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michelle0607
climber
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Aug 24, 2013 - 12:36pm PT
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Hi, I have been following this for a while. Matt teaches in an area of PA near my home town. For all of those searching, please be safe and THANK YOU.
Prior to my Lasik surgery, I was about the same prescription as Matt. I felt comfortable going from about the bed to the shower without my glasses so I feel He would surely need them to navigate.
At the time of my surgery, I owned 5 pairs of glasses. One high quality pair that I wore to work every day, an older backup prescription pair in my car just in case, a really old one that was barely passable for the sandy beach, one pair of prescription sunglasses, and one pair of regular sunglasses (for when I used my contacts). So, I don't think it is unreasonable that he may have had two or possibly many more pairs. Anything + or - 0.25 (and possibly up to 0.5) from his -2.5/-2.75 should be considered something he could have wore. I also had a slightly different prescription (off by 0.25) for my contacts.
Question 1 - Someone up thread mentioned that he used a strap with his sunglasses. Do you know if they were prescription or worn over his contacts? Were they in his personal belongings? I ask for two reasons 1) if he wore prescription sunglasses he may not have known immediately that the regular ones were missing if it was during the daylight hours. This would make backtracking and finding them almost impossible. and 2) Taking sunglasses with implies an intent to travel in the day light hours. In an emergency, I would absolutely leave them behind and grab my cell/wallet.
Question 2 (for Tiff/Ron) - do you have access to past bank statements or health insurance paperwork in his house? Possibly a search of them would reveal any purchases at other eye stores. I know my prescription in that range was always several hundred dollars that my insurance explanation of benefits includes the specific brand/model of glasses for other members of my household. Also, the $16 could have been partly a prescription co-pay which would likely show up on the insurance paperwork as well.
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kenish
climber
Orange County, CA
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Aug 24, 2013 - 12:51pm PT
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There's a CC charge at Chevron a few days after the $152 charge at Norco. That implies the Subaru had work done and was running well enough to fill up the tank. It's about 11 gallons based on local gas prices. Notice other charges in previous weeks that look like gas..most are in the $45 range so the Chevron charge seems to fit his fill-up pattern and habit.
Sales tax in Mammoth Lakes is 8%; the last Rite-Aid charge works back to an odd price. Probably a mix of taxable and non-taxable items. The last 2 Rite-Aid charges are roughly the price of non-Rx glasses; of course it could be a zillion other items too.
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this just in
climber
north fork
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Aug 24, 2013 - 01:12pm PT
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Everytime I've found lost gear on a trail, I leave it in an easily noticeable spot right by where I find it. So good chance those glasses were found in the immediate vicinity of that sign. The chums imply they were around the owners neck when not on his/her face, it would be valuable to know how they were found, if the chums were secure or if one was on and one off. I guess confirming the glasses are Matt's is the best starting point. Some interesting dreams and coincidences.
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michelle0607
climber
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Aug 24, 2013 - 01:20pm PT
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First, I want to say that I do not know the area or the shuttles or any possibility of public transportation.
But when I saw the picture of the pack he was carrying as his gear, my first instinct was "wow that's a big pack if he's going around town". I live in the southeast so I am obviously not used to carrying boots, crampons, etc. With a full day of food and water plus the gear for a day of climbing, I can see the need for a larger pack, I guess.
And then I remembered a time when I found myself in a large city suddenly without a car. It was challenging to get food a few miles back to your house when you are a temporary resident on foot. I didn't have one of those grocery carts to push home, so I carried my pack to the grocery store (with my laptop inside because the neighborhood wasn't so awesome). I added the groceries to the pack and walked back.
IF he did take his pack and IF he did not go to an area of snow, perhaps he planned to have extra space in the pack to carry a purchase that he made using cash. If he had a long road trip coming up on the 18th, that may have been some food supplies.
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TomCochrane
Trad climber
Santa Cruz Mountains and Monterey Bay
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Aug 24, 2013 - 01:21pm PT
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a couple of points to add:
my glasses prescription is similar to Matt's, and i use several pairs of glasses
he wouldn't normally be not wearing them, unless a spare pair
i lost a pair of high index titanium frame glasses on the summit of El Cap a year ago...a minor disaster...didn't stop me from making it back to the car for a spare pair
i also wore contacts for years, particularly for convenience while climbing...eventually gave up on them...
i also have several pair of plastic double boots for ice climbing and randonee climbing/skiing
it is not unusual to go for a little day hike with those big boots, just to tune up fit and comfort and sock combinations and get used to climbing in them...they are generally very poor for rock climbing...
not unusual to also be playing around with ice axe and crampons for the same reason (even far from snow and ice)
(which is why i wear La Sportiva Trangos most of the time in the mountains...the only boots i've found to hold a crampon well and yet still be pretty good for rock climbing...)
