Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Listening Point - General Discussion :: The wilderness deaths you can't forget
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DRob1992 |
Blatz: "Check Out the movie The Alpinist. " Incredible movie. I'm not an avid climber by any means. Just enjoy a good hike and being outdoors. That is a great watch for anyone. |
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OgimaaBines |
Carl died because he forget to schedule a pickup from a remote cabin in Alaska then when a plane flew over his lake after he realized nobody was coming for him and his supplies were getting low... "McCunn later wrote in his diary: "I recall raising my right hand, shoulder high and shaking my fist on the plane's second pass. It was a little cheer – like when your team scored a touchdown or something. Turns out that's the signal for 'ALL O.K. – DO NOT WAIT!' It's certainly my fault I'm here now! ... Man, I can't believe it. ... I really feel like a klutz! Now I know why nobody's shown up from that incident." The other two are closer to home, in the BWCA. Craig Walz (current MN Governor's brother) died on Duncan lake during a storm when a tree came down on his and his son's tent. I camped at that site the year after with my now wife, not having known it at the time. Last year I solo tripped through Gillis-Crooked-Tuscarora a couple of weeks after Billy James Cameron drowned after his canoe capsized in wind, waves, and cold water. My first years tripping into the wilderness were full of hubris and a general lack of awareness for what can happen out there. I'm continually reminded of how lucky my friends and I have been. |
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Zulu |
There is little or no defense, warning or time to prepare. In October of 2017 I was in Yosemite Valley viewing Yosemite Falls when I heard what sounded like the tailgate of a dump truck slamming after it emptied. A few minutes later emergency vehicles sped past and helicopters flew overhead. A large section of granite had calved off El Capitan and killed a person walking below. The chances of a wrong place, wrong time wilderness death are infinitely small but do happen and occupy a small part of my awareness. |
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Savage Voyageur |
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DRob1992 |
OgimaaBines: "There are four stories I tend to talk about with friends and family. Two are from "Into the Wild" Derek McCandless and another Carl McGunn. Derek died because he refused to bring a map, there was a cable for river crossing not far from his bus that was marked on many maps. Derek McCandless is actually Christopher McCandless AKA Supertramp... I know that's super petty and besides the point. Figured it might be useful information, though, if you happen to continue to share his story in the future. |
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WhiteWolf |
"Touching the Void" but to give an answer- the death of Rob Hall on Everest in 1996. Radioman patched him through to his wife in New Zealand when death was obvious-- the following words were his last to his wife-- ""Sleep well my sweetheart. Please don't worry too much." |
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Speckled |
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analyzer |
Unas10: "For me, it is not so much the deaths that are intriguing, but the disappearances. Andrew Irvine, Percy Fawcett and his son, the crew of the Mary Celeste, Everett Ruess, D.B. Cooper, and many others presumed dead, but how? Or, those like Etta Place or Jedediah Smith who just disappear from the historical record. Somewhere down the road these people may reappear like George Mallory or Otzi the Iceman." A young man my brother went to high school with disappeared from a hunting shack, and was never found. He was with a group of about 4 or 5. He got up in the morning, left with his gun, and never seen again. They assume he got swallowed up by a peat bog, but they don't really know. They never found him or his gun. |
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noodle |
missmolly: "It's not a death, but it was a near death and it was in Boundary Waters. The story is told in the book, "Lost in the Wild." A backpacker was hit by an unexpected snowfall, became lost, and made the near-fatal mistake of leaving his tent and food and sleeping bag." I checked out the ebook of this from the library and have been reading, following along on the map, thinking that he was doing okay - he knows he's lost, knows that if he heads south he'll either cross the Pow Wow Trail or a road, has over a week of food - and then just got to the part where he decided he must be less than two miles away, and opts to leave his tent and pack behind and come back for it later. I may have gasped out "oh no" and "oh my god no" a few times. |
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30Smoke |
Todd Orr Also the book, Deaths in Yellowstone - it hurts just thinking about people that jump into the thermal's to try to save a dog and are basically dead if/by the time they get out. |
