Hikin_Jim wrote:The narrative mentions something interesting.Do we know what kind of maps those were? Topo maps? If there were topo maps, maybe Bill had more maps with him than I initially assumed. That could be very important. If he had a quad with Smith Water on it, that would make it more likely that he'd cut XC trying to get to it. Hard to imagine cutting XC to get a canyon that only vaguely know is a couple of miles north of me, although I suppose desperate thirst could have impelled him.SATURDAY 6/26/10
At approximately 14:30 hours, Deputy Rinkert informed me that he found several itineraries and maps in the condo that EWASKO was using. (emphasis mine)
I'm back looking at the topography again. There are a number of (more or less) north-south canyons that intervene between Quail Mountain Ridge and Smith Water Canyon. Those intervening canyons would take you towards Quail Springs/Samuelsons Rock. You'd have to stay fairly far to the west I would think to skirt those drainages and hit the saddle that leads you over the major ridge between Smith Water and Quail. If you stay west, you'd tend to gravitate toward the saddle we've talked about previously which in turn would feed you into the distinctive drainage that goes down to Smith Water, the drainage where the "suspicious" smell was detected.
QUESTION: Based on your first hand observation, which of those saddles is the obvious passage from the SE to get to Smith Water? "M" or "N?"
I don't know exactly what sort of maps Bill had, but I was told by RSO that they found "lots of maps" at his place in Rancho Mirage. That's the extent of my info.
Here's my take on it from the viewpoint of having seen the terrain between Quail and Smith Water: The only reason to go north of the Quail Ridge is if there's a medical issue. You can't get lost and end up heading that way. You can see everywhere. It's like a giant friggin' topo map.
If you decide on a "clever" course of action (clever like the DV Germans!) you head to Smith Water for water. That's a much nastier trip than it visually appears, because you can't see the nightmare descent you have to deal with into the canyon, when you're at your lowest energy.
The other, more conventional exit is to follow the drainages which all lead out to the flat area near Samuelson. You can see the area, and if you have a map, you know the road is there. And it looks close, real close. When I messed up my leg on the north face of Quail, I was sitting there looking at it, thinking how near it seemed, but I knew how hard it would be to get back.
If someone wanted to get to Smith Water from the Quail Mt area, the saddle you've marked N is the obvious choice when viewed from Quail. N appears to be the lowest way across, other than going quite a bit easterly. I'll look around and see if I can find a picture of it. M is pretty much invisible. I think I passed through M on my JT34 trip
I don't know what that email referring to a "blue backpack" means. When I was on the search, we weren't given any info as to clothing or pack, and it's not in any of the FOIA'ed records. I asked Mary if she knew what color Bill's pack was, she said she thought it was black, but wasn't sure. Oh, a couple of other things not in the records.... I asked Mary if Bill used trekking poles and she said no. She also said Bill was of the personality to keep pushing on until he dropped. So factor that into your theorizing.
