CO CO - Garfield Co, WhtMale 35-65, 789UMCO, skeletal in tent, Sep'04

[lucky13]

This IUD doesn't have any close family members.

If he did, he wouldn't need to ask "Lib" to claim his body. If Lib was his wife, sister, daughter... what ever next of kin - of course they would claim his body. Who else would?

Sounds to me like he knew that there wouldn't be anyone obvious to claim him, and so he had to write Lib to explicitly request that she(he?) do so.

$600.00 is a lot of money to bring on a camping trip. But you also need to consider the age if the IUD, and that it may have been almost 15 years ago. The first time I traveled to the States (I'm from Canada) was in '99, and I brought cash only with me. I didn't know if my ATM card would work across the border, and in 99 we had only been using them for a few years anyhow.

My guess is that the cash was meant for his return trip to where ever he was from.

And like most people, he may not have realized how serious the problem in with missing and unidentified. He may have just figured that someone would miss him, and that there would be a search and he would be easily found. Which is of course often not the case.

 

[Confusion]

Has anyone seen anything about a couple missing from that area? I was wondering if he and Lib had gone camping there, and he got bit by a snake or something. She could have gotten lost or attacked by some type of animal while going for help and never made it. He could have been trying to hang on until someone came back to get him to a hospital but wrote the note in case she didn't make it back in time.

I hope this is way off, or it would mean there was another body out there somewhere.

MOO

 

[amputate]

I too think maybe Lib is also a UID somewhere. Maybe she hitched a ride to go get help and never made it back.
Or maybe this UID went out alone expecting to be readily found and identified.

 

[carbuff]

Or maybe she went out to get help but decided not to, for whatever reason, and just left him there?

 

[amputate]

I never thought of that but you could be right. Maybe she never meant to go back.

 

[carbuff]

We had noticed that he doesn't seem to have a really complete set of equipment, and the pieces that are missing are the things someone walking out might have taken with them.

 

[amputate]

It does seem likely that he was abandoned then. Perhaps the reason why she (or he) never claimed the body is because they felt ashamed, or didn't want it traced back to them for whatever reason.

 

[kemo]

This case interests me because I too am an old guy who sometimes backpacks alone. I have been doing it for 50 years (I am 65). Here are a few observations.

Overall, I got the impression this guy had backpacking experience in the past but had not kept up with all of the new equipment available. The pack, tent, filter and stove seem to be serviceable up to date equipment. The sleeping bag didn't seem like real backpacking equipment. The sleeping bag cover is strange. I recall back in the 60's some folks used sleeping bag covers that offered some protection if they slept outside under the stars. They would keep wind and dew off the bag and provide some additional warmth. They were worthless in rain and would be unnecessary if you had a tent. Back in the day, some people used plastic sheets in case of rain but otherwise slept under the stars. Nowadays, everyone uses tents so those covers would be obsolete. He may have put together equipment based on how he used to do it. His plastic rain poncho is real old school and not adequate if he ran into real rain. Much better rain ware was available in 1999. In the 60's backpackers slept in their bags with only a tarp or a tent floor on the ground. By the early 70's Everyone used a foam mat or other type of pad that offered warmth and comfort and didn't weigh or cost very much. The fact that he didn't have one makes me pretty certain he hadn't done much backpacking in years. The lack of additional warm clothing is a little odd but animals might have used cotton and wool clothing for nesting materials but you would expect an experience backpacker to have a nylon type jacket which is lighter, warmer and much more water resistant than natural fiber. My guess he did not own one and didn't want to spend the money. I think he remembered what it was like and he thought he could do it but he was over his head.

The socks he had had been repaired with duck tape. An old backpacker trick that can mean only one thing. He had been on the trail at least a few days. Had he left from Glennwood, , he had only been out a day and his socks would not need that type of repairs. This would be consistent with the markings on the map he had. Had he just started out, he would have had a lot of food with him. Animals would have gotten it but there would have been packaging materials around. If this was his last planned
camp day, he probably had very little food left.

