Response to A Walk in the Woods

Throughout my childhood, the concept of venturing out into the wilderness also appealed to me. Hatchet was my favorite book to read and I eventually went on to read all the sequels as well as several other unrelated books by Gary Paulsen. The main ideas were always consistent across his books. A young individual would get stranded or isolated from civilization. They would then use their skills to try and survive.

 My fascination with survivalist stories also applied to more than just books.

 My favorite computer game to play when I was younger was The Oregon Trail. I especially enjoyed keeping journal entries during the game. Somehow it made it feel more real than it actually was. Reading A Walk in the Woods brought back these feelings of adventure. In fact, if I had no present commitments, I would already be on a flight out to start my journey on the trail. The prospect is so enticing.

I know Bryson’s struggles of taking an individual out into the wilderness with no present experience in such a situation. I took a friend out on a camping trip several years back. It was my first trip without my parents and I was thrilled to be going camping with my friend. However, once we got down to preparing the campsite and pitching the tent, I realized what a huge mistake I had made bringing my friend along. Not only were they completely incompetent when it came to basic survival skills but they need constant management and instruction on what needed to be done, which only slowed me down. In the end, when it started raining and I couldn’t keep the fire going anymore, I caved and agreed to eat at a restaurant. He insisted on going home the following day. Lesson to be learned: never take someone into the wilderness that is unprepared.

Reading Bryson’s book revived my interest and love of the forest and reminded me why I love it so much. In contrast, it also reminded me of why I would never venture out into a forest for more than a day. Carrying my current backpack around campus for a single day is exhausting. I couldn’t even imagine trudging up and down slippery slopes and monstrous mountains carrying that much weight. Had I been in Bryson’s situation and had been faced with the challenge of trekking the Appalachian Trail, I probably would have changed my mind the minute I started thinking about what could possibly go wrong. A lot could possibly go wrong. A lot can possibly go wrong when you walk across the street, let alone into the forest for 6 months. So, for now, I will have to be content with exploring the local forests.