Can you stay at a KOA without a tent, camper or car? It's been a long time since I've camped, but I seem to remember having to have something like that. I certainly wasn't trying to imply that people at KOAs can't keep clean- pretty sure I've used their showers in the past. What I was trying to say was that since they were well-groomed AND were not wearing appropriate hitchhiking shoes that I wasn't comfortable guessing that they were hitchikers. Campers, possibly, but not hitchhikers.
I also travelled a lot between the US and Canada in the 70s- my parents owned a sailboat and we would sail from CA to Canada every summer. I have never had a passport, and I don't recall my parents ever having to show ID when we entered, or anywhere we went in Canada. I do recall using all the free showers along the way, since our sailboat had none. I would guess that they needed none, or their IDs were taken.
I was suggesting Native American Indian. I am Pottowatomi and Blackfoot, both of which tribes have quite a few members in Canada. I think that if the victims really were from Canada, and one was named Jock, it was actually 'Jacques'. Yet, they were not fair-skinned, as other French people might be, which is why I thought NA. I have done my genealogy charts, and have tons of relatives that are NA from Canada with French names, for example, Jean Baptiste. Anyone here would think they said their name was 'John'. Many Indians in Canada and the US have French names. Most Indians (like myself) have very straight hair, but if Indian/European, they could very well have hair like the female UID.
Just an option. Other than that, I would guess European/Columbian, something like that, but not hitchhikers. And, I'd guess related, but if not, at least the same nationality. I remember the 70s and hitchhikers and 'hippies'. Hitchhikers did not dress like that, and hippies did not shave their legs or their armpits. Europeans I knew then shaved their legs, but not their armpits. IIRC, the female UID had shaved legs but not shaved armpits? I could be wrong- this case has been out here for so long. When I was growing up it was VERY common to hitchhike, and I do remember what the girls looked like who did it frequently. I also remember they would not get a ride if they were with a guy. On the other hand, couples who hitchhiked longhaul together looked nothing like those girls- they usually had backpacks, were unkempt, had sturdy shoes and wore scarves, etc. They did not shave, the men or the women.
I recall the autopsy said both of the UIDs had very long eyelashes? Too bad there is no mention of whether the female was wearing makeup. Makeup would definitely mean not longhaul cross-country hitchhiker. I definitely wouldn't rule out drug trafficking, because coke was getting pretty big by then, and the dealers were usually pretty well-groomed.
This case frustrates me because it has been around so long. In the cases where there is a missing person but no body, there's always a chance a body will be found sometime. But in cases like this, where you have bodies but no report of a missing person, every year that goes by means less chance anyone will report them missing. Sad.
Hiya, glorybug--all good stuff to think about, definitely. Thanks for your insight
Re. the campground, KOAs were often equipped with shower rooms...I know this because my parents took me on road trips back then in their various campers (a VW pop-up top and then they got a Winnebago) and we used to stay in KOAs all over the US & I can remember showering facilities (I was a pre-teen/teenager then). It is possible that if this couple were staying at a KOA, keeping clean would have been easy. A witness did state that he had met a couple at a local KOA campground.
Re. the IDs: True that they may not have carried them, but if they were from Canada, they would have needed either passports or valid Canadian ID to cross the border. Again, this is based on having travelled to Canada from the US with my folks, in 1967 and then again in the mid-70s. My parents only needed to show their driving licenses to enter/leave Canada. I lean towards the theory that any ID they had on them was removed by the killer(s).
Also, do you mean Native American or Asian Indian? Just curious
Hmmm...I still think the Interpol contact's theories are more on the mark, or at least shouldn't be discounted. I don't think it's glamourous, per se, but having lived in the UK for nearly a decade, I can tell you, there are some pretty elaborate schemes out there for trafficking of any kind.
anyway...it's always good to put your thoughts out there...thank you!!