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fluffy
Trad climber
Colorado
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Aug 24, 2013 - 01:21pm PT
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sometimes I'll carry a lost item back to the trailhead especially if it looks like it would be hard for someone else to find, or if it's valuable, fragile (e.g. glasses), or showing signs of being out there awhile. seems like a lot of other people around here do that as well, so the kiosks at trailheads end up being a de facto lost and found.
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Heyzeus
climber
Hollywood,Ca
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Aug 24, 2013 - 01:23pm PT
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KellyDoesntClimb- I think your map is wrong. The craters in question are close to the towm of Mammoth, on the scenic loop road. The craters that you have marked on the map are different craters I think. But the locals on here should know for sure.
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kenish
climber
Orange County, CA
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Aug 24, 2013 - 01:37pm PT
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Due to the car repairs, it sounds like Matt had not used or needed the large pack, crampons, etc. in awhile. Since his car was almost ready and he was catching up to friends in CO, would he need that equipment? Could he have gone on a "shakedown" hike to make sure everything packed OK, check the equipment, and to stay in a good physical and mental state? (I go stir crazy if I don't get on the mountain bike every few days).
@kelly- Thanks for the maps. The cell phone traces posted in the past few days show that Matt uses Verizon. It shows a cell site (which I've seen)on the peak of Mammoth Mountain, but isn't on the map. Another tower is in town, according to the trace.
I noticed the map doesn't have Verizon selected. A specific cell site (or tower) may be used by only one carrier, or by several. "Footprints" for each carrier are different. An update to the map may be good...apologies if you're aware of all this and the map is accurate to VZW. General FYI, VZW coverage around town and the mountain is quite good.
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crusher
climber
Santa Monica, CA
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Aug 24, 2013 - 01:59pm PT
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Wow, a lot of stuff going on since I was last able to check in.
First and foremost the found glasses have to get to an optician to see what the prescription is and if it's close to Matt's. It doesn't look like Matt's glasses prescription was for progressive lenses (correct me if I'm wrong), so they need to see what these "found" lenses are. Progressives today don't have the lines in them anymore like older bi or trifocals.
A bit more on glasses/contacts. I don't think Matt's contact prescription is -8.6, that number should refer to his astigmatism (diopter number, etc.). Looks like his refraction (nearsightedness) is -2.5 which is not severe. For example, my refraction number is -6.75 in one eye and -7.5 in the other. I am literally blind as a bat. Also, I have glasses for when my contacts are bothering me and yes, they're expensive so one does wind up with many pair - extras, you keep the old ones as back ups and so on. Point being that he could have in his possession various pairs with a range of powers - up or down by half or a whole point (or more) - Matt is still young and his eyes are probably still changing. Just blathering here but if these found glasses are within a half a point or point of Matt's last prescription they could be an extra pair of his. I'm not sure how that can be confirmed unless his optician has record of him ordering that particular make and model. And there might be no record with is optician - you can buy prescription glasses off internet sites.
Tiffany - does Matt have VSP or other insurance for vision/glasses? Cross checking what glasses has gotten through his vision insurance could help here too.
Another question - where does the shuttle bus down to Devil's Postpile (this is the shuttle Matt would have taken to go down to the trailheads for the Minarets, for those of you unfamiliar with the area) pick up and drop off at the entrance booth - is it right at the booth near Minaret lookout? Are there ANY security cameras or webcams that capture this area and may show people getting on or off the shuttles?
The Rite Aid lag sounds like BS to me. Retail stores are computerized - I find it really hard to believe that they couldn't pull up Matt's receipt immediately with the date of purchase and his cc number. I also find it hard to believe that someone in the store didn't immediately call their District Manager to get in there and look at the store video - the police should have done this right away - who cares of the store manager is on vacation - retailers have a line of management from local store manager to DM to Regional Manager and on up the ranks. Seems like a real lack of urgency there. Sorry, I'm sounding pissed off now, but I guess I am!
Edit - re. contact prescriptions - The "8" numbers usually refer to the Base Curve. The "13/14" numbers usually refer to the Diameter.
I sort of doubt the Fumaroles or gas, this time of the year, are an issue unless there are some enclosed, deep chasm type vents around in the ground (are there?) that someone could fall into - ex. the ski patrollers who died fell into a fumarole chasm in the snow with no oxygen on a big (deep) snow year.
