The Dyatlov Pass | Ep. 48

Grab a blanket and stay warm listening to this episode! This week, we discuss the Dyatlov Pass Incident. In 1959, a group of Russian hikers died in the Ural Mountains.

Although they were an experienced hiking group, they died in incredibly unsure ways – leaving their tent in subzero temperatures, wearing minimal clothing.

While some were victims of hypothermia, others experienced odd internal injuries, missing eyeballs, a missing tongue, and even hints of radiation. Could they truly have died due to the natural, arctic elements?

Or was something more supernatural at play? Listen now.

Most college students when they have a break head to warmer climates. Where the sun is hot, the beach is warm, and the drinks are cold. 

But 9 Ural Polytechnic Institute students decided to hike into the Ural Mountains.

The experienced hikers made camp on Kohlat Syakhl, which now bears the name of the groups leader, Igor Dyatlov. At some point, in the middle of the night, something caused the hikers to cut through their tent and head out into the unforgiving cold in various states of undress. 

In this episode of Believing the Bizarre we climb into mystery of the  Dyatlov Pass.

In the early morning hours of January 25 1959, the group of 11 hikers began their journey that would lead to their Grade III hiker with ski certification once completed. 

During the initial ascent one group member, Yuri Yudin, who suffered from a congenital heart condition and rheumatoid arthritis, turned back due to joint pain. 

Before the hike began Dyatlov had said he would send a telegram no later than February 12th.  Before Yudin left Dyatlov had said he thought their trip would take longer than expected. When the twelfth came and went with no word from the group there wasn’t an immediate search launched. 

On February 20th, with still no word from the group, the families of the hikers demanded a search and rescue operation be launched to find their loved ones. 

The original rescue group consisted of volunteer students and teachers. Later the military would get involved using helicopters and planes to search for the missing hikers. 

On February 26th the searchers found the campsite in a state of disarray. They were bewildered at the condition of the campsite. The tent was half torn and covered in snow. Their shoes and clothes had been left behind. 

The tent had been cut open from the inside, suggesting that the situation was so dire that the hikers had to evacuate their tent in a state of undress out into the freezing night. 

500 meters away from the camp the searchers found the remains of a small fire with two of the hikers bodies, shoeless and only dressed in their underwear. 

Branches on the Pune tree they were resting against had been torn or broken, suggesting that one of them had climbed the tree, perhaps looking for the camp. 

Between the pine and the camp the searchers found three more bodies in positions suggesting they were trying to make their way back to camp. 

The remaining four hikers weren’t found for another two months. They were found in a ravine further away from their camp. Three of them had been better dressed, and seemed to suggest they had on the clothes of the other deceased members of the party. 

A few  questions remained though. Why would 9 grade II hikers cut through their tent and venture into an environment that they weren’t prepared for? 

What, or who, scared them so bad to leave that quickly? 

Investigation

An investigation was launched shortly after the bodies were recovered. 

The first five bodies had no injuries that would lead to their death, making hypothermia the likely cause of death. 

The four bodies found later was telling a different story. 

Three of the hikers had fatal injuries one had major skull fractures and two had severe chest fractures. The force required to creat such fractures is incredibly high, like a car crash. 

But their bodies had no external wounds that would indicate such a traumatic event took place. It appeared that their bodies had been subjected to a high level of pressure somehow. 

All four bodies had received soft tissue damage, not indicative of the fractures they received. One body was missing her eyes, tongue, facial tissue, a skull fragment, and parts of the lips. Another body was missing eyebrows and another missing his eyeballs. 

What could cause these injuries?  Was it the same thing that caused them to flee their campsite?

In 2019 Russian authorities re-opened the investigation but were only considering three possibilities, an avalanche, slab avalanche, and a hurricane. 

Theories

Avalanche 

On July 11th, 2020, the Russian authorities stated that an avalanche was the cause of the hikers death. The finding was further backed by an independent Swiss study as well. 

But not everyone believes this theory. While it seems plausible that an avalanche would cause them to run from their tents, take cover in the trees, cause the concussive force that lead to the high pressure fractures, and predators could’ve caused the soft tissue damage to the four bodies, some aren’t buying it. 

For one where was the signs of an avalanche? The debris that is inherent with one wasn’t present. 

Over 100 expeditions had been held in that area since the incident and reported no sign of an avalanche. 

If there had been a localized avalanche, it would’ve covered their campsite and collapsed their tent vertically instead of the horizontally like it was. 

The group were  experienced hikers with ski experience. It’s unlikely they would’ve camped where an avalanche would be possible. 

And lastly their footsteps did not show signs of distress or panic as one would expect in an avalanche. 

Katabatic Wind

Katabatic winds, a drainage wind that comes down from a high elevation and can reach hurricane type force, are rare but dangerous events. It was implicated in a 1978 case n Swede where 8 hikers were killed and one was severely wounded. 

The high wind event could’ve caused them to leave the tent and a light was left on top of the tent suggesting it was intentionally left behind so they could find their way back after the wind had subsided. 

Infrasound

Another theory is that an infrasound event, which can be caused by wind phenomena, can cause panic in humans. 

It was suggested that the sound caused panic, anxiety and disorientation, forcing the hikers to leave the tent. 

Once out of the range of the infrasound they would have come to their senses and tried to make their way back to the tent. The more severe injuries could’ve been caused by falling into the ravine.

Military Testing

Parachute mine testing is one theory that states that the explosions woke them up causing them to leave their tent. Five of the hikers succumbed to exposure and the other four were killed by mines that fell from the sky. 

Parachute mines explode in the air and not on the ground which could explain the injuries suffered by the four hikers. 

The theory is given support by sightings of glowing orange orbs floating In the sky in the hikers general area. 

Another military testing theory says radiological weapons testing was the cause of the hikers demise. This is due to finding radioactivity on some of the clothes as well as relatives stating the bodies had an orange color and other discoloration of the skin and hair. 

Conclusion 

While all of these theories seem plausible there isn’t enough evidence to confidently say which one is the cause.  Could it be a combination of these events, or was there more nefarious forces at work. 

The fact that this isn’t the only hiking expedition that has ended with the mysterious deaths of the group suggests there is more going on in the mountains of mother Russia.