Hi frenchy,

Did the hikers die from lack of equipment or lack of experience? The hikers must of had some knowledge of the trail GR20 and the expected challenges the route would require to complete regardless of the weather. The GR20 goes to altitudes over 2000 metres and the route notes on the Trail website say that it should be approached as an Alpine route. Did they die because of the fog, not because the fog cooled the hikers to become hypothermic but because they couldn't navigate through the fog to lower altitudes leading to the night time temperatures inflicting the hyporthermia? If this was the case then even those with Goretex and down clothing could have become a victim of the weather conditions or were the hikers out in just cotton tees and shorts? The LE Monde article doesn't really give much detail about the level of equipment the hikers had.