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chessie |
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analyzer |
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missmolly |
The backpacker later became a doctor. |
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missmolly |
They were apparently killed by a rare avalanche the size of an SUV, which bulldozed their tents and broke their bones and forced them outside in a confused panic, where they then froze and died of their various injuries. It sticks with me because they were experienced and young and in a big group (for the wilderness) and they STILL died. I once interviewed a big risk taker, who'd adventured all his life and buried friends who'd die in the wilderness, and he said that surviving in deep wilderness was a LOT of luck. Here's the Dyatlov Pass story. Which tragedy sticks to you? |
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DRob1992 |
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Maiingan |
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missmolly |
DRob1992: "Strange how we humans are so attracted to morbidity. I will admit, missmolly, that the story you mentioned peaked my interest. I've been reading up on it for the past 15 minutes on Google. " It's quite a story, what with the radiation and Yeti speculation and the missing tongue and the Soviet Union's nasty habit of hiding facts. However, if the SUV-sized avalanche is true, that's strange too. Not Yeti-grade strange, but strange. I once interviewed a guy who had a polar bear stick its head into his tent. He had a massive handgun on his chest and behind that polar bear, he could see other polar bears. He talked calmly to the bear, saying, "I don't want to die. I don't want you to die. Neither of us have to die if you just leave." And the bear left. I commented that nothing would be scarier than that, but he said the wind was far scarier than those bears, as they were circling a major Canadian island and there were times they'd be in massive swells with no place to land and the wind threatening to blow them into the cliffs. One time, his partner screamed, "How you doin'?!? And he answered, "I'm xxxing scared!!!" |
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Unas10 |
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GopherAdventure |
Hiker Found Tony |
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tomo |
Thelon |
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DRob1992 |
GopherAdventure: "I’m surprised nobody here has mentioned it yet, but a few years back, a young hiker named Jordan from New Mexico entered the BWCA in October intending to spend the whole winter camping in the wilderness. According to his family he had done his due diligence on surviving a harsh winter in the woods and was prepared. He had completed similar trips in the past in more forgiving climates, but nonetheless was an experienced camper. He entered on the Sioux-Hustler trail in late fall. He left the trail at some point and set up kind of a bushcraft camp in the woods, not at a designated campsite (this made it harder to find him later). He had planned to return to his car periodically for re-supply as he had a lot of food and supplies in the vehicle. He also planned to check in with his parents periodically and that is how the authorities found out that he was missing (when he didn’t check in). His parents reported him missing to the Forest Service and they tried finding him, but all they could find was his vehicle at the parking area (buried in snow). The trail was too treacherous to hike as the snow was super deep and they had no idea where to look. They had to postpone the search until the spring…this is what they found. I remember reading about that when it happened. Crazy. Tony, in your opinion, do you think it likely that Jordan was potentially badly injured or cut and that the wolves moved in on him after sensing his injury or smelling blood? Assuming that it was wolves that caused his death... |
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Freeleo1 |
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Jeriatric |
Following the dumping my brother and I took in the cold water of Lake Billy Chinook in Oregon (for those of you who remember) I began reading about other cold-water events. This story took place in a Washington lake. It was about three fishermen, an overweight guy, his athletic/suvivalist brother and the brother's girlfriend. All morning the three caught no fish. Then, in the afternoon, things began to pick up. In fact, they began catching one fish after another. What they hadn't paid any attention to was that a storm was moving in and the wind was picking up. At one point, the overweight guy was landing a fish when he noticed that it swam away in the bottom of the boat. Realizing their danger, he yelled at his brother who was at the motor. Before the brother could react, one more surge of water caused the boat to sink. The survivalist instantly realized their danger and began swimming towards the docks, one-quarter mile away....upwind. The overweight guy tried to follow the other two but he wore himself out trying. So, the overweight guy just tread water and let the wind push him. The far shore was 2-21/2 miles away. Briefly, the overweight guy made it. The other two did not. Before finding the bodies of the brother and his girlfriend. The searchers found the bodies of 6 others. Whether from the most recent storm or earlier, I don't know. I also can't remember if the three were wearing their flotation devices. |
