Second young man disappears in southern Oregon after reading 'Into the Wild' (Riddle: 2013, gated)

[Glitch]

Second young man disappears in southern Oregon after reading 'Into the Wild'

Johnathan Croom, the second young man to disappear into the southern Oregon wilderness this year after reading the book “Into the Wild,” was found dead Monday near his abandoned vehicle in the small town of Riddle. The 18-year-old was from Apache Junction, Ariz. His death is being investigated as a suicide.

...

Earlier this year, Dustin Self, 19, disappeared on Steens Mountain in the eastern part of the state. The young man from Oklahoma had also talked about McCandless with his parents. Search parties never found any trace of Self, other than his truck.

Source: Second young man disappears in southern Oregon after reading 'Into the Wild' - The Washington Post

Apparently Alaska is not the only State having this problem. Every year since the movie "Into the Wild" came out in 2007, we have been spending thousands of dollars rescuing unprepared idiots who make the trek to the bus just outside of Healy, Alaska, where McCandless starved to death. I am somewhat surprised to see the same thing occurring in Oregon.

[Larry Caldwell]

This is actually the second disappearance in Riddle. A Cycle Oregon volunteer disappeared there a few years ago. I think he finally surfaced in Montana, after having some sort of mental break. The kid is 18 years old and healthy, and the weather is great. He'll probably turn up in the next few months.

OTOH, the 8 year old K Falls kid who disappeared while looking for christmas trees in 1998 probably got eaten by a cougar or a bear.

[Metlakatla]

As stated in the OP, the 18 year old kid has already been found dead.

[Deezus]

If I was going to disappear into the wild, somewhere like Riddle just off I-5 wouldn't be my first choice.

Though this kid probably had some mental problems and just committed suicide...

[pdxMIKEpdx]

I heard the back end of a news story on the radio and I if I got it right, they were saying this kid killed himself over a break up with a girl friend.

The public relations officer they were interviewing said he died of a "broken heart", which is a touching and old fashioned way to describe a suicide.

I may have got the story mixed up with another, but I don't think so.

[hamellr]

I heard he was seen walking with an unknown woman near that area. Has that been confirmed?

[pnwmdk]

Originally Posted by Glitch

Apparently Alaska is not the only State having this problem. Every year since the movie "Into the Wild" came out in 2007, we have been spending thousands of dollars rescuing unprepared idiots who make the trek to the bus just outside of Healy, Alaska, where McCandless starved to death. I am somewhat surprised to see the same thing occurring in Oregon.

Don't be. There's a subculture out there that paints this naive and rather fictional yet utopian view of "communing with nature" and teaches it to impressionable young minds. The entire premise of the movie was to propagandize the idea, which, if accepted, makes even more utopian and destructive environmental policies palatable, no matter how bad they are.

In the late 70's, I lived in Montana, and the "back to nature" hippies were all over the place. Many of them wised up and got a lot more in tune with reality, but many of them had a lot of bad things happen to them, including death, in excruciating and heartbreaking ways.

I've lived where there wasn't electricity, phone lines, running water, and we cooked on a wood stove and used an outhouse. It's only few a select few, and there's nothing glamorous or sexy or "spiritual" about any of it. It's hard, it wears you out, it ages you and it consumes your life and time in huge chunks.

For those seeking enlightenment or some kind of deeper meaning, they've missed the point entirely. That can be found anywhere you are, and once achieved, affects your life.

[Glitch]

Originally Posted by pnwmdk

Don't be. There's a subculture out there that paints this naive and rather fictional yet utopian view of "communing with nature" and teaches it to impressionable young minds. The entire premise of the movie was to propagandize the idea, which, if accepted, makes even more utopian and destructive environmental policies palatable, no matter how bad they are.

In the late 70's, I lived in Montana, and the "back to nature" hippies were all over the place. Many of them wised up and got a lot more in tune with reality, but many of them had a lot of bad things happen to them, including death, in excruciating and heartbreaking ways.

I've lived where there wasn't electricity, phone lines, running water, and we cooked on a wood stove and used an outhouse. It's only few a select few, and there's nothing glamorous or sexy or "spiritual" about any of it. It's hard, it wears you out, it ages you and it consumes your life and time in huge chunks.

For those seeking enlightenment or some kind of deeper meaning, they've missed the point entirely. That can be found anywhere you are, and once achieved, affects your life.

I suppose you are right. I have no issue with the "communing with nature" or "back to nature" types if they realize what is involved and prepare accordingly. To venture into the wilderness completely unprepared and without any understanding of what they will experience is terminally stupid.

The one of the main reasons I moved to Alaska (other than to get the hell out of California) was to see if I could live in the bush for one year. I spent three years researching everything I could get my hands on, and spent over $10,000 on food, supplies, and other equipment. I was already an accomplished hunter, and spent three months in the back country in Glacier National Park in Montana before making the move to Alaska. But when I got to Alaska, I found that things were not as I had planned. It took me almost two months before I realized that I would not be able to meet the milestones I had established. As a result, I fell back to my "Plan B" and moved to Anchorage and got a job with my last remaining funds.

What you say is very true. Leaving all the comforts that society and civilization affords makes for a very difficult and hard life. It can be done, but only with lots of hard work.

[pnwmdk]

Originally Posted by Glitch

I suppose you are right. I have no issue with the "communing with nature" or "back to nature" types if they realize what is involved and prepare accordingly. To venture into the wilderness completely unprepared and without any understanding of what they will experience is terminally stupid.

Oh, yeah. Being out in the natural silence is something that heals your mind and heart when you let it. But, being unprepared... nature is totally unforgiving. It kills you with relentless efficiency.

The one of the main reasons I moved to Alaska (other than to get the hell out of California) was to see if I could live in the bush for one year. I spent three years researching everything I could get my hands on, and spent over $10,000 on food, supplies, and other equipment. I was already an accomplished hunter, and spent three months in the back country in Glacier National Park in Montana before making the move to Alaska. But when I got to Alaska, I found that things were not as I had planned. It took me almost two months before I realized that I would not be able to meet the milestones I had established. As a result, I fell back to my "Plan B" and moved to Anchorage and got a job with my last remaining funds.

Good plan.

What you say is very true. Leaving all the comforts that society and civilization affords makes for a very difficult and hard life. It can be done, but only with lots of hard work.

Lest anyone get the wrong idea... It can be a wonderful life, and it has a lot of benefits. But so does our technological world. Where we go wrong is inside us, when we let ourselves get caught up in things that are unhealthy... Pursuit of wealth, for wealth's sake, the constant rush, and lives of personal indolence made easy by technology and trade.

[oregonwoodsmoke]

It's Darwinism at work. I do have some sympathy for their families, but am not so pleased that their idiocy puts a bunch of rescue workers in danger.