This started as one of my "search journeys" after reading a story today about a man who fears his missing son (who was obsessed with the movie) has gone on a similar adventure. I hope he finds his son soon.

I haven't read the book or seen the movie, but I would like to do both!

The book by Jon Krakauer (written in 1996) follows the adventure of Christopher McCandless, a young man who apparently was disgusted by modern materialism and wanted to get away from it all. He died alone, in the Alaskan wilderness a few month later and probably starved to death. He kept a journal and some undevoloped film was found with his body. Krakauer used this to write the book.

In 2007, Sean Penn directed a movie version of the book.

There are many schools of thought about McCandless' actions. Some think it's romantic, others think he was foolish. He didn't prepare and could have saved himself. I think he was brave to make the trek and I assign his unpreparedness to the idealism of youth. Nothing more or less.

I watched an interview with his Mom who made a second trek to the bus he lived in during his final days. She said he seemed to have finally come to the realization that we need other people. He saw so many amazing things, yet had no one to turn to and say "Did you see that?!" She said he was "good" and had he survived, would probably have been a leader of some sort.

His parents set up a foundation and produced a book containing his journal entries and photos. There is a DVD version narrated by Hal Holbrook.


A totally fascinating story!

The second link has a lot of information and if you click on the trailer, you also have access to other tributes/images.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Into_the_Wild_%28book%29

http://www.backtothewildbook.org/

I actually hated that movie. He had such a wasted life. He cut off his family, gave what little money he had to Oxfam and didn't really plan for his isolation in Alaska.

Maybe I should see the film again, but I remember it making me angry.

I can see where you're coming from kathy, but do consider his youth. He may have done all of those things, but what guts it took to leave a cushy life and head out on his own. Not much different than what Thoreau did.

I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practise resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, to live so sturdily and Spartan-like as to put to rout all that was not life, to cut a broad swath and shave close, to drive life into a corner, and reduce it to its lowest terms, and, if it proved to be mean, why then to get the whole and genuine meanness of it, and publish its meanness to the world; or if it were sublime, to know it by experience, and be able to give a true account of it in my next excursion. ”

— Henry David Thoreau, Walden, "Where I Lived, and What I Lived For

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_David_Thoreau

McCandless saw and did things that most people never do in their lifetime. Although he died young (and needlessly), he live a lifetime of experiences in those few months. It's not the destination, but the journey. Man oh man did he have a journey!!

And now the depressed because his girlfriend broke up with him teen from AZ died in Oregon, too.

McCandless had 24 years of experiences in his 24 years. I think he learned to value life when he was dying, and I hope his family finds peace.

Oh no! How sad. I was so hoping for a better outcome for the AZ boy. Do you know how he died?

Yeah McCandless did learn that. Something that many people don't learn even if they live 90 years.