Krakauer observes that it is not unusual for a young man to be drawn to a pursuit considered reckless by his elders. Identify an example from...

In chapter 17, Krakauer returns to visit the scene of McCandless's death. There is plenty of evidence of McCandless's "recklessness" -- that he travelled without a map, for one. If he had had a map it would have been relatively easy for him to cross the river, since he would have known about the cable across the river just a few hundred yards away. Another possibly reckless action was not bringing a large caliber rifle, or compass, or axe. Krakauer compares McCandless to the British arctic explorer Sir John Franklin, who perished with the rest of his expedition in 1845. Whereas Franklin "attempted to insulate himself from the northern environment with ill-suited military tools," McCandless "went too far in the opposite direction...[trying] to live entirely off the country...without bothering to learn beforehand the full repertoire of crucial skills." (pp 181-2) If McCandless was reckless, or arrogant, or simply incompetent, Krakauer suggests that he did what he did out of a real need, something that perhaps others cannot ever understand.