Into the Wild... Well sorta, McCandless followed a broken trail (Anchorage: to buy, movies) - City-Data Forum

starlite9 · 02-11-2012, 10:02 PM

I posted this on another "Wild" thread. But figured I would just Pop a few bubbles!

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Well with all this hoopla, I'm heading to my cabin by snowmachine Sunday Morning, which is directly North of the magic bus by about 20 miles +- a mile or two!

Will carry a .44 Mag pistol, camera, flares, chain saw, food and a host of other gear as if I was going out for a week, but will only be going out and coming back. Once the trail is broken, will haul more gear out for a few days stay! Love the place! But even at the dark of winter, there is a lot of hazards there to encounter. So I over "prepare", I don't like suprises! Will be traveling with a couple of friends and will have a very good day!

Weather could drop, one could get stuck on the trail or even better, at the cabin! But being prepared is by far a much better option than not. A forty mile wilderness hike through waist deep snow isn't what I do anymore! If one did break down, it would be 24 hours before the snowmachine tracks set up hard enough to walk out, and having gear makes that a lot nicer hike! Haven't hauled my snowshoes for twenty years, just camp and walk out the next day!

By the way, since McClueless didn't have snowshoes, he followed the snowmachine trail up to the bus from the other people going to their cabins in the area he later broke into.

There really isn't that much mystic to this guy, it has been blown way out of reality. During the late spring, he just "followed the yellow snowmachine road!" to the "Emerald Bus"! (for the clueless, that is a jab at the "Wizard of Oz", which was far more entertaining!)

So now you newbies know a bit about winter trails, that takes the fun out of the story! Did I mention that the year he went out there we had almost 12 feet of snow, so you can figure he had no option to going into the "Wild" without following someone else's blazed trail!

Just the simple fact that McCandless didn't have snowshoes during one of our couple of years of very deep snow, he would have been in well over his head! The movie made it look as if he wandered around, when in fact he just follows the established winter trail right up to the bus.

He carried enough food for a week at best, maybe two weeks. Course all throughout the movie, once at the bus they kept showing him losing weight. He broke into other local cabins to steal food others had stockpiled for their own use. had it not been for his stealing from others that had worked hard to stock supplies, he would have died months sooner. He simply had no idea on how to survive in a place he wasn't familiar with, the only skill he brought was the one to steal from the populated world he hated.

Now he is history, and people can't seem to see in its proper context. There wasn't anything noble about his trek down a winter trail, and I truely feel sorry for those that think this is somehow noble.

Those people that have him on a pedestal, should stop and realize, this guy was destined to die a lonely death somewhere, he's simply was clueless and arrogant, which are two of the most deadly factors for a person to have! If one was killed by a moose, wolf or bear, that may have been totally out of their control, but he slowly starved to death, and made no attempt to contact the airplanes flying over him almost daily, even I flew over him and there was nothing to indicate distress!

He paid the price with the hurt he inflicted on his family!

PcolaFLGuy · 02-11-2012, 11:32 PM

Let me start by saying, since I didn't even know about this story until about a week ago, you can't classify me as a one putting him on a pedestal. But I must say that I find all of the hate surrounding this guy's death in Alaska very sad.

The Chris McCandless story is an Odyssey with only the final chapter being in Alaska. Disputing the Hollywood-version of this story is one thing. Yet, being hateful about someone that seems to inspire many folks is unfortunate.

stiffnecked · 02-11-2012, 11:40 PM

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Originally Posted by PcolaFLGuy

Let me start by saying, since I didn't even know about this story until about a week ago, you can't classify me as a one putting him on a pedestal. But I must say that I find all of the hate surrounding this guy's death in Alaska very sad.

The Chris McCandless story is an Odyssey with only the final chapter being in Alaska. Disputing the Hollywood-version of this story is one thing. Yet, being hateful about someone that seems to inspire many folks is unfortunate.

Why do so many people from the lower 48 pick losers to be inspired by?

PcolaFLGuy · 02-11-2012, 11:47 PM

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Originally Posted by stiffnecked

Why do so many people from the lower 48 pick losers to be inspired by?

Probably just to spite folks like you.

Metlakatla · 02-11-2012, 11:53 PM

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Originally Posted by PcolaFLGuy

Let me start by saying, since I didn't even know about this story until about a week ago, you can't classify me as a one putting him on a pedestal. But I must say that I find all of the hate surrounding this guy's death in Alaska very sad.

The Chris McCandless story is an Odyssey with only the final chapter being in Alaska. Disputing the Hollywood-version of this story is one thing. Yet, being hateful about someone that seems to inspire many folks is unfortunate.

I didn't see anything hateful in Starlite's post. And Stiffy is playing under his bridge tonight (again).

CarawayDJ · 02-12-2012, 01:35 AM

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Originally Posted by stiffnecked

Why do so many people from the lower 48 pick losers to be inspired by?

Why do you think he inspires anyone? There might be a few idiots out there, but I suspect most of the people visiting the site are nothing more than curious due to the movie.

All of the people I know who watched the movie think he was a fool. Not just because of what he did up in Alaska, but because of all of the other weird stuff he did before he even went up there. Because there was a movie, people are going to be curious. Nothing more. The movie certainly didn't make him out to look good.

gobrien · 02-12-2012, 02:48 AM

So now we have three threads on essentially the same topic? If he were my son I certainly wouldn't want the world debating on what he did or didn't do right.

I've been keeping tabs on the missing barista from Anchorage, and the Facebook page for that is starting to post older missing flyers of young people in Alaska. It's sad and I feel for the parents.

warea_25 · 02-12-2012, 05:37 AM

Yet, being hateful about someone that seems to inspire many folks is unfortunate.http://www.*****.info/g.gif (broken link)

wildchild_to · 02-12-2012, 06:45 AM

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Originally Posted by stiffnecked

Why do so many people from the lower 48 pick losers to be inspired by?

Because they are the ones who spend money to buy the books, movies, watch reality shows an not know what the "real wild an mother nature" can dish out to someone.

stiffnecked · 02-12-2012, 06:53 AM

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Originally Posted by Metlakatla

I didn't see anything hateful in Starlite's post. And Stiffy is playing under his bridge tonight (again).

If you saw what the doctor did to me on Friday and the mass doses of pain pills he put me on you'd be playing on the bridge and under it too....