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Summary : Chris departs from Carthage to finally start his Great Alaskan Odyssey. Alex arrives at Liard River to take a bath and looks to get a ride. There was no luck so he would stay there for two days. That's when he then met a man named Gaylord Stuckey who was there to take a relaxing bath. He agreed to give Alex half of the thousand miles needed to reach Fairbanks. He then got him the rest of the way there as he enjoyed his company (p. 159). Chris wanted to prove (p. 159) to himself that he could survive in the wild for himself. Stuckey dropped off Chris at a nearby University. He begged Chris to reach out to his family before he leaves. Stuckey gives Chris his credit card number (p. 160) if he ever needs to contact him. Chris stays in the library (p. 162) to read books and learn how to survive better. Chris then leaves and starts hunting (p. 164). There was a river Chris had to cross and had to stop his ambition (p. 165) from taking over. He is then waiting for the river to lower its level.

Analysis: I think if I were Alex I would walk towards my destination while still looking for a ride so I don't have to wait an unknown amount of days on someone to give me a ride. Luckily he met Stuckey who loves Chris's energy and brought him all the way to his destination. I got kind of confused about giving his credit card number for contact instead of a phone number.

#RiverBath #EducationUp #Library

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Uh oh...what will Jon Krakauer do now?!?!?!?!?!

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Summary: So Krakauer makes it back to his tent, all butt hurt that he didn't achieve his goal of summiting Devil's Thumb.  In a genius move, he decided to smoke a joint to make himself feel better since he's a bit depressed.  Well, he ends up setting his tent on fire causing it to vaporize one of the walls so the temperature inside drops by 30 degrees or so.  Good job, Jon!  Anyway, this causes him to think about his reason for running away to climb:  his volatile (p. 147) history with his father!  They have a very similar relationship to Walt and Chris - dad is stubborn, treats his son poorly, pushes him away with his medical school expectations (p. 148) since he himself is a doctor.  Yeah, I know: we've heard this story before.  Jon uses these complicated (p. 147) family memories as motivation:  he's going to attempt to summit the Thumb to prove his disbelieving dad wrong!  He fixes his tent by packing it with snow and forges a plan to begin his final ascent on a slightly "easier" side of the mountain, the southeast side.  At sunrise, he summons ALL of his courage and overcoming all of the terrifying (p. 150) obstacles, he finally makes it to the top - YAY!  He enjoys the view for a minutes, snaps a few pics, and begins his descent.  When he finally makes it off the mountain, he tells a few people what he did.  They aren't extremely impressed.  This makes Jon think about what he did and why he did it, causing him to say, "I thought climbing Devil's Thumb would fix all that was wrong with my life.  In the end, of course, it changed almost nothing.  But I came to appreciate that mountains make poor receptacles for dreams. And I lived to tell my tale" (p. 155). Years later when writing this book, he realizes that his hubris (p.155) pushed him to his limits to achieve his goal, but that the impact his possible death had on those who loved him would've been catastrophic.  This is why he believes that Chris had NO intention to die in the wild, that he was only chasing his young, irresponsible dream.

Analysis: Jon decides to climb the mountain to fix all his problems. He made a silly mistake of smoking in a tent when he could've went outside or something. When he comes back to tell people he learns that nobody really cares and it didn't fix anything. The climb only helped himself appreciate the mountains more.

#StopDrugs #FocusOnYourself #MountainAppreciation

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Who would've thought you could climb a thumb???

