May 12, 2006

"We definitely knew that we were looking at somebody's grave."

"The thought was, 'Is this going to be our grave?' "

Lost campers think they've finally found someone, but what they've found is the campsite of a man who had become lost a year earlier.

8 comments:

goesh said...

- eaten by bears, coyotes and possums, what a eulogy

SippicanCottage said...

In the immortal words of Homer Simpson: "Nature always looks best on TV."

Anonymous said...

Day and Allen are idiots. Whenever you go into the woods in a remote area, you plan on surviving even if you get lost. I won't go 5 minutes from my gear without matches and a few other necessities that would allow me to survive. Never.

What happened to Donovan I don't get. He had gear. Sure, he was out of food, but it takes weeks to starve to death.

goesh said...

- it'll be the flames for the old goesh when he goes, but I see nothing wrong with giving over grandma to the possums if she is so inclined. I think it is in Tibet in some places where Monks toss 'em to the vultures. There is something somehow more respectful it seems to laying out someone on the ground in a remote area amidst the fresh air and scenes of pristine nature V consigning them to cold,mold, mildew and worms in a box.

Ann Althouse said...

"it takes weeks to starve to death."

And wouldn't a trained hiker have some good ideas about eating plants and animals? What's with only three crackers left?

goesh said...

Mike, maybe he wanted to go out in that way - sort of go off and just blend in and return to earth, naturally expire without tubes protruding from his body, being poked and prodded, eating hospital jello then croaking amidst a bunch of diseased, suffering people who are coughing and hacking and groaning and morbid family members hanging around in despair. I would have gnawed alot of bark and green fodder and died by the ashes of a fire - the found matches to me are a clue he wanted to die.

Anonymous said...

When I first read the article I got the impression that his notes indicated a preminition that he was going to die unwillingly, so suicide or falling down a cliff didn't fit. On rereading the article, it's pretty vague on what he wrote, so these might be plausible explanations.

Ann, knowing how to not die in the woods doesn't require any specialized knowledge. Mainly just common sense and a little preparation. Knowing how to forage for food is a whole different level and is pretty specific to particular regions.

J said...

I agree with Mike and Roger - the story as reported just doesn't add up. To throw in some speculation, while I don't see somebody who is prepared (and it appears he was)getting trapped in a spring snow in that area long enough to starve, it's probably possible for somebody in that situation and unfamiliar with the area to give up. Who knows, but there's more to this than the WP is telling.