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BearMandolin |
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Fearlessleader |
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GopherAdventure |
BearMandolin: "I'm not trying to tease, but the worst BWCA death story I ever heard was told me a few years ago by Stu Osthoff on one of his GS2 fishing trips. He said it happened during his time working for outfitters out of Ely. It's so awful I haven't been able to shake it and have never been able to recount it to anyone. Not sure if it's true or not, but it sure put the hex on me!" Wtf?! You can’t do that to us morbid thinkers. Now you gotta share! |
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GopherAdventure |
DRob1992: "GopherAdventure: "I’m surprised nobody here has mentioned it yet, but a few years back, a young hiker named Jordan from New Mexico entered the BWCA in October intending to spend the whole winter camping in the wilderness. According to his family he had done his due diligence on surviving a harsh winter in the woods and was prepared. He had completed similar trips in the past in more forgiving climates, but nonetheless was an experienced camper. He entered on the Sioux-Hustler trail in late fall. He left the trail at some point and set up kind of a bushcraft camp in the woods, not at a designated campsite (this made it harder to find him later). He had planned to return to his car periodically for re-supply as he had a lot of food and supplies in the vehicle. He also planned to check in with his parents periodically and that is how the authorities found out that he was missing (when he didn’t check in). His parents reported him missing to the Forest Service and they tried finding him, but all they could find was his vehicle at the parking area (buried in snow). The trail was too treacherous to hike as the snow was super deep and they had no idea where to look. They had to postpone the search until the spring…this is what they found. Well, it’s obviously a really tough call. Possible, but not very probable. Wolves avoid humans at all costs. That’s why you rarely even see one in the Wild. So no, I doubt he was killed by wolves, but they were obviously there shortly afterward. The investigation showed that his firearm was never discharged, his saw and axe were both sheathed and hanging up and there were no rips or tears in his hammock or tent. However, there was blood all over the place, including on tarps and gear. I guess it’s possible he could have badly cut himself preparing dinner and simply could not stop the bleeding. If he was attacked by wolves, you’d think they would have done it at night when he was asleep and that would have severely damaged his hammock or tent. The possibilities are countless, but I’m guessing he injured himself somehow (possibly even a fall with concussion and head trauma/bleeding) and the wolves came and cleaned up the mess. There was just not enough left by the time they found his camp to ever point them in the direction of the cause of death. What a nightmare for his family. Sounds like the guy perished doing what he loved though. RIP Jordan Tony |
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EddyTurn |
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DRob1992 |
Unas10: "For me, it is not so much the deaths that are intriguing, but the disappearances. Andrew Irvine, Percy Fawcett and his son, the crew of the Mary Celeste, Everett Ruess, D.B. Cooper, and many others presumed dead, but how? Or, those like Etta Place or Jedediah Smith who just disappear from the historical record. Somewhere down the road these people may reappear like George Mallory or Otzi the Iceman." The Everett Ruess story is an interesting one. He was so young. In 'Into the Wild', it is stated that he most likely drowned in the Colorado River. Who knows. There were a few other guys referenced in 'Into the Wild' who died mysteriously. I forget his name but there was one gentleman who was from a prominent family and was very intelligent. He moved (to somewhere in Alaska, I believe) and lived for a decade with only man-made tools, etc. Not only did he forbid any sort of mechanical help of any kind, he also worked out relentlessly every day. There is a story about someone helping to haul some heavy logs back to his cabin. He accepted the help (he was too polite to say no) and promptly returned the logs to their original location once the man left and hauled them back to his cabin again on his own. Years later, he was found in his cabin with a knife in his chest with no suicide note and with approaching plans to meet up with a group of friends for an outdoors adventure. |
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TrailZen |