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Summary: To answer Billie McCandless' question at the end of Chapter 13 about why anyone would do what Chris did, Jon Krakauer flips the script and tells his own story of Alaska adventure.  At the age of 23, Krakauer decides to head to the great north to find himself not by living in the wild, but by climbing the major mountains in the 49th state.  He becomes obsessed with hiking Devil's Thumb, a very steep, challenging ascent on the glacier (p. 138) known as the Stikine Ice Cap.  Like Chris, completing this climb becomes the only important thing in Krakauer's life.  Chris obsessed over the bush, while Jon's obsession (p. 134) is this rare climbing achievement.  Much like he anticipated, the ascent is dangerous and potentially deadly.  Krakauer proceeds with caution during whiteout snow storms while crossing over delicate crevasses (p. 140) which could crack and send him tumbling down hundreds of feet.  On a beautiful May day, Krakauer decides that this is it, he must summon the courage and concentration (p. 142) he needs to summit this peak today or else...Even with the warm temps and sunny day, the ice is impenetrable and Krakauer panics (p. 143).  He can see the summit, but he can't reach it.  His only option is down.

Analysis: I'm surprised that the person that wrote the book about another man who went into the wilderness would have time to do the same thing. In his case climbing mountains and not going into the wild. My guess is that Krakauer will have to go down the mountain and train himself before going again.

#AnotherOne #ClimbingAdventures #FindingYourself

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Summary: Chris's sister Carine grew up and is now the same height as Chris before he left. She looks very similar to him now that they were thought of as twins. Carine is a very energetic (p.129) overachiever like Chris was. She wonders if the story would end differently if he had brought Chris would've brought Buck (their dog) with him.  Would he have been in less danger (p.128) with a dog by his side? Carine was washing a rottweiler when Fish came home and needed to have a talk with her. His eyes (p.130) were red before he spoke up and told her about Chris's death. Carine and Sam then flew out to Fairbanks (p.131) the next day. They were there to pick up his ashes (p.131) after he was cremated. The family then started acting differently.

Analysis: I feel like Carine is a very caring sister as she did the most after finding out about Chris's death. I also believe that if Chris would've brought Buck he might've survived during his journey. I feel sadness for Carine as he left after taking care of her while the parents would fight so she would have to deal with them alone.

#Twins #DogProtection #Flight

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Summary: This chapter showed us about the other family members Chris had and what type of people they were. They consist of Walt, Billie and Carine. Walt was Chris's father and had many conflicts between the two. Walt was unconsciously (p. 105) used to being the boss of things so he always made commands and it was unusual for someone to not listen which made Chris stand out. Walt was offered a spot for NASA (p.106)when his son was only 6. There was also Billie McCandless who was Chris's mother. Billie and Walt's fighting made Chris and his sister Carine closer. They also had a musical rivalry (p.110)they both connected with. Their parents bought Carine a dog when Alex turned 12. Alex would then take the dog on runs and would then be inseperable (p.111). They weren't a broke family in anyway as they would go on vacations sometimes. Chris wanted a car to drive across the country (p.112) with and nobody thought much of it.

Analysis: I believe their family looks like a regular family from a neighbors perspective. Their family looks good on paper but when diving deeper into it there were many problems. Some problems are the arguments between the son and father of the family which are Walt and Chris. Arguments between the father and mother can cause trauma to the kids. Alex would sometimes need to comfort his sister Carine at times.

#FamilyProblems #DadIssues #Bonds

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Summary: The New York Times found out about the story of Alex's death. Although the story was across from the world it was big enough to reach the attention of people in NY. The news (p.99) read about McCandless's death and how they are trying to identify who he is. It even played on the radio (p.100) for people to hear. People he met along the way like Westerberg called and tried telling them he knew him. They ignored him as they've been getting a lot of calls (p.100) about random people claiming to know him. Westerberg then called them with proof of his identification with his social security number (p.101) so they would take him seriously. Walt and Billie McCandless then received a call by the Fairfax County Homicide Detective (p.101) to break the news.

Analysis: I think it's crazy how big Alex's story became and how it got all the way to the New York times. Although they get lots of calls about knowing who he is they should at least hear most of them to get the most clues about who he was. I also feel like Westerberg also made a smart choice on giving them information to prove that he knew Alex.

