Episodios

  • 84: Judy Smith: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

    84: Judy Smith: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
    Jun 26 2025
    We’re diving into one of the most perplexing travel mysteries in recent history — the disappearance and tragic death of Judy Smith.
    In April of 1997, Judy traveled to Philadelphia with her husband, a routine trip that took a bizarre turn when she vanished without a trace. Five months later, her remains were discovered hundreds of miles away in the rugged mountains of North Carolina.
    How did a loving wife and mother, last seen in a bustling East Coast city, end up dead in the Blue Ridge Mountains? And what clues were overlooked that might still point to what really happened?
    This isn’t just a story of a woman who went missing — it’s a story about trust, timing, unanswered questions, and the strange trail Judy left behind. Today, we retrace her steps, sift through the facts, and explore the haunting silence left in her wake.
    Listen as we dive into Pennsylvania & North Carolina, the case of Judy Smith, and how to stay alive on vacation.

    Do you have a story to share? Send your email to lasttrippodcast@gmail.com

    We're on YouTube with full video: https://www.youtube.com/@TheLastTripPodcast

    Follow us on IG: https://www.instagram.com/thelasttripcrimepod/

    And join our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheLastTripPodcast

    Theme Music by Roger Allen Dexter

    Sources:
    https://www.news.com.au/world/north-america/the-strange-unsolved-case-of-judy-smith/news-story/b17a4452389568a863596acbe1c49364

    https://www.reddit.com/r/WithoutATrace/comments/1fzbya1/on_april_10th_1997_50yearold_judy_smith_told_her/

    https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/kcd8cx/judith_lois_smith/

    https://missinginthecarolinas.com/2025/04/episode-134-missing-and-murdered-while-on-vacation/

    https://truecrimesocietyblog.com/2021/08/18/642-miles-away-what-happened-to-judy-smith/

    Unsolved Mysteries, Season 12 Episode 11 - https://youtu.be/oezGE75mIAk?si=EkISUuohL_7fivLJ

    https://mountainx.com/news/community-news/071812truth-trackers/

    https://confusingcases.wordpress.com/2021/08/27/the-disappearance-of-judy-smith/

    https://vocal.media/criminal/the-mysterious-murder-of-judy-smith

    https://youtu.be/nBdQ-V8_mhU?si=vGYedwmvRUOypytv

    https://lostnfoundblogs.com/f/judy-smith-traveling-or-troubled

    https://websleuths.com/threads/pa-judy-smith-50-philadelphia-10-april-1997.75121/page-28

    https://crimeimmemorial.com/2022/07/24/judy-smith/

    https://www.grunge.com/730353/the-mysterious-death-of-judy-smith-explained/

    https://www.news.com.au/world/north-america/the-strange-unsolved-case-of-judy-smith/news-story/b17a4452389568a863596acbe1c49364

    https://strangeco.blogspot.com/2019/01/judy-smiths-final-destination-bizarre.html
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    40 m
  • 83: Michael Rockefeller: Papua New Guinea

    83: Michael Rockefeller: Papua New Guinea
    Jun 19 2025
    He was young, ambitious, and heir to one of the most powerful families in American history. But Michael Rockefeller wasn’t chasing money, politics, or prestige.
    He was chasing meaning… Art. Culture. A sense of connection that no trust fund could buy.
    In 1961, the 23 year old Harvard graduate vanished off the coast of what is now Indonesia - just moments after saying he thought he could make it to shore. He was never seen again.
    Officially? They say he drowned.
    But in the decades since, a darker theory has emerged - one that leads you deep into the swamps of New Guinea, into a culture misunderstood, and into the unsettling possibility…. That Micahel didn't die in the water. He made it to land.
    And what happened next has haunted the Rockefeller legacy - and captivated the world - for over 60 years.
    Listen as we dive into New Guinea, the case of Michael Rockefeller, and how to stay alive on vacation.

