Lost in the Wild

Danger and Survival in the North Woods

By: Cary J. Griffith

Narrated by: Roger Wayne

Length: 7 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's summary

In the wilderness, one false step can make the difference between a delightful respite and a brush with death.

On a beautiful summer afternoon in 1998, Dan Stephens, a 22-year-old canoeist, was leading a trip deep into Ontario's Quetico Provincial Park. He stepped into a gap among cedar trees to look for the next portage - and did not return. More than four hours later, Dan awakened from a fall with a lump on his head and stumbled deeper into the woods, confused.

Three years later, Jason Rasmussen, a third-year medical student who loved the forest's solitude, walked alone into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness on a crisp fall day. After a two-day trek into a remote area of the woods, he stepped away from his campsite and made a series of seemingly trivial mistakes that left him separated from his supplies, wet, and lost, as cold darkness fell.

Enduring days without food or shelter, these men faced the full harsh force of wilderness, the place that they had sought out for tranquil refuge from city life. Lost in the Wild takes listeners with them as they enter realms of pain, fear, and courage, as they suffer dizzying confusion and unending frustration, and as they overcome seemingly insurmountable hurdles in a race to survive.

©2006 Cary J. Griffith (P)2018 Tantor

Too detailed

too many details turned this very interesting story into a chore to listen to. The smallest detail like when and exactly how the person went to the bathroom really took the polish off an otherwise good story. Would have been much more enjoyable had it been a wee less descriptive. It's hard to engage with since not even the most minute detail is left to imagination.

An engrossing and emotional story!

What an incredible experience to read the stories of these two young men! I knew they must have survived or we wouldn’t have the details of their arduous and death defying time if being lost and alone in the woods but listening to the thought processes and the emotions they eachwent though B B B

not for me

too many details distracted me from the story
sometimes I don't even know what's going on

narrator did his job! well done

muchísimos detalles que te distraen de la historia
incluso a veces no sabes de qué está hablando

el narrador hace lo suyo. excelente

Slow Start, Stunning Finish!

Last hour or two had me spellbound, as the ending is not clear. Amazing story of two lost young men, in the North Minnesota/Canadian wilderness. I was impressed by each of their techniques to provide themselves with protection from cold, rain, and snow- I doubt many of us would have done as well. And it is that protection from the elements that allows them to survive for more than a few days.

Respect!

As a BWCAW enthusiast and regular visitors myself, I wholeheartedly recommend this book. Thank you to the author and all those who took part in these “experiences.” This wilderness is phenomenal and although beautiful, it is a place that definitely commands respect. I hope anyone interested in visiting will read this and keep that healthy perspective in mind. The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Windiness is a unique resource, a place of extreme solitude, pristine beauty, and breathtaking wonder. There is no place like it on earth.

Exciting and I learned things!

Both of the stories were well done. I am a bush craft enthusiast and even with my knowledge, there were several things brought out in the book that I did not know but are true. Highly recommended, a lot of fun and excitement.

Good Reading For "Experienced Outdoors People"

After spending several summer vacations in the BWCA-Quetico area in general, and the Gunflint Lake/Gunflint Trail area in particular, I was immediately interested in this book. My father was born and raised in Minnesota, and was kind enough to share the beauty of this country with me when I was young.

The book intertwines two separate stories, of two different young men, as they fight to survive in the wilderness. Both stories tell the all-too-common tales of over-confidence that leads to serious consequences.

The author's descriptive writing really brought back memories of this grand, wild land. At the same time, the book delivers a subtle warning to those whose stories might begin with "His family stated that he is an experienced (hiker...canoeist...etc.)", followed by "...the search and rescue efforts continue..."

The narrator did a fair job, but his mispronunciations of so many local place names, lake names, etc. made it obvious that he had made no effort whatsoever to familiarize himself with the area he would be narrating about. There are some tough names in that country, which is precisely why a serious professional narrator should invest some effort to learn their pronunciations. He even managed to grossly mispronounce the name of the Canadian half of the wilderness area, Quetico Provincial Park. Oddly, he got it right the first few times he said it, but later seemed to be experimenting with different ways, and never got it right again. This being the primary area that one man's story takes place in, it should have been a priority to learn the correct pronunciation.

Excellent book for Wilderness Lovers

Two great stories of survival in the wilderness. Both stories are great guides for where we can easily go wrong by trusting ourselves rather than the tools we carry.

Only issue is stories go back and forth each chapter. Book would have flowed better if each story was told in their entirety, one after the other.

Great Book

I enjoyed listening to this book. If you like adventure type books, you will enjoy this audiobook 😊

Great survival story.

So glad he made it out and was able to tell this story. Blessings to alk the volunteers who eventually found him.