TZ |
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30Smoke |
EddyTurn: "Tragic first descend of the Tsangpo, described in Todd Balf's The Last River. There was a documentary about this expedition on NatGeo, don't know if it's accessible nowadays (I would not want to watch it again), that included terrifying shooting of the last moments of Doug Gordon in the furious waters. I saw it may be 20 years ago and it's impossible to forget." I found the Nat Geo "Expeditions to the Edge" if anyone wants to see it: Doug Gordon |
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Blatz |
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missmolly |
Rob Hall's death was gut-wrenching. Reading the conversation between Rob and his friends as they urged him to rise and descend and Rob promising that he would shortly, but just needed a little rest first, was the worst. I find all Everest deaths to be emotive and not just the dying, but the bodies lying up there, looking like porcelain. To ease the discomfort of current climbers, the Sherpas have been hiding some of the bodies, beneath rocks or over cliffs, and one of the Sherpas died in the effort, going over a cliff with the corpse. I wish they'd leave Everest be. It's been climbed and climbed and climbed and now it's a trashed graveyard and you have to wait in a damn line to summit on a good weather day, like it's DisneyWorld. Speaking of wilderness death stories told by Jon Krakauer, there's Chris McCandless's death too. |
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MidwestFirecraft |
TrailZen: " On our return to Ely, we learned the storm had killed a man and his son camped on BWCA's Ensign Lake when lightning hit a pine tree near their tent.TZ" Do you have a link for the story? I vaguely remember it but couldn't find it in a google search. |
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missmolly |
30Smoke: "Lost in the wild is definitely a good read! but there was an elk hunting guide in Wyoming that was killed by a bear, and then this one isn't a death, but close enough - Todd Orr posted this video after surviving a double attack. That Todd Orr video is amazing. What a man! Did you ever watch the comedy, "European Vacation," where Chevy Chase keeps accidentally hurting a Brit? It's comedic because no matter how much the Brit suffers, he's cheerfully stoic. Well, Todd Orr is like that! He's chewed, bleeding, and traumatized, but calm and tendering advice and half smiling. Another poignant survival story is Beck Weathers. Rescue teams twice decided to not save him because they deemed him too far gone, so they left him in the storm: Beck |
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TomT |
WhiteWolf: "Again not a death, but pretty darn close and likely the most incredible mountaineering survival story I've ever heard. If you haven't seen it and got 100 minutes or so- you will not regret it. Touching the Void is really incredible. Rob Halls death on Everest was extremely sad. He could have saved himself but wouldn’t abandon his client who was struggling. |
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TomT |
DRob1992: "Blatz: "Check Out the movie The Alpinist. " Yeah I didn’t know anything about that movie when I watched. That one struck me pretty hard. Great movie. |
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TrailZen |
MidwestFirecraft: "TrailZen: " On our return to Ely, we learned the storm had killed a man and his son camped on BWCA's Ensign Lake when lightning hit a pine tree near their tent.TZ" I didn't, but found more detail. Before reading the Orlando Sentinel article, I didn't realize that two more people were in the tent. My son was part of my Scout group on the '87 trip, and the incident is always in the back of my mind when I'm in a lightning storm... TZ |
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Canoearoo |
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missmolly |
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bottomtothetap |
TrailZen: "In July of '87 I was part of a 3 adults/6 teens Boy Scout crew camping on an island in Quetico's S-chain when a violent overnight storm hit. For several hours we had heavy rain, high winds, and crazy-close lightning strikes whose resulting thunder seemed to shake the ground. The next day was beautiful, and we took a lay-over day to dry gear. On our return to Ely, we learned the storm had killed a man and his son camped on BWCA's Ensign Lake when lightning hit a pine tree near their tent. One year on Ogish, one of our guys was struck by lightning as we were hunkered in the tent during a nasty storm and a jolt hit a nearby pine tree. The lightning travelled the roots of the tree and then arched from the tent pole to his arm. He said it felt like he was punched in the arm really hard and he got a nasty bruise. That was it, with no other after effects. We were VERY lucky not to lose him that night. As close to near death as I ever want to come in the BWCA. It was years before we mentioned this to spouses. |
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MidwestFirecraft |
