{"id":75147,"date":"2020-03-08T06:03:09","date_gmt":"2020-03-08T12:03:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/into-the-wild-lures-the-unprepared-into-alaskas-wilderness\/"},"modified":"2020-03-08T12:03:09","modified_gmt":"2020-03-08T12:03:09","slug":"into-the-wild-lures-the-unprepared-into-alaskas-wilderness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/into-the-wild-lures-the-unprepared-into-alaskas-wilderness\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Into the Wild\u2019 lures the unprepared into Alaska\u2019s wilderness"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"The
The abandoned bus where Christopher McCandless starved to death in 1992 on Stampede Road near Healy, Alaska, is seen in 2006. Scores of travelers following McCandless\u2019 journey along the Stampede Trail have been rescued and others have died in the harsh backcountry terrain.<\/span>Associated Press file<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

ANCHORAGE, Alaska \u2013 For nearly a quarter-century, the old bus abandoned in Alaska\u2019s punishing wilderness has drawn adventurers seeking to retrace the steps of a young idealist who met a tragic death in the derelict vehicle.<\/p>\n

For many, Christopher McCandless\u2019 legend was cemented in the 1996 \u201cInto the Wild\u201d book and later in the movie. But scores of travelers following his journey along the Stampede Trail just outside Denali National Park have been rescued and others have died in the harsh reality of backcountry terrain.<\/p>\n

\"A
A view extends into Denali National Park and Preserve from the end of the pavement on the Stampede Road in Healy, Alaska. For more than a quarter-century, an old bus abandoned in Alaska\u2019s wilderness has drawn adventurers seeking to retrace the steps of Christopher McCandless.<\/span>Associated Press file<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

The area is marked by no cellphone service, unpredictable weather and the raging Teklanika River, whose swollen banks prevented the 24-year-old Virginian from seeking help before his 1992 starvation death.<\/p>\n

Now families of some of those who died are proposing looking at building a footbridge over the Teklanika. The effort is led by the husband of a 24-year-old newlywed woman from Belarus who died last year trying to reach the bus.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople keep going there despite multiple accidents reported,\u201d said Piotr Markielau, who was with his wife, Veramika Maikamava, when she was swept away by the river. \u201cMaking the crossing safer is a social responsibility. It is also a constructive and humane way to learn from people who died there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"The
The road sign for Stampede Road in Healy, Alaska. For many, Christopher McCandless\u2019 legend was cemented in the \u201cInto the Wild\u201d book and movie. But scores of travelers following his journey along the Stampede Trail just outside Denali National Park have been rescued and others have died.<\/span>Associated Press file<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

But some local officials in Denali Borough in Healy, about 25 miles away, fear a footbridge could give people a false impression of safety that doesn\u2019t exist. There are other hazards, including harsh weather and dangerous terrain. Some attempting the trip are ill-prepared.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019ll only encourage more people to go,\u201d says Denali Assembly member Jeff Stenger, who rejects the bridge idea and would prefer to see warning signs posted in the area.<\/p>\n

Borough Mayor Clay Walker wants to see the bus relocated to a safer location on the other side of the Teklanika with the help of federal and state agencies.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis bus has meaning to a lot of people, and the challenge will be to put together a plan that works for all,\u201d Walker said.<\/p>\n

A bridge would not have made a difference in the latest rescue. It involved five Italian tourists \u2013 one with frostbitten feet \u2013 who were rescued in February after visiting the dilapidated bus.<\/p>\n

\"\u201cInto
\u201cInto the Wild\u201d author Jon Krakauer says he\u2019s skeptical building a bridge or moving the bus will eliminate the danger to people seeking to retrace Christopher McCandless\u2019 steps.<\/span>Associated Press file<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

The long-discarded bus sits in a clearing on state land about half a mile from the boundary of the Denali National Park and Preserve.<\/p>\n

Travelers often traverse park land to get to the bus. It was left in the wilderness as a backcountry shelter for hunters and trappers after it was used to house construction crews working to improve the trail so trucks could haul ore from a mine, according to the book. It\u2019s outfitted with a barrel stove and bunks.<\/p>\n

The bus was abandoned when McCandless encountered it and wrote in his journal about living there for 114 days, right up until his death.<\/p>\n

Author Jon Krakauer, who wrote \u201cInto the Wild,\u201d said he is \u201csaddened and horrified\u201d by the deaths of people trying to cross the Teklanika. He\u2019s also skeptical building a bridge or moving the bus will solve the problem.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really don\u2019t know what can be done or should be done about the unprepared \u2018pilgrims\u2019 who get into trouble and perish or need to be rescued,\u201d he said in an email to The Associated Press. \u201cI have no objection to removing the bus, or building a bridge to it, if a persuasive argument can be made that doing either of these things would solve the problem. I am skeptical about the wisdom of either of these proposed measures, however.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"The
The Stampede Road becomes a narrow, rutted four-wheel drive trail after 8 miles from its intersection with the George Parks Highway in Healy, Alaska. For more than a quarter-century, an old bus abandoned in Alaska\u2019s wilderness has drawn adventurers seeking to retrace the steps of a young idealist who met a tragic death in the vehicle.<\/span>Associated Press file<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

McCandless\u2019 sister agrees. Carine McCandless believes people will keep trying to reach the site, regardless of what locals decide. She said people send her messages every day from all over the world, identifying with her brother\u2019s story, and she understands why people continue to make the trek.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is not Chris\u2019 story they are following, it is their own, even if they don\u2019t realize it at the time,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd as far as the lure of the bus \u2013 it\u2019s not about the bus, either. If the bus is moved, people will simply erect a memorial in its place and continue to go there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Associated Press writer Mark Thiessen contributed to this report from Anchorage, Alaska.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

numerous deaths, footbridge over dangerous river proposed<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":75148,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[29],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-75147","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-newsletter"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75147","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=75147"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75147\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/75148"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=75147"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=75147"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=75147"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=75147"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}