    Do you have a story to share? Send your email to lasttrippodcast@gmail.com

    We're on YouTube with full video: https://www.youtube.com/@TheLastTripPodcast

    Follow us on IG: https://www.instagram.com/thelasttripcrimepod/

    And join our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheLastTripPodcast

    Listen to this week's podcast recommendation, Missing Magnolias
    https://www.missingmagnolias.com/

    Theme Music by Roger Allen Dexter

    Sources:
    https://www.amazon.com/Savage-Harvest-Cannibals-Colonialism-Rockefellers/

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rG7it599iek

    https://www.michiganpublic.org/2014-03-15/a-tragic-disappearance-mostly-solved-in-savage-harvest

    https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2014/10/28/michael-rockefeller-savage-harvest

    https://nypost.com/2025/06/03/entertainment/the-mets-new-wing-honors-michael-rockefeller-who-may-have-been-killd-by-cannibals/

    https://people.com/michael-c-rockefeller-1961-disappearance-mystery-remains-met-renovates-wing-exclusive-11748183

    https://pacificaffairs.ubc.ca/book-reviews/savage-harvest-a-tale-of-cannibals-colonialism-and-michael-rockefellers-tragic-quest-for-primitive-art-by-carl-hoffman/

    https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/21c6xa/i_spent_two_years_proving_that_michael/

    https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/What-Really-Happened-to-Michael-Rockefeller-180949813/

    https://www.townandcountrymag.com/society/tradition/a64768051/michael-rockefeller-disappearance-metropolitan-museum/

    https://history.howstuffworks.com/history-vs-myth/michael-rockefeller.htm

    https://allthatsinteresting.com/michael-rockefeller

    https://www.wusf.org/2014-03-18/cannibals-and-colonialism-solving-the-mystery-of-michael-rockefeller
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    42 m
  • 82: Karen Denise Wells: Carlisle, Pennsylvania

    82: Karen Denise Wells: Carlisle, Pennsylvania
    Jun 12 2025
    A road trip gone wrong. A young mother driving alone. A motel room untouched — and a rental car abandoned, hazard lights still blinking on a desolate Pennsylvania highway.
    In April 1994, 23-year-old Karen Denise Wells left Oklahoma for New Jersey. She never arrived. Somewhere between a late-night fast food stop and her motel, Karen disappeared — leaving behind a trail of unsettling clues, mysterious mileage on her car, and a string of unanswered questions.
    No struggle. No goodbye. Just a mystery that feels less like someone vanished… and more like someone was erased.
    This is the baffling case of Karen Denise Wells.
    Listen as we dive into Pennsylvania, the case of Karen Denise Wells, and how to stay alive on vacation.

    Do you have a story to share? Send your email to lasttrippodcast@gmail.com

    We're on YouTube with full video: https://www.youtube.com/@TheLastTripPodcast

    Follow us on IG: https://www.instagram.com/thelasttripcrimepod/

    And join our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheLastTripPodcast

    Listen to this week's podcast recommendation, A Trial By Podcast
    https://www.atrialbypodcast.com/

    Theme Music by Roger Allen Dexter

    Sources:
    https://www.fbi.gov/wanted/vicap/missing-persons/karen-denise-wells

    https://charleyproject.org/case/karen-denise-wells

    https://ashmysteries.com/2024/12/06/the-missing-karen-denise-wells/

    https://fcfreepresspa.com/unsolved-mystery-from-93-the-disappearance-of-karen-denise-wells/

    https://www.fox43.com/article/news/crime/cold-cases/carlisle-pennsylvania-cold-case-oklahoma-karen-wells/521-c62a7b14-35c2-4526-8a6d-0dae8e9f0a06

    https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/13k7sy2/after_getting_lost_on_a_road_trip_a_single_mother/

    https://local21news.com/news/unsolved-in-pa/unsolved-in-pa-the-case-of-karen-wells

    https://www.reddit.com/r/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/a0qyac/karen_denise_wells_puzzling_road_trip_that_ends/

    https://uncovered.com/cases/karen-wells

    https://int-missing.fandom.com/wiki/Denise_Wells

    https://namus.nij.ojp.gov/case/MP5386

    https://www.facebook.com/story.php?id=100044256828143&story_fbid=1214714540013762&utm
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    36 m
  • 81: Tom & Eileen Lonergan: Great Barrier Reef, Australia