#NewsReport #NewYorkTimes #Search

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Summary: Another chapter about a dude who isn't Chris McCandless.  Everett Ruess shares many similarities with our main character though - he's a wanderer (p. 90), free spirit, well liked risk taker and lover of all things solitude and wilderness.  Everett is a bit younger than Chris when he begins his vagabond (p. 91) journey, dropping out of UCLA after only one semester to follow his dream (p. 96) of living a nomadic existence.  Unlike Chris, Everett focuses his travels in the southwest rather than north, but like Chris he also renames himself choosing the moniker Nemo after the character Captain Nemo in the Jules Verne classic Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea. And yes, Nemo the fish we know today is named after that character, too!  While on a solo expedition in Utah, Ruess seemingly disappears, never to be heard from again.  A search party is sent to find him after he goes incommunicado (p. 93), but other than finding his donkey, some cave drawings/graffiti he made and pieces of his gear, Ruess was never seen again.  Stories vary on what happen to him - maybe he was a victim of his own reckless innocence (p, 97) and fell while hiking or possibly drown, but some speculate that he was murdered by Native Americans.  No one ever found him or his remains, so Everett's end remains a mystery.  Like Chris, Everett's passion for nature and adventure won out over a conventional life, yet neither man made it out of the wild...

Analysis: There are many people like Chris who don't wanna live regular lives and want to explore the wild. Everett is a smart guy as he got himself into UCLA even though he dropped out. I can believe they couldn't find him, it's a big world and trying to find one person that's wandering around would be very hard. I wonder if Chris looked up to any adventurers like this to spark the fire in his journey.

#WheredHeGo #Lost #GoingSouth

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Summary: Jon Krakauer uses this chapter to show his readers that other men have come to their demise (p. 70) on Alaskan adventures, even if the circumstances are a bit different from those of Chris McCandless.  First up is Gene Rossellini, the modern day caveman!  Gene heads north from the lower 48 in the early 1970's.  He's a super intelligent guy looking to test himself in Alaska ...sound like anyone we know??  Well, "the mayor of Hippie Cove" as Gene is called lives a prehistoric existence, testing himself to see if modern day man can live in the same way as the cavemen did it back in the day. Gene tries his hardest, but sadly writes, "I learned that it is not possible for human beings as we know to live off the land" (p. 75) before plunging a knife through his heart when he realizes the true extent of his failure (p. 75).  Next up is crazy John Waterman.  Lots of similarities to Chris:  he's from the D.C. area, has MAJOR issues with his dad and is super smart.  John is an accomplish climber and alpinist (p. 79) before he starts losing his marbles, running for president of the United States on a platform to end hunger.  SPOILER ALERT:  He doesn't win the election!  Anywho, John comes unhinged, decides to climb the most difficult mountain in all of Alaska in the dead of winter and is never heard from again.  Alaska state troopers believe he probably fell down a crevasse (p. 80) to his death, although his remains were never found.  And last up is poor Carl McCunn.  Another transplant from the lower 48, Carl is the life of the party - just like Chris.  Good guy, fun to be around, charming, but lacks common sense & thinks someone will bail him out if he ends up in trouble.  Similar to Chris, he hatches a plan to go off into the wild for a few months BUT he fails to set up an Uber (think Uber plane!) to come back and pick him up.  The summer turns to fall and McCunn is starving and freezing.  But wait...a plane flies overhead and it looks like Carl is going to be rescued!!!  Unfortunately, Carl doesn't know that waving ONE hand in the air means you're good, no need to rescue you instead of throwing TWO hands in the air, the universal sign for HELP!!!  Carl is dying a slow and painful death by a mix of starvation and frostbite, so in his final diary (p. 81) he explains that he shot himself in the head to end his misery.  Guess Chris doesn't sound that crazy or unprepared after all, huh???

Analysis: There are many other adventurers like Chris on their journey into the wild. Gene proves that living as a caveman in modern day isn't easy at all and believes it's not possible to live like that now. Cavemen had to do a lot of work to survive. I feel bad for Carl when he waved one hand to try and get rescued but the sign for help is two hands. I wouldn't have knew that either. He then died an unfortunate as he killed himself.