One thing he was missing was car keys. Most backpackers would arrange for a car to be waiting for them. There was rail and bus service from Glennwood Spr (but nothing anywhere near the others end of the No Name Trail). Relying on public transport is possible but it would mean traveling in dirty cloths. I think it is more likely someone was picking him up. Why no missing person report? That is the big question.

I think he planned an adventure like he had done in his youth. He almost made it but some medical situation caused him to leave the trail and set up camp only a few hours from civilization. Somehow no missing person report was taken and no one made any attempt to find him. Sad situation. I am sure there were people who cared for and worried about him

 

[carbuff]

Your analysis of his equipment is quite similar to mine. I had speculated way back that he might have grabbed whatever old equipment he had around the house, possibly from his kids' camping days.

 

[ericavon]

When I looked at the words 'Dear Lib' closely, I had the impression that some letters followed after 'Lib'. I now think that he was writing to 'Libre', the association helping veterans. This would concur with my last post, (7-14-'15) where I suggested he asked to have his (Bronze?) star to be wherever his remains would be.

 

[ericavon]

..just sawLibre wasn't founded until 2011..have to rethink..

 

[ericavon]

I've found a very likely match, Walter I. Kimoto, from Aurora, Co; he phoned his niece to say he would go "for a last hike". He was in the military as a young man. He has a niece called Elizabeth: Lib?

https://www.colorado.gov/apps/coldcase/casedetail.html?id=2761

 

[Sleuthster]

I've found a very likely match, Walter I. Kimoto, from Aurora, Co; he phoned his niece to say he would go "for a last hike". He was in the military as a young man. He has a niece called Elizabeth: Lib?

https://www.colorado.gov/apps/coldcase/casedetail.html?id=2761

That is a good find. The age and height are way off though.

 

[carbuff]

I've found a very likely match, Walter I. Kimoto, from Aurora, Co; he phoned his niece to say he would go "for a last hike". He was in the military as a young man. He has a niece called Elizabeth: Lib?

https://www.colorado.gov/apps/coldcase/casedetail.html?id=2761

I'm probably overlooking something obvious, but where do you see a niece named Elizabeth and that he was in the military?

"Niece (Fern S. Kashiwabara) called from Hawaii to report that his uncle, Walter Kimoto, sent her a letter advising that because of his age and declining health, he was going to take his "last hike into the woods". Kimoto closed bank accounts and gave his car away prior to sending this letter. If you have any information regarding this case, you are encouraged to contact the Aurora Police Department."

All the details don't match, but he certainly sounds like he went out into the woods intending to die.

 

[EffyElsewhere]

Just read over the thread, very intriguing case. It really breaks my heart that this man intended on being found sooner. I wish there were photos available of the second page in the notebook, I wonder if his belongings are still accessible?

Does anyone think setting up a facebook page for this man would be beneficial? This case seems very solvable , it just needs to reach the right pair of eyes, (maybe LIB's).

 

[Elainera]

I think a facebook page would be a great idea!

 

[EffyElsewhere]

I went ahead and creating one, please like and share, especially if you're around the Colorado area.-- https://www.facebook.com/FlatTopsJohnDoe/?fref=ts

 

[EffyElsewhere]

Is there any way we can go about getting him into Namus?

 

[Vivette]

I've been reading about this case, and I was wondering if the page about the ashes/glider is available somewhere? Has anyone seen it?

 

[EffyElsewhere]

I have not seen the second page of the notebook, just the cover and the first page that is addressed to 'Lib'.

Since there's been a bit of discussion about the possibility of him being from Australia, I messaged an admin from the Australian Missing Persons Register on Facebook last night to ask if they would share his case. I woke up today to see that his story has been viewed over 30,000 times! I'm very happy that his case is getting shared. Although I am still wondering how to go about getting him entered in NamUs. Do I need to contact the coroner?

Also--someone mentioned that in the notebook when he writes 'favor' or 'flavor', he does not spell it in the Australian way which is generally 'flavour' or 'favour'. I'm not sure if that had been mentioned before.