    81: Tom & Eileen Lonergan: Great Barrier Reef, Australia
    Jun 5 2025
    Tom and Eileen Lonergan set off for what should have been an unforgettable day diving the Great Barrier Reef - clear skies, calm waters, and a boat full of tourists just like them. But when the dive boat returned to the shore, no one noticed they were missing.
    Not at first.
    Not for two whole days, until it was discovered their belongings were still on the boat - wallets, passports, towels… untouched. And Tom and Eileen?
    Gone.
    Were they forgotten in a tragic oversight… or did something else happen in those deep, endless waters? Their disappearance triggered a massive search, sparked global headlines, and left behind a string of disturbing clues - a diver’s slate scrawled with a desperate message, a torn wetsuit washed up weeks later, and eerie diary entries that hinted at something darker beneath the surface.
    No bodies were ever found. No final answers ever confirmed. Just the chilling question: how did two people vanish into the ocean without a trace… and why didn’t anyone notice until it was far too late?
    Listen as we dive into the Great Barrier Reef, the case of Tom & Eileen Lonergan, and how to stay alive on vacation.

    Do you have a story to share? Send your email to lasttrippodcast@gmail.com

    We're on YouTube with full video: https://www.youtube.com/@TheLastTripPodcast

    Follow us on IG: https://www.instagram.com/thelasttripcrimepod/

    And join our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheLastTripPodcast

    Listen to this week's podcast recommendation, Crime to Burn
    https://www.crimetoburn.com/

    Theme Music by Roger Allen Dexter

    Sources:
    https://allthatsinteresting.com/tom-eileen-lonergan

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14412847/last-diary-entries-couple-vanished-shark-infested-waters.html

    https://www.undercurrent.org/UCnow/dive_magazine/2000/AustraliasLonerganTrial200001.html

    https://www.ladbible.com/news/world-news/eileen-tom-longeran-diving-australia-missing-message-329704-20241125

    https://historicflix.com/tom-and-eileen-lonergan/

    https://www.dannydutch.com/post/lost-at-sea-the-disappearance-of-tom-and-eileen-lonergan-left-in-the-ocean-whilst-diving
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    42 m
  • 80: Hostel Fires

    80: Hostel Fires
    May 29 2025
    When we talk about travel nightmares, we often picture what lurks outside - dark alleys, strangers with bad intentions, stories that begin with a missed train or a wrong run. But sometimes… the danger is already inside. Today, we’re opening the door on something even more haunting: fire. Sudden. Consuming, Unforgiving. Because for some travelers, the scariest part of their journey wasn’t a distant unknown - it was their bed. Their room. The place they thought they were safest. In this episode, we’re telling the stories of four devastating hostel fires: The Childers Palace Backpackers Hostel in Australia, where young backpackers from around the world came chasing sunshine and freedom - and never made it home. The Downunder Hostel fire in Sydney, Australia - where a broken alarm system and locked exits turned a simple stay into a fatal trap. A fire in Riga, Latvia - swift and deadly - inside an illegal hostel that should never have been open at all. And the Loafers Lodge fire in Wellington, New Zealand, where residents living in budget rooms were left scrambling for their lives in the early hours of the morning. Each of these stories is different. But they all ask the same, terrifying question: What happens when your escape route disappears?This isn’t about fear. It’s about awareness. Because travel should feel like possibility, not risk. Hostels should be spaces of laughter and late-night stories - not loss.So stay with me, as we retrace the final hours inside these hostels. We’ll ask what went wrong… and what we can learn from the people who never got the chance to check out. Do you have a story to share? Send your email to lasttrippodcast@gmail.com We're on YouTube with full video: https://www.youtube.com/@TheLastTripPodcast Follow us on IG: https://www.instagram.com/thelasttripcrimepod/ And join our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheLastTripPodcast Listen to this week's podcast recommendation, A Scary State Podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a-scary-state/id1562755130 Theme Music by Roger Allen Dexter Sources: https://www.smh.com.au/national/childers-danger-known-say-families-20030620-gdgyl4.html https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/backpackers-unlawfully-killed-hostel-fire-2265489 https://thewest.com.au/news/australia/survivors-remember-childers-fire-a-decade-on-ng-ya-207764 https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-02-02/childers-backpacker-hostel-killer-has-parole-bid-rejected/13114808 https://www.smh.com.au/national/childers-hostel-blaze-survivors-want-psychopath-killer-to-die-behind-bars-20200604-p54zj6.html https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2000/06/fire-j30.html https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/australiaandthepacific/australia/1387948/Loner-found-guilty-of-hostel-arson-murders.html https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1243&dat=19890917&id=yNE9AAAAIBAJ&sjid=B4cDAAAAIBAJ&pg=4507,2248979 https://www.nsw.gov.au/departments-and-agencies/nsw-reconstruction-authority https://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/a-tragic-toll-building-fires-in-australia/news-story/647ba30dc34a6d279f392a2f18bb2851 https://www.iklimnet.com/hotelfires/case19.html https://www.standard.co.uk/news/world/latvia-fire-riga-hostel-fire-kills-eight-people-b932170.html https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/fire-illegal-riga-tourist-hostel-kills-eight-injures-nine-2021-04-28/ https://www.baltictimes.com/eight_people_die_in_fire_in_downtown_riga_hostel/ https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/wellington-hostel-fire-hearse-arrives-as-police-recover-first-body/P4WWETXKSVEHXCPGJEFHCQQT34/ https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/300879640/wellington-fatal-hostel-fire-what-is-loafers-lodge https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/may/16/wellington-hostel-fire-multiple-people-dead-in-new-zealand-blaze https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/490033/loafers-lodge-had-a-building-wof-but-what-exactly-does-that-mean https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/why-loafers-lodge-didnt-have-sprinklers-and-wellington-firefighters-fears-over-ageing-trucks/UJ6L4RSWHBDIRKQ7OYDSFCZRSU/
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    1 h y 14 m
  • 79: Hostel Murders