#Hopeless #Fellintodespair #LockIn

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Summary: Alex stays back in Carthage to work and get money along for his trip. He works many different jobs and tasks (p.62)others don't like to do. Many things such as mucking warehouses, exterminating vermin, painting, and scything weeds. It also reveals Alex's biggest reason in leaving home. It was said that Alex had many problems with family and mainly his dad who is very commanding and only gives conditional (p.64) love. They believe Alex has been a virgin and no romantic entanglements (p.65). Westerberg convinced his mother to meet Alex and invites him over for supper while they talk about many things like his beliefs (p.67) in many subjects. Alex said his goodbyes and left crying (p.68).

Analysis: Alex made the right move to stop at Carthage to get some work in and get money to prepare him for his trip. I can tell he is a hard worker as he takes the harder jobs while others don't. I can't relate to him on a personal level about his family but I can get where he's coming from and why he would want to leave his home. I commend how he isn't focused on getting attraction from women and likes to focus on his goals. I can also tell he is an interesting person because of how he got Westerberg's mother intrigued while having a chat.

#FollowYourDreams #SmartMoves #Hardworking

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Summary: A man named Ronald A. Franz sends a letter asking for a copy of the magazine (p. 48) talking about the death of Alex McCandless. Franz was the most affected by McCandless's death as he saw him as family. It was learned that Franz met Alex near while camping (p.58). Franz takes Alex to San Diego to try and convince (p.51)him to get a job. Then after time passes Alex writes a letter to Franz telling him that he jumped on trains (p. 53) and is now in Seattle. Alex gets a job from one of his friends he knows there. Alex then tries to convince Franz to be like him and be a traveler to go out and adventure (p.58).

Analysis: I think Franz is a really good friend that everyone should have in their lives. He is a caring person and sees Alex as family and not just a stranger that he met while camping. Alex seems like a fun individual as he just does what he wants even if it's dangerous such as jumping on trains and wants his friends to join him in the adventures around the world.

#Friendship #Family #Adventure

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Summary: McCandless got a job (p.40) at a Mcdonald's and gave them his real name Chris McCandless and not Alex. He was homeless (p.41) and other employees asked if he was showering well or if he needed soap. A man asked if he was sleeping out and let him live in one of his old trailers (p.40). McCandless arrived at the Slabs (p.43) which was a huge flea market/swap meet. He started training and working on calisthenics (p.45) to help himself before going back into the wild.

Analysis: I find Chris as a weird individual as he took the job at Mcdonald's which could put his location at risk. I like how many people are nice enough to help Chris even though he is a stranger and give them a home. Training yourself would be something great to do before coming into the wild as you don't know what is coming.

#PattyFlippin #Needashower #Workout

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Summary: It introduces the main character Alex and his goal to travel into the wilderness (p.3)and takes us along for the journey. He then meets a man named Jim Gallien that introduced himself as Alex without a last name (p.4). He tells him that he looks unprepared. Jim gives Alex a pair of hiking boots (p.5) and some food before he leaves. He is miles from the Fairbanks highway (p.5)and begins to follow the Stampede Trail (p.5)

Analysis: I think Alex is mentally prepared going into the wild as he doesn't care about the government and has the right mindset to take care of himself. I also believe he is kind of dumb as he should train himself and get the right equipment as he doesn't know what he's going to face in the wild.

#BeFree #StayPrepared #AlongfortheJourney

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Growing up, I moved a good amount of times. I lived in Atlanta, Garden Grove, Fountain Valley and Westminster. Every time I moved I liked to walk around the area and explore my surroundings. My dad is currently a mailman so he goes to new places everyday. I took boy scouts and learned how to camp, fish, start a fire, etc.

As a kid my mom used to bring our family to vacations around the US. Nowadays I love walking around new areas and discovering new places. I wonder around random places at least 2 times a week. I don't like walking just to walk but I enjoy having the freedom of going out and doing anything and going anywhere I want.

When I'm older and learned to live on my own I will definitely be moving from place to place. My goal is to travel to New York, Kansas, Japan, and Washington.