TrailZen: "I didn't, but found more detail. Before reading the Orlando Sentinel article, I didn't realize that two more people were in the tent. My son was part of my Scout group on the '87 trip, and the incident is always in the back of my mind when I'm in a lightning storm... Thank you for the link. I was with two other dads and 6 kids on Horse Lake two years ago and the weather report was for 70 mph winds and severe thunderstorms. I ended up convincing the other two dads to leave on our second of 6 days. The storm never really amounted to much more than heavy rain and the kids were really upset, but all I could think about was a tree coming down or lighting running through the roots just like happened in the story. One of the dads and his kids have not asked to come back. Tough decisions to be made in the back country... |
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TrailZen |
missmolly: "There's a common tendency, weather-wise, to remember long-ago snowfalls as bigger than nowadays. Let's call it the When-I-Was-a-Kid Syndrome and people stick to their memories even when recorded snowfall totals prove them wrong. However, when it comes to lightning, no one invokes this syndrome. We all seem to consider lightning storms in Canoe Country to be much bigger than decades past. However, here in Maine, lightning storms are pretty rare and nothing extraordinary. For me, the storms that make me cower are those upper Minnesota/Ontario lightning storms. Has anyone who doesn't live in upper Minnesota/Ontario experienced bigger lightning storms? " Although I now live in western NC, my family is from middle Tennessee, where they have crazy lightning storms, especially during tornado seasons. So, yes, I've been treated to some scary light shows here in the southeast. I suspect forum members in Florida, Alabama, and Georgia (all high in lightning deaths) can also recall some scary lightning events. TZ |
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DRob1992 |
missmolly: "There's a common tendency, weather-wise, to remember long-ago snowfalls as bigger than nowadays. Let's call it the When-I-Was-a-Kid Syndrome and people stick to their memories even when recorded snowfall totals prove them wrong. However, when it comes to lightning, no one invokes this syndrome. We all seem to consider lightning storms in Canoe Country to be much bigger than decades past. However, here in Maine, lightning storms are pretty rare and nothing extraordinary. For me, the storms that make me cower are those upper Minnesota/Ontario lightning storms. Has anyone who doesn't live in upper Minnesota/Ontario experienced bigger lightning storms? " I taught a student (Northwestern Illinois) who had been struck by lightning one afternoon as he was walking out of school with his twin brother. At the time of this incident, he was in 1st or 2nd grade. He was given less-than-half odds of survival. Years later, when he was in high school and I finally had the pleasure of meeting him, I was amazed by how functional and normal he was. The coolest lightning storm I ever witnessed was with my dad in Northwestern Illinois. It was a nasty one. However, throughout it all, my dad and I watched (from a screened porch) dozens of female Orioles fight over a half dozen oranges that we had stuck out on some posts in the backyard. So these Orioles were going at it while lightning struck multiple times in the open field less than 30 yards from the birds and from us. |
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MikeinMpls |
Blatz: "Check Out the movie The Alpinist. " I watched this movie about a month ago. Quite a guy, in more ways than one. The thought most going through my head while watching the movie was "it's only a matter of time." Clearly climbing was his love, as well as his chosen job and vocation. I don't know anyone who has done their job perfectly, yet climbing in the manner he did required perfection, lest he die. And he did. Yes, I realize that he likely died in an avalanche and not from falling off a cliff. Nevertheless, I still believe that he would've died, sooner or later, falling during a climb. I don't see his death as a tragedy as much as an inevitability he apparently readily accepted. Mike |
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7thinningstretch |
His name was Gene Rosellini; he was able to live for more than 10 years in Alaska without the aid of modern "tools" but after that decided that it was "not possible for human beings as we know them to live off the land." Another intriguing individual mentioned in Into the Wild was 35 year old Carl McGunn. Crazy story. I teach a high school literature class titled Outdoor Adventure Literature: two of the novels I teach are Into the Wild and Touching the Void (the other book I teach is Canoeing With the Cree), so I am absolutely loving this thread since it is giving me more material to use in my class discussions! |
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DRob1992 |