    79: Hostel Murders
    May 22 2025
    When we pack our bags and check into a hostel, we’re chasing adventure. A new city, a bunk bed, the promise of strangers who might become friends - or at least someone to split a cab with. And honestly? I love staying in hostels. I’ve stayed in them all over - tiny ones in coastal towns to big ones in the heart of cities. They’re chaotic, friendly, weird, and wonderful. And for the most part, they feel safe.But behind the cheerful welcome signs and communal kitchens, something darker can hide. A stolen passport. A missing girl. A body in a room. From Australia to France to India, some travelers checked in… but never checked out. Today, I’m taking you around the world - one hostel at a time - to revisit the chilling true stories of backpackers who vanished, were attacked, or lost their lives in places meant to be safe havens for the wandering soul. Do you have a story to share? Send your email to lasttrippodcast@gmail.com We're on YouTube with full video: https://www.youtube.com/@TheLastTripPodcast Follow us on IG: https://www.instagram.com/thelasttripcrimepod/ And join our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheLastTripPodcast Listen to this week's podcast recommendation, A Scary State Podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a-scary-state/id1562755130 Theme Music by Roger Allen Dexter Sources: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/apr/03/facing-my-daughters-killer-and-finding-forgiveness-its-what-mia-would-have-wanted https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-10-08/home-hill-backpacker-murders-smail-ayad-ayliffe-chung-jackson/100522990 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2016_Home_Hill_stabbings https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Sophie_Collombet https://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-10-26/benjamin-james-milward-sentenced-life-sophie-collombet-murder/7962676 https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/oct/26/sophie-collombet-killer-jailed-for-at-least-20-years-for-and-of-student https://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-04-01/police-confirm-bashed-woman-was-french-exchange-student/5360002 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francisco_Arce_Montes https://www.theguardian.com/world/2004/jun/13/schooltrips.uk https://www.theguardian.com/world/2005/jun/21/france.uk https://www.abc.net.au/news/2004-06-15/spaniard-jailed-for-30-years-over-dickinson-murder/1992942 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/feb/14/goa-india-vikat-bhagat-guilty-rape-murder-danielle-mclaughlin https://apnews.com/article/india-goa-rape-irish-backpacker-danielle-mclaughlin-c510687dd25e7202d2fb85edd9ae0a94 https://www.thesun.ie/news/14732164/man-sentenced-rape-murder-irish-backpacker-india-danielle-mclaughlin/ https://www.thesun.ie/news/14735720/danielle-mclaughlin-murder-family-nightmare-over-killer-life-sentence/ https://people.com/irish-backpacker-india-beaches-found-dead-raped-murdered-paradise-11681002
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    57 m
  • 78: Bonus Episode: Dawn Barclay, "Vacations Can Be Murder"

