Blind Plea - Introducing: Uinta Triangle

Episode Date: May 20, 2025

This week, we’re sharing a gripping new podcast from KSL Podcasts & Lemonada Media: Uinta Triangle. It tells the story of a solo hiker from Australia named Eric Robinson, who disappeared while on a trek. Eric’d taken steps to make sure he could travel the mountains that he loved safely, like packing a GPS beacon. So it was a real mystery when he vanished without a trace. Turns out, the mountains where Eric disappeared are known for keeping their secrets. Uinta Triangle tells the story of the desperate search for Eric. Host Dave Cawley follows in Eric’s footsteps, and joins Eric’s wife in her worldwide hunt for answers. It’s a “lost in the woods” story, but much more.  You’ll hear a clip from the first episode in this feed. To keep listening, follow Uinta Triangle — wherever you get your podcasts or head to: https://lemonada.lnk.to/UintaTrianglefdSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I'm Dave Colley. I want to share a podcast I'm really excited about with you. It's called You Went a Triangle. It tells the story of a solo hiker from Australia named Eric Robinson who disappeared while on a trek. Eric had taken steps to make sure he could travel the mountains that he loved safely, like packing a GPS beacon. So it was a real mystery when he vanished without a trace. Turns out the mountains where Eric disappeared are known for keeping their secrets. You into Triangle tells the story of the desperate

search for Eric. I literally follow in Eric's footsteps and join Eric's wife in her worldwide hunt for answers. It's a lost in the woods story, but also so much more. You're about to hear a clip from the first episode of You Into Triangle. Follow the show by searching You Into, that's U-I-N-T-A, Triangle on Apple podcasts or wherever you listen. And now, here's You Into Triangle.

Here's you into Triangle. Driving rain has a beauty of shape and movement. But there is a kind of rain without beauty when air and ground are sodden, sullen black rain that invades body and soul alike. Then the desolation of these empty stretches strikes at one's heart. The mountain becomes a monstrous place. Nan Shepherd, the living mountain. Autumn arrived in Aotearoa carrying a gift of rain. And when it rains in New Zealand, it rains.

Drought-busting storms descended on Taiwaipounamu, the South Island of New Zealand, at the beginning of March 2008. Oh, it rained. And it rained. And it was very wet. Eric Robinson was a few days into what was supposed to be a month-long vacation trekking, or tramping as the Kiwis would say, all across New Zealand. He planned to tackle several ambitious routes.

First on his list, Cascade Saddle, a long walk through some of the most beautiful terrain New Zealand has to offer. Think of those sweeping shots of snow-capped peaks from the Lord of the Rings movies. Those were filmed in this part of New Zealand. Eric started from the sheepherding town of Glenorchy, going up the braided meanders of the Rees River through a grassy valley bounded by towering mountains. The water of the Rees flowed a brilliant robin egg blue, burdened with sediment from glaciers on the slopes far above.

At the top of the Rees Valley, Eric ascended a pass and crossed into the neighboring valley of the Dart River, home to a cheeky, kleptomaniac breed of parrot called Keeya. It's a beautiful, exotic, wild place. Eric stayed a night in a hut along the Dart River, kind of like a hostel for hikers. The following morning, he struck out for the Cascade Saddle, a steep exposed stretch between the head of the Dart and Matukituki River Valleys. This section becomes dangerous when it rains because the slopes on the Matukituki side

are covered with grasses that become slick when wet. Multiple people have died while attempting to cross Cascade Saddle. Eric didn't mind a little bad weather. He had a saying. multiple people have died while attempting to cross Cascade Saddle. Eric didn't mind a little bad weather. He had a saying, There's no such thing as bad weather, just a poor choice of clothing. That's the voice of Eric's wife, Marilyn Koolstra. Eric and Marilyn lived in Australia, in the suburbs of Melbourne.

Eric was a few weeks shy of his 61st birthday, and he had just retired. That desire to retire at 60, I always thought was too early, but to achieve the walks and the places that he wanted to go, that was necessary. With his newfound free time, Eric pursued his one aspiration, to walk the world's greatest trails.

And his mantra was, I'm going to do as many walks as I can for as long as I can carry a backpack. Eric's got this list of places he wants to go. You probably don't even know half of all the places in his mind, you know, that he's going to walk before he can't carry anything. Oh, there's a book out the back I could check.

A thousand places to see and do before you die. Eric didn't intend to die anytime soon. He and Marilyn were in the prime of their lives. Both figured death lay far, far in their future. Yeah, we did expect to spend a long retirement together traveling and doing things. Marilyn, at age 55, wasn't yet ready to retire. She had a job she loved.

