Almost Late

I heard that Chris did not have a map before I read the book. That made me angry. I was thinking that some stupid kid went into Alaska and killed himself because he didn't take a map with him. But as I read the book and thought of how Chris was a normal guy trying to accomplish something a little more than normal (or less?) I thought about how not taking a map would make the adventure more adventurous. It reminds me of how I once drove to the middle of nowhere Washington or somewhere between Othello and Pasco to work on a farm for the summer. I did not take a map. I got lost. But I found my way, and somehow felt really cool. Chris was probably looking for that same thing. I think that Krakauer has somehow made me realize that by writing this book. That the unknown is just that awesome? Something like that. And since Chris may have been looking for that awesome part of like the whole idea of a map just became stupid.

I always wondered why he didn't go down river when he realized he couldn't cross the river. Could have saved his life.