You know, I’ve read so many ill-informed comments from people on social media about the awfully sad death of Dr. Michael Mosley on Symi, that I decided to express my view in a simple blog post. These two questions have annoyed me somewhat:

“How could his wife have let him go off on a walk like that?” 

“How could someone get lost on such a small island?”

The sad fact is that, no matter how well-informed someone may be, they’re not always ready for the realities of walking in the midday sun when the temperatures are in the upper thirties, maybe forty C. 

The only reason I feel qualified to talk about this particular tragedy is the fact that, apart from anyone who actually lives on Symi, I probably know as much about the terrain where the good doctor went walking as does anyone. My wife and I not only spent a number of 3-week holidays on the island before ever we moved to Rhodes in 2005, but for ten years I was an excursion escort on Rhodes, taking guests to Symi sometimes twice a week for much of that time. We also spent a couple of short breaks there during November while living on Rhodes.

We’ve spent many happy hours on Ag. Nikolaos beach from where Doctor Mosley set out, and the coastal walk from Pedi to that beach is tricky, but well trodden and, as long as you watch where you’re putting your feet, you can manage it without incident. Setting out from Pedi along the coast Eastward, you simply follow a series of red paint dots which are to be found on various rocks along the way. The last fifty metres is a steep downward climb to the beach itself, and thus when you’re returning to Pedi, you start out climbing upward until it levels out somewhat. 

There are various theories about what Dr. Mosley did once he’d reached the North end of Pedi beach, and the roads at that end of the bay can confuse a walker. It’s very easy to be disoriented when it comes to which way is North for example. I’ve stood at that spot many times and, when we first went there, thought that a quick trek over the mountain at the far end of that side of the bay would in all probability bring us down in no time to Symi’s main town and harbour. In fact, the size of the peninsula at the far end of which sits the rather remote tiny resort of Agia Marina is very deceiving. Plus, the terrain there is like another planet, as it’s virtually totally devoid of vegetation, and thus affords no shade, and it’s very uneven and rocky underfoot. It’s what I’d call ankle-twisting, or even ankle-breaking territory. It’s not the kind of landscape that anyone should attempt to traverse alone, or at the very least without a mobile phone. 

Yvonne and I once actually made the very walk that brought about Dr. Mosley’s death, although there were two of us, and we didn’t attempt it at the hottest part of the day. We did, however, make it to Agia Marina, which, although pleasant enough, didn’t leave us wanting to make another visit. It’s surrounded by the most barren hillsides you can imagine, and the best way to get there is by sea. To make that walk you need at least a litre of water each, plus it would be a good idea to carry a few energy bars too. A high factor sun cream all over any exposed skin is a must, as is a hat. At least Michael had an umbrella with him, so that was a help.

Of course I’m in no position to draw definite conclusions, but on studying all the reports and seeing the videos on the TV news, my firm belief is that he thought he was making a shortcut back to his accommodation in Symi Harbour. He’d left the beach telling his wife that he didn’t feel so well, probably a touch of sunstroke I’d imagine anyway, since they’d already walked out to the beach earlier in the day. If he’d gone left instead of right at the North end of Pedi bay, he’d have made the climb on an asphalt road into Chorio, the village that sits in the shallow valley high above Symi Harbour and affords views both down to Pedi and to the harbour, if you know where to go and stand. From Chorio it would have been a simple, if slightly arduous descent down the Kali Strata, and he’d have got back to his accommodation safely.

Once he’d committed himself to attempting to climb the mountain between Pedi and Agia Marina, he probably reached the point where he felt he had no choice but to press on, even though the landscape before him probably didn’t turn out to be what he’d expected to see. When we did the walk, we knew we were heading for Agia Marina, but I theorise that once he caught sight of the place, he thought that his best bet was to head there and ask for assistance, probably a boat, to get back to the harbour. If you take a look at some of these screenshots I’ve taken, courtesy of Google Earth Pro, you can see just how large the peninsula is that separates Pedi from the bay to the East of Symi Harbour. Also, it’s obvious that, once he’d set out to climb that hill, he was going in the opposite direction to the one he wanted, but without knowing it.

How people can ask questions like, “How could his wife have let him go off on a walk like that?” It’s beyond me. He was a grown man, a sensible and very fit man, by and large. He would have given his wife no reason to assume that he couldn’t have made it back to their accommodation, surely. There’s even a bus (used to be a 15 seater, not sure if it is these days) that goes between the two bays regularly.

As for the other question, “How could someone get lost on such a small island?” – Once again, to ask such a question is to misunderstand the meaning of the word ‘small.’ Looking at the screenshots I’ve posted here (see below), one can easily see that a walk on such a headland is going to be gruelling to say the least. Symi may be a ‘small’ island in comparison to other islands, but how long does a walk need to be in 38-41ºC when one probably doesn’t have enough water or food to embark upon it to begin with? The pathways on that peninsula are rough to say the least, and you do encounter a few stone walls that need to be either crossed, or negotiated around.

Below: The second photo shows the location of Chorio, with the Symi waterfront just visible to the far left. Agia Marina (where he was found) is that tiny bay at the far right end of the peninsula, where there is also a small island off shore. The last shot below gives an indication of the extreme barrenness of the terrain he would have been walking across.

There, that’s what I think. I believe that the good doctor was a victim of a mistaken sense of direction, that’s all. Sadly, he lost his strength just metres short of his goal and, had he not collapsed behind a wall, would have soon been spotted by people within the boundary of the Agia Marina resort and assistance would have surely been rendered. Circumstances conspired against him. It’s desperately sad, and one cannot but ache for his wife and family, not to mention all those who’ve enjoyed and benefited from his informative and entertaining TV presentations in recent years.

Below: Setting out from the far end of Pedi Bay (opposite side to the Ag. Nikolaos path) –

Don’t please, either, believe people who spout on social media about how this affects Symi’s reputation as a place to visit. Talk about irresponsible and ill-informed. I read some bloke’s comment on Facebook, something like, “Symi’s not so nice a place to go now then, is it?” That’s balderdash, pure and simple. Lots of people have met their deaths or been seriously injured in remote places in the UK, leave alone a beautiful Greek island. It’s nothing to do with Symi or its terrain, but everything to do with a few unfortunate circumstances catching up with the unwitting victim.

I doubt that she’ll ever read this, but I wish to extend my deepest sympathies to Dr. Claire Bailey Mosley, Dr. Michael’s loving wife, and indeed to their children. I, like many others, have enjoyed immensely her husband’s TV shows over the years, and the fact that he cared deeply about people and their health always shone through.

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