Into The Wild

Krakauer stands at the same river around a year after McCandless failed to cross it. The river is not crossable, but Krakauer and two Alaskans search for and find a cable and basket that can whisk them across the water. Since McCandless did not have a map with him, he was unaware of the cable. Krakauer attaches himself to the cable with rock-climbing gear and traverses to the other side of the river. Once there, he brings the basket to the other side and retrieves his two trip companions. Together the three of them trek along the Stampede Trail through difficult country until they reach the clearing where the bus is.

Krakauer studies the bus and its surroundings. He finds many of McCandless’s possessions in the bus, including a canteen, lip balm, and the boots Gallien had given him. The inside of the bus is covered in graffiti messages, including many of McCandless’s own.

Many Alaskans believe McCandless came to the wild unprepared and feel he was arrogant. But while some men, such as 19th-century explorer John Franklin, lived in opposition to nature, McCandless had the opposite attitude, depending entirely on nature for survival.

Krakauer and his two companions sit around a fire and reflect on McCandless’s life. One friend, Roman, is an outdoor adventurer and teacher at Alaska Pacific University. He says that living off the land is very difficult to do and notes that McCandless was nearly successful at it. Roman identifies with McCandless and thinks there are many Alaskans who have a lot in common with him, even though they may criticize him.

McCandless arrives back at the bus on July 8. Once there, he continues to subsist through hunting and gathering. At the end of July he makes a mistake that costs him his life. A journal entry on July 30 reads, “EXTREMELY WEAK, FAULT OF POT. SEED. MUCH TROUBLE JUST TO STAND UP. STARVING. GREAT JEOPARDY” (189). There is little in his prior journal entries that indicate such a decline is at hand. He is dead by August 19.

There are many different theories as to what caused McCandless’s death. One theory involves a plant known as Hedysarum alpinum. McCandless had consumed both the roots and seeds of the plant. Another species, Hedysarum mackenzii, looks very similar but is poisonous. In his Outside magazine article, Krakauer claimed that McCandless had consumed the similar-looking Hedysarum mackenzii, and that this had killed him. But as time wore on, Krakauer began to feel that this hypothesis was likely incorrect. He suspected the original H. alpinum species was the culprit. Tests, however, disproved his theory that alkaloids in the seeds of H. alpinum had poisoned McCandless.

Another theory proposed that mold on a wild potato plant might have caused McCandless’s death. With his health already compromised by his limited diet, his body might have been unable to excrete the toxic compounds. He then grew too weak to hunt or collect food.

On August 12 McCandless wrote the last words of his journal: “Beautiful Blueberries” (199). Another note reads, “I HAVE HAD A HAPPY LIFE AND THANK THE LORD. GOODBYE AND MAY GOD BLESS ALL!” (199). He likely died on August 18.

Krakauer flies with Billie and Walt McCandless to the bus where Chris spent his last days. Billie and Walt walk around the site and visit the woods nearby. Billie enters the bus and looks at Chris’s writing on the walls and some of his possessions. She smells a pair of his jeans and notes that they still smell like him. Walt puts up a memorial, and Billie leaves a first aid kit. The helicopter returns and takes them away.