High School Student on Field Trip Disappears in Great Smoky Mountains | Trenny Gibson Case Analysis
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 25 พ.ค. 2024
- This video answers the question: Can I analyze case of Trenny Gibson?
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This seems like an odd school trip. A surprise destination, only one male teacher, no clue as to what to wear and no worries about the weather. No contingencies for emergencies. No parent would give permission for such a trip nowadays
Interesting observation
This was the 70’s. Times were different then.
Yeah, but we typically didn't need hand holding in the 70"s we used to listen and follow directions. Her behavior was odd.
There was a tragic, deadly school hiking trip in the Cairngorm mountains in Scotland in November 1971 and one of the criticisms of the school's actions was the fact that apparenlty the permission slip the parents signed made no reference to winter mountaineering, and only one parent knew their teenage children were going to the Cairngorms. IIRC, the eventual result was Mountain Leadership Certification started to be required for adult leaders of educational trips.
So even by 1970s standards, many parents weren't too keen on being kept in the dark!
A surprise destination, no chaperones and no warning about weather appropiate clothing seems super strange to me.
@@EliF-ge5bu I was in school then and always had to have a permission slip for a field trip signed by a parent. They would never have allowed a 'mystery' destination.
I've hiked on the Great Smoky Mountains often. One day I started my early in the morning then hiked for about 20 miles, when I decided to come back to my car I got turned around and got lost. It got late and then found a creek and started following it. The creek led to a small road and within an hour someone came by and offered me a ride back. I was a long ways from my original location and if he had been a bad person no one would have known what happened to me.
Oh boy that sounds so scary. Glad you're okay.
Having experienced thus myself, I think this is what happened.
@@margiewinslow872I got lost hiking in a Canadian Provincial park at around Trenny’s age, even with many years of Scouting under my belt. It was a bit scary but I was lucky to be with another friend and we eventually found our way out - albeit on the far other side of the park, and had time to walk numerous miles on the road to get back to the parking lot.
I agree that this is likely what happened- esp if she met a nefarious character, and sounds like she was quite naive considering at high school age she hadn’t been away from home all day yet… which is a bit odd. She was an easy target.
Back around 1994, after years of cross-country driving, at a gas station, I ran into two moms about 30yr old, looking at a map on their tiny, run-down car with two girls in the back seat. They had already driven 400+ miles to get to Texas, going to a mid-size city. They were not equip for travel. No cooler, no packed food supplies, no A/C - looking miserable. Their plan was a direct route by way of country highways for 125+ miles. These are horrible single-paved roads, with barely room for 2 vehicles to pass each other out in the middle of NOWHERE. Of course, most people didn't have cell phones back then. As a young man back then, I wouldn't travel at night like they were.
I told them to STICK to the interstate; the distance may add 30 miles, but it's a lot safer and won't add much time to their trip. There are cults and "you got a party mouth" type folks out in the boonies. I said, "If your car breaks down out there or you get lost, there won't be cops or many people to help you. You could easily disappear." The said they would stick to the interstate. I was un-nerved they would do such a thing, but nobody are experts at everything.
@@TexasCat99 wowsa. That's absolutely wild. Have you ever travelled through Canada? Maybe I just assumed all rural areas are like mine, here in Saskatchewan, just north of North Dakota. I've driven for hours out in dirt roads at night, taking pictures of stars and northern lights or searching for old, abandoned barns and houses. I've never felt unsafe. Maybe a little iffy with how pitch black it can be but mostly you just hear the bugs out there and you can see and hear for miles around you. No hills, no mountains, few valleys. I truly live in the flatlands. I was born and raised in the city but sometimes the solitude and vastness of our rural areas is cozy all the same. Sometimes it sucks living through our cold winters but maybe it's a godsend that we aren't so crowded, so that people can travel those lonelier roads and feel generally safe.
Several people have commented on how odd this school trip was. Not for the time. During 1973-1976 my school did a couple of field trips a year to Indiana Dunes State Park. They would load up the school buses and drive forty or so of us there with two chaperones. They would give us a time to be back at the bus and then set forty boys ages 12-14 loose in a large public park on the shore of Lake Michigan. We would do a starburst into small groups of friends and spend hours running through the woods, messing around on the shore, and hiking the dunes. I have no idea where the chaperones spent the time. Looking back, we were fortunate not to have had any problems. Very different times. Dr. Grande's theory that Trenny became disoriented and was swallowed by the forest is the most likely scenario.
My experience, at my school, in the 70 's - there would have been one chaperone per ten students. The fact that the young lady was allowed to continue on a rainy hiking trip with inadequate clothes would have resulted in her staying behind, but then, of course, the kids didn't know BUT the teacher did. Of course, all schools WERE and ARE DIFFERENT in what was and is expected when going on field trips. My parents would never have agreed to an unknown destination field trip. All my siblings and I were in a hiking club, in guides and scouts, etc but we never went on an unknown destination trip.
The fact that the destination was unknown is the weirdest part. I get not having as many chaperones as it would be required today, but not telling students their destination would almost guarantee half of them would not have the appropriate kind of clothes and shoes.
The students drive the school bus.
@@PaleMagnoliaback then we had things called mystery trips and i never the destination until i was on the bus. This was 4th grade in Girl Scouts
I doubt it. Heavy forest and poorly dressed. I suspect she would have stayed relatively close to where she got lost at least within ear shot of any rescuers. Most likely a predator either human or animal.
Never leave the group while in the woods; that's when the guy with a mask/leather apron/axe.. gets you. Everyone knows that.
Or a wolf
@@Angie_baeI don’t know what you’re talking abt. Wolves aren’t real, everybody knows that. Werewolves on the other hand…
I mean, with that many kids and all having so many different backgrounds you will certainly have some who have never gone on a trip like this.
@@Angie_bae Incase you didn't know, historically there are no known populations of wolves on the Appalachian trail.
@@ojgsk8ter it was definitely a dogman. They are out there snatching people off of trails😂😂😂
Can’t fathom the despair the mum went through knowing her missing child had wanted her to chaperone the trip. Such a shame.
