The "GR20" is a famous hiking trail thru the mountains of Corsica.
(GR stands for "Grande Randonnée")

Last week, weather suddenly changed to cold and fog and 3 hikers died from hypothermia, on different parts of the trail.

Weather changes rapidly in the mountains. Do NOT go for a hike without an appropriate set of clothes in your pack.

URLs (in French ...):
* News article in LE Monde
* the trail

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.

Does it matter? They are just as dead either way.

Just do as Frenchy says and take extra clothing.

/someone who lives in Colorado and loves hiking

2000 meters is only 6500 feet. Laramie, WY (where I live) is at 7200 feet and the closest place to play in the woods is around 10,000 feet. Unless you catch a freak storm of freezing rain or severe snow it doesn't take much to survive the weather at the highest altitude they could have been at (survive mind you, not be comfortable). An extra sweater, long johns and wet weather gear should have gotten them through fine, a blanket and an ultra light stove so you can drink hot chocolate would have made it almost pleasent. Stay dry and get out of the wind. It doesn't say how cold it got, but I would guess this is a case of not knowing what they were doing. And not having what they needed equals not knowing what they were doing.

No, you don't need extreme weather to get hypothermia, I've heard for years that most people succumb between 30 and 50 degrees Farenheit. And at those temperatures it takes so little to prevent hypothermia, its ludicrous not to carry it. If they weren't carrying enough for an arctic expedition and temperatures drop to zero or below I can understand, but if all it would have taken was a sweater, or a rain jacket...it just makes it pathetic. But I'm preaching to the choir here.

Well, I didn't find more details.
Looks like they were somewhat underequipped, for that trail.
AFAIK, the GR20 is one of the most difficult trails in Europe. And even in august, bad weather is to be expected and planned for.

Hi Alain,

The GR20 certainly looks like a pretty tough trail. When looking for some information on the GR20 it said that no tents were allowed to be pitched along the route, only near designated 'refuges' or mountain huts are allowed. Could it have been that some hikers in an attempt to keep pack weight down decided to just rely on the facilities provided by these mountain huts. It might have been that the hikers therefore did not take a tent and sleeping bag (which may have saved the hikers lives)? If the fog came down, navigation to these mountain huts would have be crucial as other escape routes from the trail were very limited.

Corsica looks like a fantastic place from the photos on http://www.touchingthelight.co.uk/corsica/index.html

I agree. I don't go for a hike--even here in the desert in high summer--without a disposable poncho. Staying dry and out of the wind is half the battle.