Decision to leave the tent

[ash73]

those photos could have been taken anywhere. is there any photo that shows the tent on the slope with an identifiable landmark to prove it?

I agree, and no there isn't.

This case is about as far from CSI as you can get.

[tenne]

The Russians, and the world, had basically just gone through WW2 and knew that in order to prove battles, etc, there needs to be identifiable landmarks or something to show where it happened. I can't imagine they didn't know to take long shots to show everything around the tent, cedars etc to document where it happened and all the conditions around it

[ash73]

The search team didn't treat it as a crime scene, they bungled everything.

Every book I've read puts the ravine in a different place.

Rakitin's book, which I'm reading now, even has the wind in the opposite direction.

Someone claims to have found the cedar, there's some photos on here somewhere.

[tenne]

Yes, it appears they bungled it. which is even stranger given the fact that the army isn't known for being incompetent . At one point, they dismiss the discrepancies as they were incompetent. Given the Russian, "do not lose face" I have to wonder why saying they were incompetent is the best choice to say for them? Its like its either we are incompetent or we tell the truth and you can't handle the truth