Anonymous wrote:Putting Ellen aside for a moment, why did Jon take his 12 month old on a hike in 109+ degree heat in an area with no shade?
By all accounts he was a doting dad, so he does not seem to be a FA or to be in on a M/S plot. He was the one who strapped the baby on his back and hiked miles for hours in the heat.
Seems to have overestimated his capability and underestimated the power of Nature and the effects of heat. As have so many, this summer, particularly. Tragic.
They had underestimated risks hiking before, EC joked about "all the gear and no idear" when they had a close call due to altitude, prior to becoming parents. They did not have a history of being overly cautious.
There was a heat warning, it had been 105 the day before and there was an air quality warning. Extreme temps are dangerous for the very young and elderly in particular.
https://www.newkidscenter.org/Heat-Stroke-In-Babies.html
There is no sign whatsoever that the person who packed the baby into the canyon on his back wished to harm her, seems to be a combo of ignorance about conditions in Devil's Gulch and arrogance about his hiking prowess. Tragic accident in all likelihood.
The temperature is a fact, not speculation. Gerrish was much larger than his wife and no weapon was found, he was not forced down the trail. His own feet of his own volition took him down into that deep canyon. His senses would have felt the heat and seen the depth and the burned out trees. The responsibility for that can only rest solely on him. And, since he was said to be a loving father, we have no evidence of ill intent by him toward the baby.
Gossip about Ellen does not obviate his own actions. He wore the baby in every photo and the carrier was found next to him. It is very likely he was wearing her that day, and carried her down the steep trail. Unfortunately and possibly due to his age and size he was not able to get up the steep trail again. His own actions, independent of anything posters claim EC wanted to do, put the life of the baby at risk, as well as his own. Very large people do not discharge heat as well, esp if they are packing a decent % of their own body weight and exerting themselves in a steep uphill climb. He had posted about enjoying steep climbs (like Kreycik liked running up steep trails), this time, the conditions in the microclimate were too much. Like Kreycik, he was overcome with heat exhaustion, sat down and did not get up again. Nothing Ellen could have done or not done would have made 109+ safe for the baby or the dog. And Jon literally carried the baby down and only part way up. Shrieking about her, her nanny, her dog walker, her naps, etc, does not change his indisputable actions that day or of the biological reality re: infants and high temperatures.