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The Last Leg

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gunmat:
When I first began reading about the case, I immediately noticed the short distance the group covered on the final leg until reaching the location where the tent was found. It's presumed they had spent the night in the forested area on the southern slope of Dyatlov Pass, where they had left behind a supply depot they didn't need for the rest of the journey. These locations are precisely marked, allowing for the measurement of the distance to the tent, which is also precisely marked. There's approximately a 2 km distance between these points along the ground.

By leaving some equipment there, they had less to carry on the final day. It seems there was less snow on the way to the tent. However, they reported encountering deep snow and difficulties with mobility in the valley as they struggled forward. Nevertheless, they covered a greater distance several times than on the final leg while carrying heavier loads. This doesn't quite add up. Something must have happened on the final day.

To emphasize: In the diary entry dated 31st January, Igor complains that they can only manage 1.5 to 2 km per hour. If we take his estimate as the basis, the group would take about an hour to reach the location where the tent was found. This is very peculiar.

Perhaps they were caught off guard by bad weather? Did disagreements arise about the route ahead? Or did they take a detour and not go over the pass as the map shows?

Arjan:
I suppose you are referring to the last day trip from the storage to the place where the tent had been found by the first search party as indicated on the map below?



After carefully reading this map, I came to the conclusion that the group had to climb from 550 m to 850 m above sea-level over a distance of around 1000 m.

This involves a slope with an inclination of 35 % on average! Not an easy climb carrying 30 kg in an old style backpack and carrying skis and skipoles by hand.

According to my estimation, the group had started the day at sunrise 8:30 am, had breakfast and made the storage, had lunch around 12:00 am.
Very probably the climb had taken half an hour to cover 1000 m and one to two hours to climb 350 m: in total more than two hours: not bad regarding the circumstances, not good either, because - reading the diaries - not all members had been 'top fit'.

The day before, the group had to return, because they had not been able to make this ascend in the (late?) afternoon.
 

GlennM:
Cigarette smokers going uphill in snow and a headwind.

gunmat:
I insist that the final leg until where the tent was found is remarkably short, compared to the distances they covered in the days prior. Particularly noteworthy is the second-to-last leg, where they nearly reached the ridge before turning around and descending 2-300 meters to set up camp. The last leg is 1.7-2 km long, with an average incline of 14.5 degrees and a maximum incline of 27 degrees. The steepest part is where they went the day before and decided to seek shelter further down the slope. No, I find this peculiar.

GlennM:
Gunmat, yes it is peculiar. As I think about it, I imagine a situation where the group is fully equipped. They look ahead to Ortoten and decide between speed and comfort. They choose speed by caching suupplies. This works to their advantage because when they start out again, the weather is umfavorable. They make as much progress as possible and decide to make an early camp, likely to wait out the weather. Perhaps, instead of improving, the weather continued to deteriorate to the point where the tent itself became compromised. A damaged tent is no help and going back to the cache means staying on the high ground. It would be prudent to put the wind to your back and use it to push you and your team down slope into the woods where a fire and temporary shelter will keep you alive until things get better. They did not get better soon enough.

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