hiker and the case the internet can’t crack

#171

Post by almog »

tdons wrote: post #139
almog wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> "was only able to hike 10 miles a day" Where is this quote from? It's not from the linked article. > "10 mi / day is absolutely abysmal for a normal thru hiker." To the best of my understanding, unless he flip-flopped, he was not a thruhiker as he started in NY. It is not clear either if he made his way south in a continuous footpath. Moreover, even for a thru-hiker, the 10 by 10 gold standard of hiking does not ap…

It's in an image so you can't text search :) https://media.wired.com/photos/5fa04a3d8239757e365803ec/mast... Bottom right under 'additional information'. I had heard that the AT wasn't as well graded, but I wasn't aware the difference was this big, thanks!

I see now. I wonder if what Florida police took as 10 miles a day was in Florida or on the A.T. It probably makes for a big difference as the Florida Trail is much flatter and the terrain should be easier though I'm not sure the middle of the summer is the best time to hike it, and the heat + humidity could have slowed him down in different ways.

As to the A.T. — I think it's not just the grade that is to account for the low mileage but also that the season is not as narrow as on the PCT/CDT.

Re: A nameless hiker and the case the internet can’t crack

#172

Post by dheera »

momokoko wrote: post #124
roywiggins wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

USPS sells change-of-address data. https://www.forbes.com/sites/adamtanner/2013/07/08/how-the-p...

Protip: Only do the temporary change. It still lasts like 6 months so it would cover practically everything. You could potentially miss something later but for me it’s a solid trade.

For the most part I figure if something is really important enough people will figure out a way to reach me. My e-mail address is pretty easy to find and any business I have subscribed to services from has that. I consider it the official way to contact me. I already deprecated snail mail and phone as official ways to reach me.

Re: A nameless hiker and the case the internet can’t crack

#173

Post by sebmellen »

grawprog wrote: post #109
alecbcs wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Checking for users who forked the repo in 2017 and haven't been active since 2017 I got. - amidman - eqzus - Mike Hancoski (follows users from NY, wrote PHP code, his personal website domain wasn't renewed and is now available.)

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-hancoski-b342aa53 This guy looks like a clean shaven version of those pictures. Noses look the same. The eyes. No updates to the account since 2015.

Might be worth reaching out to other people working for "Xcite Media Group". 23 employees is small enough to know if someone went missing.

Re: A nameless hiker and the case the internet can’t crack

#175

Post by jakehop »

newguysofly wrote: post #156
jakehop wrote: post #154

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I know you're only trying to help, but they look nothing alike. And going missing on a shrimp boat leaving Texas, to then hike from up north seems too odd for Occam's Razor.

Two points: One, I don't know who you're looking at! They look very, very similar to me. Keep in mind, you have to age your mental image of JWM about ten years. Second, it's absolutely clear that MH wanted to "go missing" / be untraceable. If I were to accomplish that, the best way to do so would be to fake some sort of accident... like a mishap at sea (so that people believe you to be dead). Hence, shrimping boat.

Quite an odd thing to say. While it can be easy to think that someone looks alike due to the "overall appearance" of their faces, closer inspection usually sets things apart. Their completely different chins are one example.

Secondly, his DNA didn't match the missing person's database, which you are getting your "match" from.

There's no reason to be defensive. You've done nothing wrong. Wrong starts only if it is impossible for one to accept that one's theory might not be correct. That can ultimately end in throwing off the real investigation, if one were aggressive enough.

Re: A nameless hiker and the case the internet can’t crack

#176

Post by [deleted] »

vmception wrote: post #108
grecy wrote: post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree 100%. I've chosen a life of less work, less stuff and therefore less money. I spend a lot of my time alone on big trips around the world, and out in the wilderness. I'm immensely more happy than I was sitting at a desk watching my life go by without really being alive . I get a lot of this attitude about how I must be "running from something" or I'm "throwing my life away". I think it's a symptom of our moder…

Nobody would criticize you if nobody could tell that you had less money than people making other choices. Looking like someone that has to stay in hostels, versus someone that likes the inherently more social aspect of hostels are very different things.

[deleted]

Re: A nameless hiker and the case the internet can’t crack

#177

Post by birdyrooster »

kbos87 wrote: post #169

Not even a passing mention of the privacy questions at stake here. I don’t fault the police for seeking answers, but every self-nominated amateur sleuth isn’t due an answer about the identity of someone who in all likelihood wanted to live privately and never committed a crime.

In any context I can think of privacy only exists while someone is alive. Once you are dead your life history sort of exists in the public domain.

Re: A nameless hiker and the case the internet can’t crack

#178

Post by _whiteCaps_ »

jamisteven wrote: post #135
nxthompson2 wrote: post #3

I'm the author of the piece. I think the best clues are that the mystery hiker told people he was from Louisiana, and that he worked in the tech industry in NY. I suspect someone here might recognize him. I'm reachable at nxthompson at protonmail.

Question, in the first picture he is wearing a jacket with "BR" embroidered on left side, was that ever looked into if its not a brand name?

Maybe a Banana Republic puffy?

Re: A nameless hiker and the case the internet can’t crack

#180

Post by dmckeon »

almog wrote: post #116

I love how sometimes worlds collide and thruhiking related stories make it to HN. It is however sad for it to be in this context. If anyone reading this consider getting into long distance hiking, I'd encourage you to do so. While it is always best to avoid getting into dangerous situations rather than finding your way out of there, getting yourself either: 1. A subscription based satellite messenger (Garmin Mini is…

If you travel to places where you might want people searching for you from the air to notice you amid many square miles of search area, a signal mirror is remarkably effective. https://adventure.howstuffworks.com/survival/gear/use-signal...
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