When reading Cody Lundin's book, I was shocked when I got to Chapter 12 and read the description of the man who disappeared during a business trip to Arizona. It turns out that my wife worked with the man and knew him.

As mentioned in Cody's book, after his disappearance all sorts of rumors were flying about where he ended up, from affairs to tax evation. Of course most of his office-mates assumed he was no longer alive.

As mentioned in Cody's book, something like three years later, a hiker came across his remains at the bottom of a cliff. They think he went out for a hike and slipped over the edge. We never heard whether he'd died immediately after the fall or not.

Cody emphasized that though preparedness may not have prevented his death, a note left with the hotel's front desk could have relieved his family and friends (and authorities) from years of wondering and grief.

On a related note, I have a good friend at work that used to reside in the Tempe area. She was driving out in the desert when her car stalled. She was stuck there with no water and no cell service. I guess she was in bad shape when help finally arrived. I wonder how often that happens in the dessert?