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Very well written and impactful read. This story is about extreme examples, seemingly about people ignoring obvious dangers and thinking "it won't happen to me!

Very well written and impactful read. This story is about extreme examples, seemingly about people ignoring obvious dangers and thinking "it won't happen to me!". But the conclusion resonates heavily with me, it bears a very fundamental and important truth that has nothing to do with the extremes of raging torrents or scorching heat pictured: real, actual nature bears fatal risks for anyone, if you are unprepared, uninformed and not cautious. I'm living in Austria, a rather boring place but one of the countries with impressive natural landscapes and some of the highest peaks in the Alps. Most of these destinations have good infrastructure and are well visited touristic landmarks, and would seem tame compared to the extremes depicted in the article. But every year we have countless helicopter rescues of utterly unprepared tourists surprised by Alpine weather, and luckily not often but still regular casualties. So common, that "stupid {German,Italian,Youcallit} tourist getting himself nearly killed because he thought mountaineering was a Sunday afternoon hike" has become a huge meme in our country. And that struck me hard in this story. Even if you don't venture into really dangerous places, being naive or oblivious to the forces of nature will put you into seriously dangerous situations. To put it in perspective: there's no summer here without some tourist getting maimed or nearly killed by a cow because they thought it's nice taking a picture, disregarding it's calves and threatening behaviour.

worthless-trash 4y ago
Now imagine that in Australia, with snakes, spiders and drop bears. The amount of tourists that dont die is actually pretty amazing. Some tourists do however follow "google maps" off a dirt road to nowhere, which turns into a dirt road that doesn't exist then they find the hard way that fuel efficiency in knee deep dust or mud isn't as good as the car predicts.
kerkeslager 4y ago
> [R]eal, actual nature bears fatal risks for anyone, if you are unprepared, uninformed and not cautious. I think if you read to the end, you'll see that's not really the conclusion. The author concludes with: > Repeat these numbers on the trail at dawn when you hear the huffing of a bear on the cliffside below. Repeat them as you cross the river and feel it tug on your ankles. Repeat them when the lightning cracks the sky above you, strikes the rock beside you, lights the world up violet around you, reminding you for just a second that this is all just random and it is not the Oklahomans in jean shorts trekking into the Grand Canyon with cans of cola in hand who are fools, but it is you; you were a fool to believe that this is all some ordered system. Your example is telling: > But every year we have countless helicopter rescues of utterly unprepared tourists surprised by Alpine weather, and luckily not often but still regular casualties. So common, that "stupid {German,Italian,Youcallit} tourist getting himself nearly killed because he thought mountaineering was a Sunday afternoon hike" has become a huge meme in our country. Sure, but in the last few years, we've lost some of the world's best alpinists. No one could accuse Ueli Steck of being unprepared. And it's not just about the risks of dong the cutting edge: while Marc Andre Leclerc is known for his daring free solo ascents, the way he died was in an avalanche on a regular rappel route, after the daring ascent was over. Tommy Caldwell has said that since he's become a father, he doesn't climb under snow pack any more: not because he's not prepared but because it is impossible to be prepared, at least not completely. I think that's the point of this essay. I've got a WFR, lots of climbing and hiking experience, participated in a bunch of rescues, and in general I play it pretty safe and am very well-prepared. But ultimately, nature is just beyond preparation to some extent.

worthless-trash 4y ago

Now imagine that in Australia, with snakes, spiders and drop bears. The amount of tourists that dont die is actually pretty amazing. Some tourists do however follow "google maps" off a dirt road to nowhere, which turns into a dirt road that doesn't exist then they find the hard way that fuel efficiency in knee deep dust or mud isn't as good as the car predicts.

kerkeslager 4y ago

> [R]eal, actual nature bears fatal risks for anyone, if you are unprepared, uninformed and not cautious. I think if you read to the end, you'll see that's not really the conclusion. The author concludes with: > Repeat these numbers on the trail at dawn when you hear the huffing of a bear on the cliffside below. Repeat them as you cross the river and feel it tug on your ankles. Repeat them when the lightning cracks the sky above you, strikes the rock beside you, lights the world up violet around you, reminding you for just a second that this is all just random and it is not the Oklahomans in jean shorts trekking into the Grand Canyon with cans of cola in hand who are fools, but it is you; you were a fool to believe that this is all some ordered system. Your example is telling: > But every year we have countless helicopter rescues of utterly unprepared tourists surprised by Alpine weather, and luckily not often but still regular casualties. So common, that "stupid {German,Italian,Youcallit} tourist getting himself nearly killed because he thought mountaineering was a Sunday afternoon hike" has become a huge meme in our country. Sure, but in the last few years, we've lost some of the world's best alpinists. No one could accuse Ueli Steck of being unprepared. And it's not just about the risks of dong the cutting edge: while Marc Andre Leclerc is known for his daring free solo ascents, the way he died was in an avalanche on a regular rappel route, after the daring ascent was over. Tommy Caldwell has said that since he's become a father, he doesn't climb under snow pack any more: not because he's not prepared but because it is impossible to be prepared, at least not completely. I think that's the point of this essay. I've got a WFR, lots of climbing and hiking experience, participated in a bunch of rescues, and in general I play it pretty safe and am very well-prepared. But ultimately, nature is just beyond preparation to some extent.