Rip Trenny 💔
I always say its usually like 90percent chance that the last person to see the victim killed them.the guy was tracking a bear that's BS he's wandering around tracking a grizzly bear evening kids aren't that stupid even in the 70s did anybody ever look and verify that there was bear prints in that vicinity where he would have been quote unquote tracking the bear that whole story sounds ridiculous if I see bear prints I'm going the opposite way that guy definitely did it
My thought, too. How puny the things in her schedule must have suddenly seemed in comparison...
Ouch!
It makes you wonder if Trenny was worried about something happening even before the trip, and wanted her mom along to protect her.
Yes, and it sounds like the mother has also outlived her husband and their three children. She’s likely in her mid-to-late 80s now. Life isn’t always fair, but hopefully she has found peace to live out her remaining days with any grandchildren and other loved ones. 😌
Idk, a bunch of cigaretts tells me there was somebody waiting on the side of the track, then seeing a girl approaching alone, hid in the bushes and called her. She got curious, went to the bushes to see who was there and who knows what happened. I do not believe that a bunch of cigaretts means nothing.
Then again everybody used to smoke in those days.
Maybe, but cigarette butts and beer/soda can pull-tabs (old style) were seemingly everywhere back then-from along nature trails to city gutters. Smoking was en vogue and it was a pre-environmentalism, pre-recycling time…and it wasn’t always pretty. 🫣
I'd be interested to know if Robert smoked them.
How did he end up with her comb and some other classmate, end up with her jewelry?
@@leannemo7382 thats the same like saying lets not investigate blood spilled at the crime scene, because every person has blood.
@@vaiciciaku You misunderstood. I meant that it was *not unusual* to see that type of litter everywhere, so it may not be the big key to solving the crime that some people are asserting. By all means, any potential evidence should be investigated.
If she was wearing Robert's jacket that could be the reason the dogs didn't find her. Searchers could have tried letting the dogs trace Robert's scent. Tragic case.
Good observation. I totally overlooked that, as, I suppose, did the investigators, although it seems they generally put in a good effort.
Wow! Smart thought! That is the kind of observation a trained detective might have come up with!
Can someone's jacket block a person's scent for a search dog's noes? I kind of doubt it. Many variables to the proposed idea. One is we didn't know the searchers hadn't tried it.
The dogs tracked her to the road. I must have missed the part about her wearing Robert's jacket.
This reminds me of Geraldine "Gerry" Largay, a hiker who got lost on the Appalachian mountains in 2013 after veering off the trail for a bathroom break. She survived 26 days in the wilderness and kept a diary where she reported what happened to her: the saddest thing is that she knew the trail was close because she could hear people's voices, but was never able to reach them or make her voice heard.
Her remains were only found two years later, and only because they were inside her tent so scavengers could not scatter her bones. She was indeed very close to the trail, and rescue teams barely missed her during their search.
That's horrifying. Geraldine was so close & yet so far from rescue. No one wants to be seen squatting in view of other hikers & the general public but it's so important to make sure that the trail is still with in close proximity to return to so we never get lost in the first place , especially in instances of fog & sleet etc.
That was a sad story. She was only three quarters of a kilometre from the trail. Even closer to a logging road.
Terrifying. People don’t realize how easy it is to get lost in the woods if you lose sight of the trail. Unless you have a compass or are making use of survival techniques you’re basically guaranteed to end up accidentally walking in circles in thick forested areas. People have done tests re: this and the human body is unfortunately geared towards walking in circles in these situations unless the person knows how to avoid doing that and is making a continued effort to do so.
@@ojgsk8terYup, now with the all trails app, it’s easy to stay on trail
@@ojgsk8ter When I've been lost in the woods, I've always tried to go back and forth between veering right and veering left in order to go around obstacles. I've always made it out, so maybe that sort of works. Also, If I find a stream, I follow it.
The girl in the pocession of the jewelry needs to be further investigated. The victim willingly went on the trip.
That story would have to be false because the investigators woulda jumped on that. Well, maybe not, we do hear how the "police botched the investigation from the start" a lot on his stories.
@notozknows As an investigator, I would still go back to someone who has possession of her prized possessions. Why do you have her very expensive jewelry?
Agreed. It's extremely suspicious.
I think it's likely this was only unfounded gossip, or I guess Trenny's family would have pushed for answers. Maybe a girl had similar jewelry, someone commented on it and soon "Mary's necklace kinda looks like the one Trenny wore when she went missing" became "Mary stole Trenny's necklace"
She most definitely should’ve been questioned.
I feel bad for her mother. Remembering her daughter’s wish for her to chaperone must have been very painful after the disappearance and ever after. When I was 12, my school chorus was bused to another city for a state chorus competition. We were all left to wander by ourselves most of the day in a strange city.We had to find our own food. No chaperone! We were given printed directions to find our way to the Chorus hall. 1967.
CRAZY. 2024!
Back then, young people were raised to be much more self-reliant, resourceful, and patient. Today, most teenagers enjoy instant gratification and easy access to information and assistance via our ever-evolving technology. Before smartphones, most any lost person had to find resources like a paper map, locate a pay phone, ask a stranger for the time, directions, and even a ride. We were especially dependent on the assistance of others if we had little cash-at a time when few young people had a credit card.
While current tech can help solve many unexpected problems and make certain situations safer, there was often an exciting adventure or learning experience that presented itself-well before easy access to the new “bells & whistles”. Youth is practically designed for those compelling moments.
The old adage “Youth is wasted on the young” seems more apt now than ever…yet they remain the ongoing hope for a better tomorrow. 😎
Back then, young people were raised to be much more self-reliant, resourceful, and patient. Today, most teenagers enjoy instant gratification and easy access to information and assistance via our ever-evolving technology. Before smartphones, most any lost person had to find resources like a paper map, locate a pay phone, ask a stranger for the time, directions, and even a ride. We were especially dependent on the assistance of others if we had little cash-at a time when few young people had a credit card.
While current tech can help solve many unexpected problems and make certain situations safer, there was often an exciting adventure or learning experience that presented itself-well before easy access to the new “bells & whistles”. Youth is practically designed for those compelling moments.
Who goes tracking a BEAR alone and unarmed. What was he going to do when he found it? Shake it’s paw and introduce himself? The mind boggles! 😳🙄
I 100% agree with you about tracking that stupid bear. We're in the right mind would do that. His job was to make sure these kids were safe.