It made it difficult for her to get away with Eric for the long walks he wanted to take. So Eric often went out alone. We had an understanding if he wanted to go and hike somewhere, he would do that. Marilyn remained at home in Australia while Eric went out adventuring in Aotearoa in early 2008. No sooner had he left for New Zealand,

then she received a delivery. The beautiful bunch of flowers that he'd always organized before he left on any trip, a loving gesture, but also the appreciation that I didn't tie him to the relationship that he couldn't go off and do things himself. There's a very strong partnership in that way. Marilyn placed the blooms in the same spot she always did.

In the Edinburgh crystal vase that was given to us for a wedding present. A symbol of Eric's love, respect, and devotion. The flowers were still there, in that crystal vase, when Marilyn arrived home from work a few nights later. She was in her evening routine, making dinner, maybe decompressing with a little TV, when her phone rang. She answered, and on the other end came the voice of Alan Beck, a friend and former co-worker

of her husband's. Which was most unusual, and he said, I don't want to alarm you, but Eric is overdue. Alan was in Wanaka, a resort town on the South Island of New Zealand. Wanaka was also where Eric planned to stay after his cascade saddle hike. He'd made plans to meet Alan there. But Eric hadn't arrived. Alan told Marilyn torrential rains were at that moment pounding the southern Alps, the mountains that run the length of the South Island.

He said, But I wouldn't worry. It'll be okay. I have a good feeling about this. Allen knew the risks of mountain weather as well as anyone. He also knew Eric was a competent backcountry traveler. Still, Marilyn heard concern creeping around the corners of his words. Allen was worried about his friend, who was a little bit older perhaps than he was, and he said, I've alerted the Department of Conservation. The Department is New Zealand's government agency responsible for managing backcountry trails.

It would likely launch a search and rescue mission for Eric at first light the next morning. He said, maybe you want to call DFAT and let them know. DFAT is Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs. It's equivalent to the US State Department. Marilyn's mind raced, picturing all the possible scenarios. She pushed the most intrusive out of her head, refusing to believe anything bad could have happened. Eric had gone prepared. Tent, waterproof jacket, extra food, all the essentials.

But Marilyn knew none of that would make any difference if he lost his footing on soggy grass and somersaulted over the edge of a cliff. She hung up and glanced across the room at the flowers in the crystal vase, pausing to wonder if they might be the last she would ever receive from the man she considered her soulmate, Eric Robinson. Then, Marilyn picked up the telephone again, dialed DFAT, and reported her husband missing. You are listening to You Win to Triangle, an audio documentary

from KSL Podcasts about the disappearance of Eric Robinson. This is the first episode, and it's called Overdue. My legs are killing me. I haven't moved from this economy class seat for 16 hours, minus one brief trip to the lab. Right now we're looking at a touchdown about 950 local time in Melbourne.

And we'll get to our gate. My name is Dave Colley, and I boarded this plane bound for Australia in January of 2024. I want to thank you for flying with us today and I'm afforded to see you in the early skies again. I'm an American and a journalist. I decided to fly part way around the world because I'm trying to solve a mystery about

what happened to Eric Robinson. I first learned about Eric's story more than a decade ago while working as a radio news reporter. It left me with so many questions, like what drove a man in his 60s to hike alone on challenging or even treacherous tracks with no way to call for help? How could someone as experienced and well-prepared as Eric just disappear? My search for answers led me to Eric's wife, Marilyn. I first spoke to her in 2016.

Eric was a guy who obviously knew what he was doing and was prepared to be where he was. Yes, he would plan in detail the hiking before departure. He was a minimalist person, but not minimalist on safety. Now I've talked to Marilyn many more times since, but our conversations were always over the telephone, across time zones. Every call left me feeling there was more to the story,

some deeper truth I could sense, but not quite grasp. That's why I finally decided to fly to Melbourne and meet Marilyn in person. I was excited to have somebody come to expand upon the story of two people who met later in life and enjoyed passions and places together. The story Marilyn shared launched me on an even deeper journey of discovery. You know, it's a story of a missing person, but it's also a legacy to that person for the love of what they did.

I soon found myself on another plane, crossing the Tasman Sea, going to New Zealand... Hold the handrails, we're going on the outside of the markers of the tunnel. ...to follow Eric's footsteps. And I'm about halfway up to Cascade Saddle on the Dart Riverside. I traveled solo, just as Eric did, with all the risk that entails. I'm just...

Apparently I'm just falling down a hill. Because I wanted to learn what compelled Eric to adventure in wild places alone. And to answer the question why, one time, he didn't return. Thanks for listening to this clip of episode one of You Into Triangle. To hear the rest of the show, find and follow us by searching You Into, that's U-I-N-T-A, Triangle on Apple Podcasts,