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andypro
Sep 8, 2007, 10:53 PM
Post #1 of 2
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Registered: Aug 23, 2003
Posts: 1077
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After writing this, I'm thinkin it may not belong in alpine and Ice, but it's kinda an alpine thing, and I figure those paying attention to this forum would most likely be the best to answer and discuss. Feel free to move it if necessary...
So I'm sitting here on a Saturday afternoon watching PBS... A fantastic show called "Alone in the Wilderness" about Dick Proenneke who spent a year in remote Alaska all alone. He built a very nice log cabin by hand with hand tools, foraged and hunted for food and supplies, and generally lived off the land. Yes, he had supplies flown in periodically, but for the most part he truly was alone. The really amazing thing is that when he did this, he was 60 years old! I hope I'm in his shape when I'm that age.
But anywhoo... to what I'm thinking. That's the why...
His skill set is huge. He's an amazing woodworker, naturalist, athlete, engineer, mason...and a lot of other things that I probably cant enumerate right now.
It makes me wonder...how many of us have the skill sets to survive like this? The more popular climbing gets, the more people I find telling me how they love the outdoors, and being in the wilderness, as they pull out their cellphone, or check their GPS to see how far it is from where they are to where they want to be (usually somewhere with prepared food).
the point? Most people I meet would be critter food if they were ever stranded. and I don't mean a day or two lost kinda stranded, I'm talking screwed for months in the middle of nowhere kinda stranded.
I've always prided myself on being able to be as self sufficient as possible. I've had a lot of survival training in the Marines, always been in the wilderness from nearly the time I could walk... I'll occasionally go on "survival trips" just for entertainment...like taking a fire steel (those things are fantastic), a leatherman, and a few other things out away from civilization and just doing my own thing (usually with a few others doing thier own thing too). I'm quite comfortable being "stranded". I know, for the most part, what to do and how to do it. I still dont know if I'd be able to cope with a monumental months long type stucking.
I guess this is a two part thing. A) anyone out there think they can pull it off? Why do you think so? Could you walk out into remote areas of Alaska and not die?
and B) what, in your opinion, are the necessary skills to be able to do so? I'm curious as to what people think on this one.
So theres your topic. Discuss 
--Andy P
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climb_eng
Sep 9, 2007, 1:53 AM
Post #2 of 2
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Registered: Apr 23, 2007
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Well... look at the into-the-wild guy, he actually did very well for himself considering his complete lack of any wilderness experience.
Never underestimate the strength of the human being. I'd imagine most passionate, self confident people who love life would figure out how to survive when pressed.
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