The dilapidated bus where Christopher McCandless died was removed this week.
Video screenshot by Gael Fashingbauer Cooper / CNET
The bus, made famous by Jon Krakauer’s non-fiction Into the Wild and the 2007 film of the same name, was removed from the Alaska Stampede Trail this week for public safety reasons. According to a Facebook post by the Alaska National Guard, the bus was flown out of the wilds of Healy, Alaska using a CH-47 Chinook helicopter.
Kraków’s 1996 book tells the real story of Christopher McCandless, who donated his savings to charity and hitchhiked to Alaska at the age of 24. He could not return to civilization and fled to an abandoned 1946 bus that once served as a shelter on the street, but died of hunger after more than 100 days. Numerous travelers reading the book or later watching the film tried to catch the bus, some of which had to be saved, and a woman from Belarus died trying.
“We encourage people to enjoy Alaska’s wild areas safely and we understand the impact this bus has had on people’s imaginations,” said Corri Feige, Alaska Natural Resources Commissioner, in a statement. “However, this is an abandoned and deteriorating vehicle that required dangerous and costly rescue operations. More importantly, it cost some visitors their lives.”
The Alaska Army National Guard relocated the bus as part of a training mission “at no cost to the public or additional cost to the state,” said Feige. The statement says that the crew also ensured the safety of a suitcase with sentimental value for the McCandless family. A 2003 article in Nidus, a publication by MFA students from the University of Pittsburgh, reports that McCandless’ mother left the case filled with survival equipment and visitors have added and removed it over the years. The bus is stored in a safe place until a decision about its future is made.