7thinningstretch: ""The Everett Ruess story is an interesting one. He was so young. In 'Into the Wild', it is stated that he most likely drowned in the Colorado River. Who knows. There were a few other guys referenced in 'Into the Wild' who died mysteriously. I forget his name but there was one gentleman who was from a prominent family and was very intelligent. He moved (to somewhere in Alaska, I believe) and lived for a decade with only man-made tools, etc. Not only did he forbid any sort of mechanical help of any kind, he also worked out relentlessly every day. There is a story about someone helping to haul some heavy logs back to his cabin. He accepted the help (he was too polite to say no) and promptly returned the logs to their original location once the man left and hauled them back to his cabin again on his own. Years later, he was found in his cabin with a knife in his chest with no suicide note and with approaching plans to meet up with a group of friends for an outdoors adventure." His name was Gene Rosellini; he was able to live for more than 10 years in Alaska without the aid of modern "tools" but after that decided that it was "not possible for human beings as we know them to live off the land." Another intriguing individual mentioned in Into the Wild was 35 year old Carl McGunn. Crazy story. I teach a high school literature class titled Outdoor Adventure Literature: two of the novels I teach are Into the Wild and Touching the Void (the other book I teach is Canoeing With the Cree), so I am absolutely loving this thread since it is giving me more material to use in my class discussions!" Yes, Gene Rosellini was his name! Thank you! Canoeing With the Cree is a wonderful read as well, highly recommended. |
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MidwestFirecraft |
GopherAdventure: "BearMandolin: "I'm not trying to tease, but the worst BWCA death story I ever heard was told me a few years ago by Stu Osthoff on one of his GS2 fishing trips. He said it happened during his time working for outfitters out of Ely. It's so awful I haven't been able to shake it and have never been able to recount it to anyone. Not sure if it's true or not, but it sure put the hex on me!" Agreed! |
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papalambeau |
MidwestFirecraft: "GopherAdventure: "BearMandolin: "I'm not trying to tease, but the worst BWCA death story I ever heard was told me a few years ago by Stu Osthoff on one of his GS2 fishing trips. He said it happened during his time working for outfitters out of Ely. It's so awful I haven't been able to shake it and have never been able to recount it to anyone. Not sure if it's true or not, but it sure put the hex on me!" Agreed - we need to hear it BearMandolin. |
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mcsweem |
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smoke |
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smoke |
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DRob1992 |
MikeinMpls: "Blatz: "Check Out the movie The Alpinist. " Jordan got his shot blocked on occasion. Tiger double bogeyed a hole or two in his career. Jeter airmailed his first basemen with a few throws. Tom Brady threw a few pick-6's. The best climbers fall. Marc-Andre Leclerc was destined to die on a mountain. He died doing what he loved best. He's smiling down at us from his favorite mountain peak. |
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Zulu |
The story was told about a boy who didn’t fit in and had wandered away from camp and was swallowed by a peat bog. Another legend about a lost boy which occurred in Yosemite National Park is still puzzling. To this day every evening near sunset in the campgrounds young children will yell “Elmer”. It echos from all around and is haunting. I didn’t know why this was done but it was explained to me at a Ranger Program. A young boy named Elmer had disappeared many years ago and they yell his name in hopes he will find his way back to his parents. He would be about 90 by now though. |
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missmolly |
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campnfish |
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plander |
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analyzer |
Fearlessleader: "It’s been almost 20 years ago and we were on day 2 what was to be a 15 day trip into Quetico. A friend of ours had asked to go with us specifically because he wanted a relaxing, no rush trip which he knew my wife and I did. After finishing our second trip across the portage I went back to see if he needed some help. Half way across the portage I found him lying on his back where he had collapsed. He was 42 years old and in excellent shape. No good reason was ever found for his death. Apparently had a massive heart attack and died instantly. I still relive that day often. " Oh my. How horrible. I'm so sorry. I can only imagine what that must have been like paddling your deceased friend out of the Q. Terrible. I often wonder how my wife will handle it, if I pass away, when it's just the two of us up there. I'm 56, and had a heart attack 1.5 years ago. 42 is way too young. |
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Captn Tony |
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