This is the most likely explanation. I just looked on Google maps and some of those levada trails look very dangerous.
Yeah but there are loads of other areas in the world with similar trails that aren't seeing repeated runner/hiker deaths.
This is why we can’t have nice things. You have someone posit the more likely scenario, one which makes sense and is far more statistically probable - I mean seriously a serial killer prowling the wilds of highly unpopulated area in the hopes of finding a wayward runner (and apparently just runners, unless hikers are disappearing at a similarly exorbitant rate) sure seems much more likely than an adventurous soul having an accident and there being issues with search and recovery - especially in a place that draws many of these adventurous people. But in the words of Dumb and Dumber - I guess there is a chance. Now if you told me that they had all disappeared in a pretty narrow area AND there had been sightings of a particularly disgruntled individual or individuals sighted nearby, maybe then all that makes a bit more sense.
What kind of animals live there that might quickly dispose of an unfortunate new corpse?
On my classic thread about what animals would eat you first if you died outside your house and noone noticed, I proved that squirrels can completely deflesh a pig's head overnight.
So if there are a lot of squirrels there, look for the bones in the trees.
yes. how does a squirrel manage to carry large heavy bones up a tree? perhaps your squirrels are massive.
Squirrels are stronger than they look. Maybe they can lift many times their weight like ants.
Or maybe they drag them into their underground lairs. There are ground squirrels right?