    78: Bonus Episode: Dawn Barclay, "Vacations Can Be Murder"
    May 19 2025
    Today on The Last Trip, we’re diving into the darker side of travel with someone who knows exactly where the bodies are buried - literally and figuratively.
    Dawn Barclay is an award - winning travel journalist with a knack for uncovering the truth behind paradise. You might know her from her groundbreaking guide Traveling Different, which helps neurodiverse families navigate the chaos of vacationing with grace and strategy.
    But under the name DM Barr, she’s also a thriller writer who crafts suspense like a seasoned detective.
    And now? She’s fusing those worlds together in her series Vacations Can Be Murder: A True Crime Lover’s Travel Guide - a multi-volume passport to the most chilling destinations across the globe.
    She’s part Nancy Drew, part Rick Steves, and she’s here with us to share the stories, the secrets, and maybe even a few travel warnings you won’t find in the brochures.
    So buckle up. We’re going on a trip where the souvenirs come with stories you’ll never forget.

    Do you have a story to share? Send your email to lasttrippodcast@gmail.com

    We're on YouTube with full video: https://www.youtube.com/@TheLastTripPodcast

    Follow us on IG: https://www.instagram.com/thelasttripcrimepod/

    And join our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheLastTripPodcast

    Follow Dawn Barclay & pick up your copy of "Vacations Can Be Murder"
    Amazon - https://a.co/d/d3TjUo6
    https://www.dawnbarclayink.com/
    https://dawnbarclay.com/
    http://www.dmbarr.com/
    https://vacationscanbemurder.weebly.com/

    Theme Music by Roger Allen Dexter
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    27 m
  • 77: David O'Sullivan: Idyllwild, CA

    77: David O'Sullivan: Idyllwild, CA
    May 15 2025
    It was a quiet spring morning in Idyllwild, California - April 7, 2017 - when 25 year old David O’Sullivan put on his backpack, stepped onto the Pacific Crest Trail, and vanished.
    The Irish hiker had come to America chasing a dream: to walk from Mexico to Canada, alone, through some of the country’s wildest landscapes. The day before, he’d sent a brief email from the town’s small library - his last known communication.
    Since then, there’s been nothing. No calls. No confirmed sightings. No trace of him.
    How does someone disappear on one of the most traveled trails in the US?
    What happened to David O’Sullivan? And where is he now?
    Listen as we dive into the Pacific Crest Trail, the case of David O'Sullivan, and how to stay alive on vacation.

    Do you have a story to share? Send your email to lasttrippodcast@gmail.com

    We're on YouTube with full video: https://www.youtube.com/@TheLastTripPodcast

    Follow us on IG: https://www.instagram.com/thelasttripcrimepod/

    And join our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheLastTripPodcast

    Listen to this week's podcast recommendation, A Scary State Podcast
    https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a-scary-state/id1562755130

    Theme Music by Roger Allen Dexter

    Sources:
    https://fofound.org/2021/06/19/david-osullivan-missing/

    https://www.pctmissing.org/david-osullivan

    https://www.pressenterprise.com/2021/05/26/the-mysterious-disappearance-of-pacific-crest-trail-hiker-david-osullivan/

    https://www.pressenterprise.com/2021/05/26/whos-looking-for-david-osullivan-at-first-almost-no-one/

    https://www.pressenterprise.com/2021/05/26/4-years-later-searchers-seek-an-answer-what-was-david-osullivans-fate/

    https://www.facebook.com/groups/140662906657636/

    https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2022/04/16/its-been-five-years-since-hiker-david-osullivan-disappeared/

    https://www.dailynews.com/2021/05/26/the-mysterious-disappearance-of-pacific-crest-trail-hiker-david-osullivan/

    https://medium.com/the-mystery-box/vanished-on-the-pct-where-is-david-osullivan-5d185b2c8f71

    https://oag.ca.gov/missing/person/david-lawrence-osullivan

    https://fofound.org/
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    55 m