Kids do...bravado for.girls...
Checks out for a teenage boy
That was the worst field trip plan I've ever heard of. Nobody knew where they were going until they got on the bus, not even the parents. Of course, this was back when people had more trust than they do now. I'm sure the teacher felt horrible about what happened, but he clearly didn't think everything through clearly. I shudder to think of what could have happened to her.
Those days it was completely ok
Some years ago I worked as a teacher. I remember taking a group of pupils on a bus to a recording studio. It was all fine and a success. However, hearung about this buzarre trip from a previous era when attitudes were different makes me think back to what type of safety thinking I did. I think there was a risk assessment.
youre trusting the teacher? LOLZ
The “English Calamity” takes the cake for worst field trip ever. An insane teacher hiked a class of boys into a blizzard wearing normal clothing.. no protection or supplies and 5 of the boys died. People can put too much faith in teachers… even worse.. the psycho teacher who marched the children to their deaths was hailed as a hero! 🤦♀️😒
and my parents never would have allowed me to participate in that mess
Even in the 1970s staying with the group or at least a buddy was standard for a school or Scout trip in my experience.
True and had there been more chaperones, they would have made sure no one went off on their own.
It seemed they did buddy up, it's sad that Trenny went back without her friend.
@@margaretr5701He should have gone with her. That's why her brother asked them to pair up in the first place. 😢
@@robertdesantis6205 Yes, I agree.
tracking a bear? missing girl's heavy comb later found with the bear tracker? so he followed her down the trail, off trail, and then lured her away with the old "come see the bear., it's right over here"? how long was robert unaccounted for?
But where is her body then ?
Her brother trusted him to look after her, I hope that trust wasn't misplaced.
Perhaps he was getting frisky, that's why she wanted to leave, and that's why she was in a hurry passing the other groups of children. After all she isn't around so it's only his word of why she wanted to leave, and it wouldn't make sense for her to leave without him unless something happened to invoke hostility between her and the boy. And a boy out in the woods with a girl is just a bad idea, I grew up in the hills, I would have had no problem outpacing outpacing people on the trail if I was flanking the trail through the rough Terrain, you actually get good at it every Deadfall is a booster to travel over several steps at once and when your sense of direction is solid you know exactly where you're going.
@@KennyCronin-wq8xq lol i had the same experience with my mom at 11. convinced her to take a shortcut through the forest. she complained the whole way we were going to get lost. came out and there was the entrance to the campground. saved us a mile or two
I think the boy tried to rape her and killed her when she resisted. He stole her ring then gave it to the other girl.
According to research by Yosemite National Park Search and Rescue, "accientally losing the trail" is the most common reason for people going missing in wilderness areas. In addition, the average lost person was found 1.8 kilometres from their starting point and only 58 meters from the nearest trail or road. It doesn’t take much for a hiker to lose their bearings in the wilderness.
An average is just an average. When getting lost the smart thing is to stop and start making noise. But some people start running in panic.
This is a very smart comment!
It’s certainly a lot more common than encountering a sociopathic murderer.
@@LukeSumIpsePatremTeOr erroneously think they can find their way again if they keep walking… which just gets them more lost.
@@LukeSumIpsePatremTe I had to do that underwater-in the dark, cold Pacific Ocean. As a new scuba diver in poor visibility, I took my eyes off my dive buddy for a couple moments. Suddenly I could see *nothing* all around me (literal 360) except dark water…an ocean void. I didn’t dare move/swim anymore. The current was mild and I stayed put on the bottom-my heart throbbing as I tried to regulate my breathing, so I wouldn’t panic.
Thankfully, my dive buddy and two others had turned back to find me, using their compasses. Whew! I remembered my instructor warning us not to keep swimming if lost, because we’re less likely to be found before running out of oxygen. 🤿
This is how people get killed by not sticking with the group.
The trip itself was an irresponsible idea.
@@audreydaleski1067How is a field trip to a national park hiking trail an "irresponsible idea?" The students were in high school,, not grade school,, okay I woulda called it off because of the weather but if the students are dressed for it,, shouldn't be a problem... personally I think Trenny slipped off the trail, hit her head and fell in the creek, with the obviously horrible result of drowning unconscious, being swept down the creek and etc... the abduction by a weirdo theory is of course possible, but even though many people who aren't high school students and who smoke cigarettes use the trail, why wouldn't anyone else have seen this guy or heard any commotion? I think the dogs were probably confused,, a lot of times tracking dogs can perform amazing feats but it's sort of like being a professional sniper, sometimes you just miss... I hate it when the Doc covers cases like this, because I'm always left with doubts that I start thinking about at the oddest times.....
We all learn this as kids from watching Scooby Doo
@@audreydaleski1067CHRIST I hate it when TH-cam deletes my comments...... How is taking a field trip to a well-known national Park hiking trail an irresponsible idea? The students were in high school, not grade school, and I might have called off the trip because of the weather but if the kids are dressed for it, it shouldn't be a problem... I think Trenny slipped off the trail, hit her head and fell down into the creek, with the obviously horrible result of drowning unconscious and being swept away... the weirdo abduction theory is of course possible,, there's a lot of people who aren't high school students who probably smoke cigarettes who use the trail but why didn't anyone else see this person and why wasn't there any commotion? And I think the tracking dogs were probably confused,, tracking dogs perform amazing feats sometimes but it's like being a professional marksman, sometimes you just miss... And the cigarette brands being the same by the trail as by the road a mile and a half away or whatever, probably not unusual seeing as they were probably Marlboro which every guy in the area of the Great Smoky mountains probably smokes.... Sad case, I hate it when the Doc covers cases like this because I always find myself thinking about it at odd times...
@TheSuperPsychoKiller Psycho Killer,,
Qu'est-ce que c'est?
Fa-fa-fa-fa, fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa, lol ...
It's like all those missing 411 cases. You are seen one second, and the next, you vanish forever.
I think there was a missing 411 case at this exact trail
Most of those missing 411 cases leave out certain information to make them seem more mysterious than they are .
That Paulides guy is not to be trusted
Missing 411 is a con job
😊
@@RonLong-yj8zj How? There are hundreds of people that go missing in state forests each year.
