Hiking Mystery Solved: What Can We Learn from This Family's Death?

When the entire Gerrish Chung family died along a hiking trail in the Sierra National Forest in the summer of 2021, it led to one of California's most famous investigations. Unfortunately, the story was riddled with news media falsehoods and social media speculation that led to confusion over what might have been a proper response. Here I hike the route the family took on that terrible day and assess the evidence. ----- LINKS FROM THIS VIDEO ----- “New details emerge about missing family found dead in Mariposa County” — ABC30 Fresno, August 23, 2021 (the earliest widely published news article reporting on the Gerrish–Chung family deaths that I found online) - https://abc30.com/post/mariposa-county-family-found-dead/10960183 Map Photos Calls - https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/220218092225-gerrish-chung-family-hiking-map.jpg?q=w_1160,c_fill/f_webp Map Bodies - https://coastalreview.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/mariposa-county-map-1280x989.jpg Map Mess Up - https://i0.wp.com/truecrimesocietyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/229922661_1201288300352607_642356691973667675_n.jpg Cell Phone Forensics Reveal Desperate Plea Made by California Family Before Mysterious Hiking Death - https://web.archive.org/web/20220218141640/https://activenorcal.com/cell-phone-forensics-reveal-desperate-plea-made-by-california-family-before-mysterious-hiking-death/ A Survival Expert On Death In The Mountains The Gerrish-Chung Incident - https://youtu.be/aG7iLz7NOis Super Bloom and Mining Ruins Near Yosemite - A Relaxing Hike Down Hite's Cove Trail - https://youtu.be/zSiN2oiO5sY Hiking When Its Hot: Dehydration, Heat Exhaustion vs. Heat Stroke - Hiking When Its Hot: Dehydration, Heat Exhaustion vs. Heat Stroke Hot Hike Along an Abandoned Railroad - Hot Hike Along an Abandoned Railroad 0:00 A Family's Death on Trail Near Yosemite 0:46 PART 1: HIKING HITE'S COVE TRAIL 1:09 Family Details 1:48 Mistaken Reporting and Ignorant Speculation 2:11 Why I am Making This Video 3:20 The Route 3:58 Location Reporting Errors 5:22 All Trails App 5:57 Phone Record Clues 6:25 Temperature Estimates 6:33 Bodies Discovery 7:15 The Family's Gear 7:50 Investigation and Speculation 8:59 Cause of Death 9:38 Record-Setting Heat 10:37 PART 2: HIKING SOUTH FORK MERCED RIVER TRAIL 10:44 Questioning the Cause of Death 11:26 Hite's Cove Trail Conditions 12:04 South Fork Merced Trail Conditions 12:47 Water Source(s) 13:05 Devil's Gulch / Skeleton Creek 13:58 Savage-Lundy Trail Conditions 15:46 Speculation vs. Report and Evidence 16:33 Possible Narrative: The One (Major) Mistake 20:22 Mistaken Claim 1: Healthy Adults Wouldn't Die So Fast 21:05 Mistaken Claim 2: They Would Not Have Died at the Same Time 21:28 Mistaken Claim 3: They Were Too Close to Safety 22:10 Mistaken Claim 4: They Should Have Gone Back Down for Water 23:35 PART 3: HIKING SAVAGE-LUNDY TRAIL 24:21 Mistaken Claim 5: The Dog Would Not Have Remained 24:39 Mistaken Claim 6: Experienced Hikers Would Have Known Better 26:12 Gear Mistakes(?) 28:02 Exposure Mistake 29:35 Could They Have Survived? 30:53 Would I Have Survived? 32:00 Finding The Bodies' Location 32:47 Final Thoughts and Hike Out LIKE and SUBSCRIBE and CLICK the BELL for #camping, #hiking, #backpacking, and the gear that goes with it! Using these product links helps this channel grow at no cost to you. THANKS! WEBSITE - https://www.BackcountryPilgrim.com INSTAGRAM - https://www.instagram.com/backcountrypilgrim/ FACEBOOK - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100082696370291 FREE BACKPACKING CHECKLIST: https://www.BackcountryPilgrim.com/2021/03/12/hiking-backpacking-checklist MY HIKING GEAR: https://www.BackcountryPilgrim.com/my-hiking-gear ----- MUSIC ----- Intro/Outro Music: "Happiness" Composer: Benjamin Tissot Standard License certificate #2232653 from bensound.com ES_Shadows Unseen - DEX 1200 - https://www.epidemicsound.com/music/tracks/05eb720b-c5de-4a7f-b56b-42db86d273ce/ ES_Mythical Trees - DEX 1200 - https://www.epidemicsound.com/music/tracks/f018bdc4-337a-41bd-a329-3fd2fdd7ecd3/ ES_Dark Space - Ave Air - https://www.epidemicsound.com/music/tracks/bfb354ab-3e84-410b-b179-ab4a5491898c/ ES_Sensors Surrender - Ave Air - https://www.epidemicsound.com/music/tracks/6ff9a5c8-a399-48ad-92e6-950c3bd96f8c/ ES_Gilded Stillness - DEX 1200 - https://www.epidemicsound.com/music/tracks/9a1b2f3c-0352-424b-8358-e99627f6e9f6/ ES_Lush Infinity - DEX 1200 - https://www.epidemicsound.com/music/tracks/30460465-600a-4a33-9c42-12c2fb41224e/ ES_A Nomad's Journey - Victor Lundberg - https://www.epidemicsound.com/music/tracks/87fb95d8-e574-4b84-9b02-2777e903ff4c/