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‘Into The Wild’ Hikers Seeking Infamous Bus Rescued In Alaska [Video]

By Nick Younker
Published on: 10:12 PST, Jun 29, 2016

Into the Wild was a 1996 book by John Krakauer and a 2007 hit film by Sean Penn, which told the true story of a man named Christopher McCandless who died in a deserted bus in the Alaskan wilderness in 1992. That “magic bus” was also the subject of great speculation as many people over the years have sought it out, which includes two hikers that have now been rescued.

According to a report by local Alaskan TV station KTUU, those hikers, Michael Trigg (25) and Theodore Aslund (27) were also on the trek to find the infamous bus from the Into the Wild film and the real-life experience of Christopher McCandless.

The Stampede Trail in Denali National Park is what the hikers of many different ages and groups use to find the bus, but there have been a lot of incidents where they have had to be rescued or have been mostly unsuccessful. This leads to rescue efforts that are made by experienced hikers and trained professionals that have to go in and lead the lost hikers out of the harsh wilderness.

The events that took place in Christopher McCandless’ life, which were portrayed in the film Into the Wild, have inspired many to take similar steps in their own lives. But there are risks and consequences associated with making such a dramatic lifestyle change.

Here is just a little refresher as to what Into the Wild was about and the real-life event that Christopher McCandless endured. The story is one that can be thought of as legend, but still based on true facts. McCandless had a longing, of sorts, to be more in tune with nature and to have the ability to live off the land, as opposed to the worship of material things that are subsidized by the world of money.

Into the Wild famously portrayed McCandless’ sudden switch over when he burned his money and took off walking in the American Southwest. His journeys took him to all kinds of places, as portrayed in the film, and he eventually sought out work for money to help him reach his ultimate goal of making it to Alaska.

In Into The Wild, when McCandless finally made it to Alaska, he seemed to be more at peace with his goals and he relished where he was at. He was amazed by the beauty of nature, but also used whatever was at his means to survive, which meant hunting with a rifle and finding other ways to make sure he had what he needed. He did not seem to be naïve to what it took to survive.

As portrayed in Into the Wild, McCandless ultimately succumbed to the dangerous mission that he was on when he decided to leave the bus, but was unable to do so because of the harsh natural elements. He was forced to find food with plants that ultimately caused him to starve to death.

McCandless documented his journey in great detail, including the events that led to his death. That is, of course, the only way that the book, Into the Wild, and subsequent film were able to be produced.

The events of his journey, as immortalized in the Into the Wild book and film, have been something of legend and seem to have inspired hundreds of people to make a journey similar to McCandless.

Trigg and Aslund were two of those people who seem to have been inspired by the story of Into the Wild and have attempted to find the bus that was portrayed in the film, which is in fact a real bus and a real place. They were unsuccessful, and when they failed to check back in, a ground rescue team found them and led them to safety.

[Image via Paramount]

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