@jdd3786 true but not like Paulides would have you believe
I think she exited the trail to relieve herself.
Most likely, with the squatting and wanting to not be seen. She did not get lost in the woods. With cigarettes at two different locations... She either got lost and followed somebody else or was led away. Maybe the guy was law enforcement or worked at the park.
And gave her friend her jewelry?
@@grainiac7824 that part is more rumor than confirmed fact.
If she had the jewelry, how? And the family would have asked questions.
My family is from near here (the general area). My dad was a search volunteer when a student at Mars Hill College in North Carolina (where Clingmans’ Dome, for the most part, is. He did it to get out of going to chapel, apparently). My grandfather on my mom’s side was also a local firemen in Haywood County (a volunteer fire chief) and helped search (before my parents ever met). It was the general consensus of basically everyone that the authorities had (and still have) no idea what happened to her, but felt the pressure to give an “answer” to the general public . The day was incredibly foggy, and that area can have almost no fog and then 100 yards later dense patches of fog (Hence the term “Smokey.”) They were told from about week one into the search (or the first full weekend) that it was most likely a “recovery” over a “rescue”due to exposure. The most likely explanation is she wandered off trail out of curiosity and into one of the many “Rhododendron Hells” around (once you stumble into one it is also very easy to get turned around and lost). The. She panicked, and her remains were never recovered. If she didn’t die of hypothermia, the prevailing theory was either she was followed and/or abducted against her will some time between leaving the trail and/or once she reached the road (IF she reached the road) . So many people smoked everywhere back then, that the same type of cigarette meant very little (especially pre -DNA analysis.) Two types of the same kind of cigarettes in and around the side of the road near the same place in North Carolina was not very significant of a find. It also rained a lot before and after her disappearance (as well as sleeted, I believe) that the dogs may have not had a good lead on het trail either, bringing into question whether she actually reached the road or not. (I believe it took longer to get the dogs out there than it should have-or would now). My grandfather, however always thought they never questioned her classmates, especially Simpson, enough. He always said “certain stories didn’t add up” but wouldn’t elaborate. I’ve never heard about the jewelry being recovered/found on a female classmate until now. I’m guessing he knew and that was his reason for thinking the kids should have been grilled. I taught Middle and High School, I wouldn’t put it past a kid or kids to have done something (and if a bear had been in the area-I’ll just leave it at that). Many of the rules we had when spending time in parks (staff to student ratio, student being within a line of sight of a school employee at all times, not going on a any field trip with out proper attire, carrying first aid kits and one person taking the lead with a satellite phone/ radio when X number of miles from a police department and so forth (even now the area has poor cell phone reception) came from her disappearance. I imagine the Tennessee School Board areas do too.
Amazing insight, thanks for sharing this
Someone said Bigfoot was responsible & when I first read that comment I thought "How ridiculous" but when we consider that Trenny literally disappeared without a trace & the jewellery & further questioning her fellow students lead wasn't followed up ,who's to say that Bigfoot wasn't her abductor....
Ya, Robert seems a bit suspicious to me too… if he was asked to look after her, then he just decided to ‘stay’ when she wanted to head back? Esp if he had been ‘nice’ enough to lend her his jacket… maybe he was expecting some form of physical ‘favor’ at the destination- and she refused or got away…
Seems odd that he was nice enough before- but then after the hike destination he couldn’t really care less. Just odd.
If the kids knew anything they would have told by now.
In Australia, if you are lost in the bush, you should make a very loud vocal noise called a 'coo-ee'. The sound travels very far, and indicates that you need help.
Just watch out for Drop Bears.😊
The Smokies have incredible amounts of thickets and tree canopy that dampens sound and if rescuers are anywhere near one of the many thousands of streams in those mountains that crash over rocks and waterfalls, they ain’t gonna hear squat.
I want to know more about the girl who had Trenny's jewelry. Was she on the field trip? How'd she get the jewelry? Too many questions here.
There’s no evidence that they even existed
Are the cigarette butts still in evidence couldn't they be D.N.A. tested to see who they belonged to for a possible lead.
we can test dna from decades or centuries ago i think this is worth exploring
@@taylorkai4144agreed... some of the DNA could have been wedged in to the paper fibers, enough to survive the weather. But I doubt those detectives bothered to keep the butts.
This is what I was thinking when I saw the video - with that many cigarette butts, surely one must contain usable DNA!
Considering over 1/2 the population smoked back then.. dna useless.
DNA was not even a wild thought back then so it probably wouldn’t even been taken into evidence. Back then many people were smokers ,it would have been very hard to link to a specific person. If the cigarette butts had been collected it would have been degraded or contaminated as there would have been no reason to take such care of what was then useless evidence.
I’m waiting to hear how that girl found with the jewelry wound up with it?
Perhaps gifted by Robert Simpsom, who had Trenny's comb. I wonder what became of him.
When was she ever found with the jewelry? No one ever proved she had it. It could simply be schoolyard gossip which was taken at face value, because it suggested something dramatic or nefarious. On the other hand, if, as the other poster mentioned, Robert was somehow involved (although it was stated in the video he was not near her when she disappeared), that's an interesting route of inquiry.
@@ronald3836 He died recently.
I suspect it went something like this, Robert got frisky, she left him behind and started heading for the bus that's why she didn't stop to engage with the other students, if Robert grew up in the hills he would have no problem flanking the trail to outpace her or the other students. At some point he grabbed her and pulled her off the trail or somehow lured her off the trail. Assaulted her and killed her, then came back to the trail, with the nonsensical story of tracking a bear. He left with the other students in the bus, and possibly returned in another vehicle to retrieve her body. if he was close enough to erode he could have drug her body to a vehicle. Or he was able to hide her body good enough that they never found her. That's why he ended up with her comb, and probably took her jewelry and at some point gave it to the other girl. In any case there was a reason she left Robert behind, and it certainly wasn't because they were getting along. And he didn't let her go and then go track down a bear, that's just a nonsense story.
@@duanejackson6718 Very much what I had in mind, too. Good point about the nonsensical bear tracking!
