Into The Wild

[AK-74me]

Originally Posted by Sharon

Source?

How Our Lives Become Stories: Making ... - Google Book Search

[Sharon (Premo)]

Originally Posted by AK-74me

How Our Lives Become Stories: Making ... - Google Book Search

Thank you.

[morningbell (Premo)]

Originally Posted by beerlover

Anybody see this movie?

spoiler


I had the book YEARS ago when it was a best seller, I opened it a few times and just got side tracked but I remember chapters such as The Magic Bus. I just saw the movie. I enjoyed it, there is a little part of that guy in me.

I understand where he was coming from but one of his last quotes, "Happiness is only real when shared" sticks with me.

[beerlover]

Originally Posted by hvp05

He did grow up in Annandale...

I do want to see this, because I am one of those who has dreamed of going off alone to 'test' myself and do something different. But, after reading his story, I must say he was rather boneheaded; he went in virtually unprepared, lacking equipment, supplies, or even a map.

I don't know how the movie portrays him, and I've heard that - if for nothing else - the movie does offer some nice views of the Alaskan wilderness.

Grew up in Annandale. Parents had a vacation house in Chesapeake Beach, and they later moved there permanently. I wonder if they're still there?

He did go off with virtually nothing, but that was his plan. He wanted to totally immerse himself in the experience and live off the land. I guess not taking a detailed map was his way of pioneering his trip and blazing his own trail instead of relying on the info of those who had been there before him. It's easy for us to say that was stupid in retrospect, but that's how he wanted to do it. I just admire the courage it took to strike out all on his own and attempt to live his life by the ideals he held dear rather than just becoming another cog in the machinery of society. Even though he died at such a young age doing that, I found it very inspiring. He had lived off the land (basically) in the lower 48 for the 2 years prior to heading up to Alaska. The people whos lives he touched in those 2 years were seriously effected by having known him.

I thought Hal Holbrooke's performance in the movie was outstanding.

[Fubar]

He survived for approximately 112 days in the Alaskan wilderness, he died sometime in August, and his decomposed body was found in early September by moose hunters...the exact cause of the young man's death remains open to question. McCandless may simply have starved to death, a theory backed by the fact that McCandless' body weighed an estimated 67 pounds at the time it was discovered.

FYI-For anyone who wanted to travel in the wilds, I highly recommended a very important book to take with is S.A.S. Survival Handbook by John Wiseman, a former British Special Operator.

[AK-74me]

Originally Posted by Fubar

He survived for approximately 112 days in the Alaskan wilderness, he died sometime in August, and his decomposed body was found in early September by moose hunters...the exact cause of the young man's death remains open to question. McCandless may simply have starved to death, a theory backed by the fact that McCandless' body weighed an estimated 67 pounds at the time it was discovered.

FYI-For anyone who wanted to travel in the wilds, I highly recommended a very important book to take with is S.A.S. Survival Handbook by John Wiseman, a former British Special Operator.

I concur on the SAS survival handbook, there is also a small field version.
Didn't he have a survival guide with him?? I haven't seen the movie or read the book just going by the little I remember reading on the subject.

[beerlover]

I believe basically all he brought with him was a guide to edible plants, a .22 rifle, and a 10 pound bag of rice. And several books of the non-survival type. He had a rough, outdated map of the area as well.

The author of the book about him believes that the stash of wild potato seeds he had gathered had gotten a certain type of mold that induced an alkaloid toxicity that prevented his digestive system from properly absorbing nutrients. He was fairly successful killing small game and gathering plants, but the meat was very lean and apparently he was expending more energy gathering the food than he was gaining from it. The long-term caloric deficiency led to his starvation. He also left a note indicating that he was injured and unable to hike out, but no injuries were apparent at the autopsy. His remains were badly decomposed when recovered, so it may have been missed.

He could pretty easily have survived the ordeal with a little more planning, but that wasn't how he wanted to tackle it.

[united]

I enjoyed the movie, i was ready to pack up and head out until I saw the end. But if you go prepared then things would turn out different, he did survive a long time for not having anything, at least he enjoyed most of his life, he got a little depressed at the end when he couldn't get across the river, but I don't think he tried hard enough. he could have built a raft, what else did he have to do?.

[Lilypad]

Originally Posted by united

I enjoyed the movie, i was ready to pack up and head out until I saw the end. But if you go prepared then things would turn out different, he did survive a long time for not having anything, at least he enjoyed most of his life, he got a little depressed at the end when he couldn't get across the river, but I don't think he tried hard enough. he could have built a raft, what else did he have to do?.

IMHO-I don't think McCandless was prepared at all-he had little food or equipment-this seemed like a quest of inner discovery, as opposed to a backpacking trip across the wilderness. McCandless took pride in surviving with a minimum of gear and funds, and generally made little preparation.

Alaskan Park Ranger Peter Christian wrote: “I am exposed continually to what I will call the ‘McCandless Phenomenon.’ People, nearly always young men, come to Alaska to challenge themselves against an unforgiving wilderness landscape where convenience of access and possibility of rescue are practically nonexistent. When you consider McCandless from my perspective, you quickly see that what he did wasn’t even particularly daring, just stupid, tragic, and inconsiderate. First off, he spent very little time learning how to actually live in the wild. He arrived at the Stampede Trail without even a map of the area. If he [had] had a good map he could have walked out of his predicament…Essentially, Chris McCandless committed suicide."

[jetmonkey]

I thought he sounded like a dumb ass, seems like he had a bad case of 'college freshman syndrome'. Don't really know if he went to college, dropped out, whatever; don't really care. The film being associated with the name Sean Penn makes me not want to see it even more.