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SplitPants
Social climber
LA
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Aug 24, 2013 - 02:34pm PT
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Cragman
You are simply FABULOUS!
Is anyone working with management at Rite-Aid to obtain the purchase detail and video?
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HighTraverse
Trad climber
Bay Area
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Aug 24, 2013 - 02:39pm PT
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I want to correct a slightly misleading earlier statement.
The distance from Mammoth Town (the T at the West end of Town) to Inyo Crater Lakes is nearly 5 miles by road and the direct trail from road to lakes.
It's 3 1/4 miles as the crow flies.
I don't know if there's a shortcut trail but it would have to be at least 4 miles.
The distance from the loop road to the Lakes is nearly a mile.
(Google Earth distances)
Therefore it's at least an hour's walk from town to the lakes.
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tdg119
Social climber
Northampton, PA
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Aug 24, 2013 - 03:17pm PT
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We just got back from Matts house and went through his stuff again. I found a recent picture of him wearing different glasses.
They appear to have have a bronzish/black gap between the lenses and black around the glass on the top.
~ Ron
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tdg119
Social climber
Northampton, PA
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Aug 24, 2013 - 03:27pm PT
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PS, checked shoe sizes while there. His other hiking shoes were all size 11.5-12.
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LAhiker
Social climber
Los Angeles
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Aug 24, 2013 - 04:24pm PT
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I’m glad Cragman is feeling better now. Is there any way that the prescription for the glasses Alex found can be tested TODAY, before Cragman and a partner go on a possibly dangerous search tomorrow? I realize that those glasses are now with the Mammoth police, who are busy and overstretched...
While the glasses that Alex found don't exactly match either the ones on the Facebook page or the ones in the picture that Ron just posted, I agree with the Tioga that they look like they could be part of the same family of styles that one person might get. In fact, aside from the difference in the earpieces, to me they look more similar in shape to the ones in the spiffy picture from December than to the ones in the Facebook picture.
They could indeed be an older pair, used as backups for contacts for camping/climbing. I find it odd that the glasses themselves appeared to be more scuffed up than the Chums holding them. I mean, maybe they got scuffed in whatever incident caused them to get lost -- Cragman had some interesting speculations.
But they also could have already been a bit old and battered before the newer Chums were used to keep them on. Or whoever picked them up could have brushed the dust out of the Chums before hanging the glasses on the sign. I wonder -- might any of Matt's climbing partners remember those particular glasses?
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kenish
climber
Orange County, CA
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Aug 24, 2013 - 04:41pm PT
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@kelly- great map! As someone mentioned you had the wrong Inyo Crater, so I put in the right one, added Vons, and moved Rite-Aid about a block.
Someone should add the location of the trail sign where the glasses were hanging.
The hospital is a block from the police station and can probably "read" the glasses prescription. The glasses are evidence but important to confirm whether they're relevant or a red herring.
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tdg119
Social climber
Northampton, PA
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Aug 24, 2013 - 04:46pm PT
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Can you guys call the local pd and see what they are doing with the glasses? I think we all agree this a strong lead. If the rx matches Matt's or is 90% close, is that enough to start a formal search? Is it enough evidence to drag the lake? Should we focus our search on these trails. You guys know the area, what do you suggest? - Ron
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kenish
Gym climber
Orange County, CA
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Aug 24, 2013 - 05:10pm PT
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The police station is a block from the hospital, where the glasses prescription can probably be "read". Since they're evidence and the PD is probably running on a skeleton staff (Saturday and the city is in bankrupcy), could someone at the hospital or a local optometrist do it at the police station? Not sure what's required....
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x1n54n3x
Boulder climber
mammoth lakes
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Aug 24, 2013 - 05:10pm PT
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Cragman, where did they find the belt? Which sketchy location? I was out with two others and 2 dogs- we checked all three craters, found a some trash (gatorade bottle, water bottle, some old beer cans and a single child's shoe)- nothing that seemed like it would pertain to Matt. We were out from about 8:40 until 12:30. The two I was with agreed on the rockfall that I had pointed out in that it looked more recent that the rest of the crater.
Note: The craters themselves are only 550-650 years old. This is VERY young in terms of a geologic time scale- it is tough to determine what is old and what is new rockfall.
We could not figure out how a slide would be propagated to a degree that someone may have been buried, though we agreed that recent storms could have contributed to later erosion, crumbling/breakage and subsequent burial had a serious injury or partial burial taken place before.
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