She walked down to that road where the dogs traced her scent. Either intentionally or she got lost and ended up there. Someone pulled up in a car and offered to give her a ride back to her school bus. They seem friendly so she accepted the ride and they murdered her and dumped her body. That's my theory.
Bingo!
Most hikes with groups there’s always a leader and then there’s one that’s always stays last to make sure everybody else is in the middle and helps anybody that slow or has an injury.
I had a coworker who would never start _any_ physical activity (such as a hike) without first having a cigarette.
Nicotine is a potent stimulant. Armies gave packets of cigarette's to their troops in both world wars to help them continue marching.
This takes me back to when I was a junior in high school. 1974. I was in swing choir and we went to the world's Fair in Spokane to perform. We took a school bus which is about 9 hours from Lincoln City, (go Taft Tigers) Oregon. As I remember there was at least 15 of us. We had performed in many places before locally. Are director was very young for a teacher, maybe 30. When we got to Spokane we were given specific rules. Told if you deviate from these rules you'll be right back on this bus. I believe there were two chaperones the bus driver and the director. So basically three adults to watch 15 kids. We were 16 and 17 year olds at the time. You wouldn't think that would be a problem, and it wasn't. Apparently we behaved ourselves and made it back to Lincoln City okay. My point: this time was generally the same time that I just spoke of. There's no way administrators or teachers allow a field trip to the Great Smoky mountains without notice to the parents. Those that allowed this are liable. On our trip I don't remember going anywhere without a chaperone looking down my neck!
I’ve hiked this trail with my family. The bald is a reward at the end of the trail.
Maybe Trenny left the trail to relieve herself and got disoriented or something else.
Sad ending to what should have been a rewarding experience.
Thanks Dr Grande.
The emergence of the jewelry tells you something obviously the guy claiming to be tracking Bears sound suspicious he could have been paralleling in the woods. Maybe she was in a hurry because he said something creepy
But did it really emerge though? All there really is to it is gossip and rumour, which isn't exactly solid evidence. Though I do think Robert seems suspicious and, perhaps, although as far as we know he wasn't near Trenny when she disappeared, maybe witnesses just weren't very observant. It doesn't seem to have been a well-coordinated hike.
In that terrain it would be extremely difficult to go off trail and be able to make any kind of good time or distance
@@joelhoward8211 then that would support a team of people working coordinated in tandem... Theory..... whole story sounds creepy
It may be speculation, but it's also a thorough analysis. Thanks for breaking this case down, Dr. Grande.
Few observations:
- The fact that the destination of the field trip was not announced before they literally boarded the bus doesn't make any sense at all. Wouldn't parents want to know WHERE their child is going for a school trip before giving consent?
I believe that, even in the 70s, there was such a thing as schools being required to get signed consent from the guardians before taking their wards for any extra-curricular activities outside the school premises. This oversight may not have been for any nefarious reasons, however, the school was at the very least negligent in allowing a field trip to happen this way.
- Again, this was a co-ed field trip. Adolescent boys and girls going on a hike chaperoned with only a lone male teacher? What if one of the girls needed some kind of help that required female assistance/supervision? Even if it were an unanticipated emergency, like a bathroom break. Surely, they would not be as comfortable approaching their male teacher to look out for them as they did their business?
- Which brings me to an overlooked but likely theory. Perhaps she needed to go potty, but of course, she was embarrassed to ask her teacher or her senior, Robert. That explains why she suddenly decided to head on back without him without much of an explanation. She was probably looking for a suitable spot slightly off the trail behind a tree or something. Perhaps she lost her balance, fell down a creek, hit her head on a rock, or simply became disoriented. Considering she wasn't well-equipped for the cold, hypothermia could also have set in as the sun came down. Since they were close to leaving for the day, it stands to reason that the dark was soon approaching. The cold and darkness probably served to compromise her crisis skills and she sat down somewhere waiting, frozen in place by fear and panic. And before she knew it.. she was too exhausted to stay awake. She passed out, the hypothermia set in, and she died of exposure in her sleep. She probably didn't even make it till morning. Soon after her death, a bear found her remains, and then it's anybody's guess why her body never turned up. Especially if it was close to their hibernation season.
! this is what actually happened.
So is it impossible for women to go hiking because of 'potty' reasons? Obviously not. Going behind a bush on your own is what millions of women who hike do. I don't understand your point about needing guards, look outs etc, Especially when there where other female students there if she was feeling it necessary to have a look out.
It’s simply a possible way that a young girl disappeared.
She wouldn’t be the first person who got mauled by a bear after leaving the trail for a nature break.
Some people like to think black bears just eat nuts and berries but make no mistake black bears, especially the large males, are apex predators and meat eaters. The notion that a female sow with cubs is the most dangerous kind of black bear encounter is inaccurate. Lone, predatory, male black bears hunting people as a food resource are responsible for over 90% of all fatal black bear maulings.
The Clingman’s Dome area has always had a lot bear activity. Bears use it as a geographical hub. And park officials are notorious for downplaying any suspicion of a bear being involved in missing persons case.
Trenny went missing on October 8 which is the time of year bears are in a state of hyperphagia. Hyperphagia in bears is a feeding frenzy that occurs in late summer and early fall as they prepare for winter. Bears are extremely active during this period and will be out seeking food 20+ hours a day.
@@wasidanatsali6374 Very well explained and I think that nails it.
This is a good story. I think it's one of those strange cases where she got stuck somewhere or fell into a hole or maybe a well. They will find her bones somewhere in a cramped position.
lol imagine how fast a teacher would get penalized for hosting a field trip and not disclosing the location today in 2024. Only in the 70’s. What a time.
Robert Simpson. A teenage high school student decides to go off on his own to follow a bear in a national park rather than look after a girl as her brother asked him to do. Story checks out.
Bizarre!
I’d never give up looking for her, I’d be obsessed if she were my daughter.
What a sad story, thank you for shining light on it for us, Dr. Grande 🌵
The 70s....risks were looked a lot different. They also didn't have bike helmets. I am not surprised they only had the one teacher.
Free range kids back then.
Back in the '70s I was on a kid's camping trip, several teachers, back then I had quick reflexes, several of us students and teachers were around a fire, one student fell into the fire face first somehow I grabbed him, about as quickly as he fell in, seems like I grabbed his coat collar or something, but I jerked him back up and away from the fire. I remember the teachers just standing there lackadaisical like they didn't even understand what just happened. After I got older I realized it was probably because all of the teachers were stoned. Teachers are a pretty irresponsible group overall.
