Into The Wild

Finally saw Into the Wild.  Very intersting movie, and an interesting concept.  It was too bad for the main character that the Dick Proenneke Alone in the Wilderness wasn't available yet, he might have survived. You can read the IMDB summaries of either of the movies.  When the Proenneke documentary is on PBS I will watch it without fail.  There is of course also Never Cry Wolf and Call of the Wild. 

Now my real point, I've been at a cross road for awhile, when my mind is unsettled I run to the outdoors. Nothing like the power and tranquility of nature.  Sitting on a bluff, or a ridge, hilltop or mountain top.  My bush craft isn't up to the point that I could just drop off the face of civilization and disappear into the woods and walk a lifetime in Proenneke's footsteps.  I need to practice starting a fire with a bow drill.  I would have to decide to actually hunt, instead of just stalk for photos.  Most importantly, I need to learn plant and mushroom identification.  In the Into the Wild movie the dood mistook Inedible wild sweet pea, hedysarum mackenzii, with Edible Wild potatoe, hedysarum alpinum.  I have far too much to learn on the plant and mushroom front to survive without a garden, or a super market.  At some point, I also need to learn how to better dress meat, then smoke or dry it.  While I understand how to dress most game, it has just been far too long since I last tried that, I would probably spoil more meat than I could butcher, again like the d00d in the movie.



The bush would be no place for Kjell either, he is just too much of a fraidy-cat and he really only eats dry food.  Meisha would eat anything I would put in front of her, and if I wasn't careful anything in front of me.  Kjell, not so much.  He has to be almost starving before he would eat wet food, or even drink milk. I just wouldn't torture my buddy like that.

So it will be a couple of years before I could disappear into the woods....

More Later....
G