I went on school trips in the '70s and we had several chaperones.. This was for school and girl guides..
And it was 100% worth the small risk! I feel sorry for all of the modern children of helicopter parents - that's a minor form of abuse itself.
Funny how no bike helmets and 99% of us survived!😂
What a sad and bizarre situation. They were totally unprepared for the trip. Thank you Dr. Grande!
That’s very stupid of the teacher to not announce the destination in advance so the students could be prepared. What was the point of that anyway
Humans are stupid. Society allows cigarettes. People don't act in their best interest. Rationality is not the forte of a human being.
Home sweet home.. we do tons of school trips into the park, for people commenting on this. We went every year in the 90s when i was growing up. We just were expected to keep up and pay attention. We'd do groups of 3. Just an unfortunate accident. Gearing up for the biggest tourist season yet, one tourist was just rescued last week by the national guard 😮 these mountains are vastly underestimated.
This case is sad. Also, knowing how fast things can change. Horrible things happen in a blink of an eye. It make me wonder why we were designed to care so deeply.
Can you imagine the horror being left helpless far away in the dangerous woods full of killer bears?!😮
A young smoker can easily hike if he or she is physically fit. I used to do it all the time.
My husband and I go to the smokies every year to hike, for the first 4 years we went my husband was a smoker and would out hike me any day and I’m not a smoker.
The presenter first said it was a difficult hike, and then said it wasn't. 😮
@@robertdesantis6205 I’ve done it many times. It’s an easy, well marked trail. It’s designed for tourists and probably one of the easiest hikes in the Smokies.
@@wasidanatsali6374 Been there myself when I lived in the South.
Beautiful country. 😊
A mountain of despair ...
poor thing
Why do I hear Banjos? I think Robert did it. "Tracking bears" you would go off trail. He probably liked the little sister. They really should have found out where that girl got the jewelry, possibly a gift from who took it?
We know he didn't. This was explained in the video.
I've hiked and camped the Smoky Mountains several times. Although it is vast and wild, no part of it is too far from 'civilization' that a reasonably fit person should die of exposure (unless injured), unlike California's Death Valley for example. Bear attacks happen but are rare. I'm guessing a nefarious human was involved. Great 'analysis' as always. Respect from Ireland.
It’s Grande time! ❤ Let’s do this. Thank you, Dr. Grande, for all the great videos every day! ❤ I really appreciate them all. ❤
PRAYERS To All The Parents Out There 🙏 Missing A Child 🙏 Prayers For Your Strength 🙏 So Sad
Weeping Jesus,Poor girl was trying to get far enough away so no one would see her poop and got kidnapped, or ate by a bear.
Thats exactly what i was thinking. It would explain why she was in such a rush to get back
@@loridavis5699what a pooping ending for her.
Or she became disoriented and wandered away into the woods rather than towards the path. It happens frequently.
Wait I thought women said bears are safer than men now, 🤔🤭
Yea, the toilet thing is highly likely.
We love our mountains here in NC but they are no joke scary sometimes.... especially when the mist rolls over.
Interesting take on Trenny Gibson's story and I totally agree that she probably got lost on the trail and died of exposure. Another possible reason she left the trail: she needed to pee, left the trail for privacy and got lost. In a case in a different national park (can't remember the name of the victim or park right now, sorry), the victim went about 12 feet off the trail --SAR dogs found her bowel movement--couldn't find her way back and died of exposure after wandering around in the woods. Her body was less than one half mile from the trail.
Very few people are taught the dogleg method for trail privacy--carry a piece of brightly coloured cord or plastic tape (like surveyor's tape), go about 5 feet into the woods, tie your marker to a branch or bush while you are still in sight of the trail, then walk off about 5 feet at an angle and pee while you can clearly see your marker. Return to your marker and before you untie it, take a few seconds to spot the trail. Don't untie that marker until you are certain you know how to get back to the trail. Simple, easy, provides privacy and eliminates the risk of becoming disoriented and being lost while very close to the trail.
You’d think someone would have heard her scream but, I think she probably fell unexpectedly. So sad!
"Andrew's Bald"
Poor andrew lol
Bald: (of a plant or an area of land) not covered by the usual leaves, bark, or vegetation.
No screams? No signs of a struggle? No body found?? This is a case for Agent Mulder
Agent 86
👻👽👾🤖
Time to open an x file.
We've normalized enough, time to paranormalize!!!
I was on a school trip and was going for a sneaky cigarette and found a ww2 unexploded bomb.I put it on my shoulder to let my teacher see it.He got some pic of it befour the army came and blow it up...Annalong valley. mourne mountains .N Ireland
Germany never bombed Northern Ireland, despite being part of the UK. And the Republic of Ireland wasn't part of the war. Maybe something from a training ground? Or maybe it was from the IRA?
The destination was unknown to the students, but who knows how many people who knew the teacher actually knew about it... I doubt he never ever mentioned it to his friends. Then basically anyone could have been waiting for a victim to arrive...
the bus driver would have known, i imagine the principal or head of the teacher’s department would have had to approve the trip selection
Nah, she got lost, and MAYBE then maybe met a stranger in the woods or on the road. Likely just got lost and her body never found.
@@simonbanks3058 I suppose so as well, I was just not happy when he based his hypothesis that nothing "planned" could have happened to her on the fact that students didn't know the destination and omitting that teachers, driver etc. definitely knew.
@@carnifaxx See I just don't see anyone in their group being able to orchestrate any planned abduction as no one knew she would be walking alone. Serial Killers have been known on many occasions to choose open nature as their hunting grounds. This as there are few around to hear a scream, their victims come to them, and nature takes care of a lot of the evidence. The number of disappearances in national parks is astounding. And I suppose a crystal ball would reveal serial killers getting them, or hidden crevasses, or bear attacks, or disorientation and animals do the rest, or getting lost, walking to a road and being picked up by opportunist killers. Some of the disappearances are so strange too as they were only a small distance from their party. It is such a trip to think about how they disappeared, most of them.
I just had to hike to my vehicle. You focus so much on making it to the marker or gap and don't think about the uphill downhill part. I was young and healthy and the last part of the trail I was dragging. I couldn't stop and rest because I didn't want to be hiking in the dark. I wasn't prepared for the dark because I didn't think it was going to be that long of a hike. If you go hiking there I would get one of those things that keep track of how many miles you hike into the trails so you give yourself time to get out before dark.
My take of the most likely explanation is she left the trail, became lost and found herself at the road and ended up encountering a stranger who abducted her, this doesn’t account for the cigarettes or the comb in the friends possession but explains the dogs tracking her to the road. Very sad. Having gone to school during the 70’s we only ever had one teacher and the bus driver with us but that said the destination was never a surprise and we had to get permission slips signed that gave our parents a detailed explanation of the field trip
“She was robbed of her jewelry… before she wandered off and got lost with 40+ other people around”. All kinds of weirdness to this story!
Her love of the outdoors... Was in tents!
Please also consider doing coverage of a live story. There is a missing woman in Shasta County in California. Would be helpful to get some coverage on this.
This is heartbreaking for me to hear. I live close to the Pacific Crest Trail (high desert portion) and we have LOTS of young ladies, lost, off the route, overwhelmed by the heat, just walking along, thumb out, hoping for a ride. Bad things have happened in the past, and I think all the locals here try to get them sorted out. Ladies - I know it goes against the grain, but please, please, please, do not attempt these things by yourselves. Take a girlfriend, or two, have a Sat Phone (even locals have them) and keep on those paths. Know GPS is spotty in areas and you really do need an old-school paper map as well. I believe in hiking and enjoying nature, but not crying, or being the cause of crying.
A bit of a strange field trip but things were different back then. Agree with your theories, exposure most likely. Great breakdown & points again. Thanks Dr G😊💖💖
Dr. Grande, you are the greatest! I thought you would have taken the weekend off for Memorial, but you never miss a beat! Thank you for posting this case! Your videos always make my day!! ❤❤❤❤❤
Dr. Grande always makes my day too. ❤
This is a rare occasion where I must disagree with Dr. Grande's conclusion. A single chaperone was grossly insufficient. Taking a shortcut - if that's what Trenny did - is a bad idea for inexperienced hikers, but can seem like a good idea at the time. This demonstrates why chaperoning is important on a trip like this. I'm an ice climber and solo mountain explorer, and comfortable with taking risk. But the thought of "supervising" 30 high school students on an outing to a large and mountainous park is more terrifying than any climb I've ever done. A guide-to-student ratio of 1:6 is probably reasonable.
Dr Grande has an awesome sense of humour 👏
Well done, Dr. Grande! I've studied this case for years. The first I heard of it was via reading Missing 411 (the first book) by David Paulides. There is a photo of the spot were she was last seam crouching, and looking at something off trail. This photo shows a very thick, and steep grade on both sides of the trail. As was stated, there was no place to exit the trail there...way too thick. As an aside, She also played cello in the school orchestra. I don't know what her GPA was, but I think she was very intelligent. There are still too many loose ends regarding this case. How did her prized jewelry get off of her, and into the hands of a classmate?? Who was the police investigator on this case, and where is his file? Did he reveal everything he'd discovered about the case? Thank you for covering this, Dr. Grande.
I'm not
diagnosing anyone ,but what is up with all the cacti
I’d say a more likely reason for the leaving the trail was the call of nature, so to speak. She may have needed to go further into the forest for privacy than she expected (I find it’s always like that - the vegetation looks more solid from the trail than it feels once you’re amongst it), and become disoriented after she had finished.
It explains why she was eager to get back to the bus and why she didn't stay with the classmates she passed on the trail.
Thank you again Dr. Grande 🙏
Happy Sunday to you and the Mrs
Back in the 1970s, high school students were treated much more like adults than they are now. At my high school, students could enter and leave campus as they wished, smoke cigarettes on campus, write their own absence notes, and many drove their own vehicles to school. So, it's not at all surprising that a teacher would send students out on their own and tell them to meet back in a couple hours.
Of course you can’t eliminate “all” risk. But giving the students enough notice to prepare and having more chaperones to supervise would’ve eliminated a lot of risk in this case, and she would’ve made it home that night.
I lean towards her being picked up, probably by someone she thought she knew and could trust. Bad things happened.
Morning everyone! Happy Monday from Sydney Australia
Good evening from a former Sydney - sider, now living in County Cork.😊
Miss the sunny weather!
How are you doing from at.😊
Howdy there mate from Texas
G'day from a guy in Canada
@@dwaynemcallister7231 Hi there sir how is the weather there in Canada?
Love it when Dr Grande uploads. Never lose your humor, Dr Grande, you never fail to make us laugh.
Me too! My favorite jokes are when he says things like “she couldn’t return the phone call….mostly because of the being dead part” 😂😂
This case has all the elements of the Missing 411 cases in State and National Parks that David Paulides has spent much of his adult life tracking, researching, reporting on, writing books, making films and bringing awareness to the public. He became interested after hearing 2 forest rangers talking about the many missing people in these parks. Mr. Paulides has even created maps to show how there are areas where clusters of people have gone missing, many never found in spite of huge and prolonged search efforts. The State and National Park authorities refuse to make these unexplained disappearances public or issue any warning or even acknowledge the seriousness or depth of the problem of so many visitors going missing.
This was the 70’s. It sounds like field trips I used go on back then.
Why can’t DNA be obtained from the cigarette butts and a genetic search be conducted? If she was killed, perhaps her killer could be found.
“Her interest in the outdoors was in-tents” Not sure if this was inTENTional. You never know with Dr. Grande 😂😂😂
I’ve been up there and weather can be lousy. Not a surprise.
Just speculating but could it be that she went off track for privacy for a pit-stop? Might explain her haste?
Weird that they never found the body though.
I think it was the guy who had her comb. His story is sus
We know it wasn't.
My theory is the bear killed her, led the boy away from her body to hide the crime, and then smoked her cigarretes in smug satisfaction in a job well done.
Hiking and backpacking was a favorite of mine all over California. I did a lot of mountain hiking. Same in Pennsylvania, in Bucks County area. One thing I always did was to make myself aware of different landmarks, to keep oriented..didn't go off trails, as difficult as it was sometimes because that's where the adventure is. I am also a backroad traveler. Also did backpacking and hiking with groups...rule #1...never wander away and always wait!!! for your fellow travelers.
NO BEAR CAME FORWARD SAYING , HEY, THIS ROBERT GUY HAS BEEN FOLLOWING ME, ROFL 😂☺🤭😵💫🐻👀
This area and the nature of her disappearance follow the MO of Gary Hilton. He would abduct people off of mountain trails when they were alone, even when other hikers were pretty close by. When he was caught, in his 60s, he was still very physically fit but also smoked cigarettes.
Hilton was only 21 in October of '76, and he isn't known to have committed any crimes in Tennessee. He grew up in Georgia. Also, the earliest murder of which he's suspected dates to 1997-21 years after Trenny's disappearance. She could have abducted by someone a lot like Hilton, though. There are plenty of Gary Hiltons out there. Back in the 70s, most of them were never caught. Many, many serial killers flew under the radar back then. In most cases LE never even figured out that they had a serial killer on their hands, especially if the victims' bodies weren't found or if they were found in different jurisdictions. Some of those serial killers are only now being identified-often posthumously-as LE connects the dots through DNA.
@@jamesbowman6925But I am sure you also realize it's feasible to believe just because we haven't heard of earlier abductions doesn't mean they haven't happened.
I believe the current beach killing guy has confessed to murders he did 20 years earlier -
@@sherriianiro747 It could be "feasible to believe" any known killer alive at the time could be responsible. There's nothing to connect Hilton to this particular case. It's extremely unlikely that he was involved. In that era, many serial killers stayed off of law enforcement's radar altogether. Many of them lived, claimed numerous victims over a period of decades, and died of old age without law enforcement ever even realizing that they had a serial killer on there hands. If a serial killer hid his victims' bodies well or varied his modus operand or moved frequently, he was not going to get caught back then unless he got careless.
if it was a bear or wolf or some other wild animal there would have been part of her found, like a part of her arm or a part of her leg or at the very least blood, which the police dogs would have easily found, yet nothing, so i dont think it was a wild animal attack, unless a bear ate her WHOLE leaving no blood or bones or anything behind which is very unlikely.
Always look forward to your videos, Dr.❤
I think it's very, very strange that Robert was asked to look out f Ior Trenny. But in the end, he didn't?
Moral of the story: Stay on the trail!
Don't Leave the Boat! Apocalypse Now 😮
So cool you covered this
Don’t underestimate smokers. My stepson hikes 3 to 5 miles a day on the weekend with an 80 pound pack and when he arrives, he dives 8 foot deep to the bottom of a pool and moves hundreds of pounds of rocks off the bottom of the riverbed so he can do what is called sniping for gold. Believe me, a motivated smoker could carry that girl through that woods to their car. I know my stepson could. But you don’t have to worry about him. He’s a nice guy, and he lives in another state as far away as you can get from the Appalachian Trail.😮
However, I think the likelihood of her getting abducted is small. People go missing in large forests every year and many times they are never found or they are often found 30 or 40 years later by hunters there’s so many nooks and crannies for people to hide and maybe she broke her leg And was too far to call out for help. Or maybe the bear that the guy was tracking found her before he found the bear.
I doubt highly that she would’ve given this boy her comb to keep for her. Which makes me suspicious of him. He could’ve cut across the trail and been down below the trail, waving for her to come down to him, and perhaps that’s why she left the trail.
Thanks Dr. for another interesting story.😊
You do know that in the 1960's thru the 1970's, at least 70 % of the
population smoked. Now in the 2020 period it's down to only 30 %
that smoke, due to campaigns against smoking. If 70 % of the population
smoked, which I believe to be true, do you really think that the smoking
is a "good indicator" that someone is a badass ? I don't, and as a matter
of fact, I know full well, a lot of hockey players, and football players
smoked as well. Do not underestimate the physical endurance of a smoker,
as in many cases they have equal or more strength, and stamina. Your
post is right on the money, and your step son is just one example.
@@grantp4022 Thanks, that’s So true. During the 60’s and 70’s, even the 80’s and 90’s, a lot of these “smokers” worked in Lumber mills on the west coast, and steel mills on the east coast. Jobs that were extremely physically demanding (as well as dangerous). Plus a lot more smokers worked in what is known as the trades, Carpenters, Electricians, plumbers, etc.
Thank you so much, Dr.Grande.
I absolutely love your sense of humor.
That alleged jewelry story must be investigated to bring closure to this young person’s disappearance.
If the cigarette butts were saved as evidence they need to be tested for DNA. I believe there was a man nervously smoking & waiting for a girl to abduct. He was there long enough to leave a pile of butts.
yes , obviously the cigarette buds should be checked
Or they could be from the pockets of the man’s coat she was wearing
Thank you Dr. Grande.
Love these mysteries, the only videos I really take the time to watch on Dr Grande channel as there all so fascinating... Grande conclusions too... Please keep em coming 👍🏻🙏🏻😁😊🌝
I think the boy her brother asked to watch her went off the trail, and was maybe following Trenny from a distance, not behind her BUT parallel to her…..at some point when he saw her at the adage of the trail, he got her attention and waved her over…… then who knows? OR maybe her and the boy made a plan to meet off the trail, but didn’t want anyone else to know and she was waiting for his signal, then maybe she didn’t want to do what he wanted and it got ugly. This is just me speculating.
How do you feel about mass immigration? Hmmmm all men are out to you ? But you want more ? Huh ?
I would question the jewelry girl
This was a really good report! Thank you!
It may be a matter of a lot of things. I've known of searches with dogs and the dogs turn out to be wrong. How long and how many people searched the area in the days after her disappearance?
If she ran away with someone perhaps, they followed her bus and caught up with her. I kind of toss that one out because after all these years it seems that she would have contacted family at some point.
But one corner told me, "It is amazing how little space is needed to hide a body." Think of how ever so many years we get a story of someone found in a chimney that had been missing for 10 years.
Fall in a hole in the smokies, die, come fall the leaves start to fall, animals come around, etc...