Posted on 11/24/2024 11:52:26 AM PST by Morgana
Donn Fendler credited wild berries and a Boy Scout's 'never-give-up attitude' for his survival after he was separated from his family, aged 12, atop Maine's highest peak in 1939.
They helped him through nine tough days traversing Mt. Katahdin's dense wilderness — battling hunger, fatigue, hallucinations, bugs, and leeches. He even lost his shoes in a river.
Fendler's gripping survival story was front-page news in the build up to World War Two, and the boy's grit earned him an award from President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
His memoir, Lost on a Mountain in Maine, has regaled generations of schoolkids in the Pine Tree State. Trail maps, a graphic novel — and now a Hollywood movie — chronicle the journey.
Taking its name from Fendler's book, the film, which counts Sylvester Stallone among its producers, recreates the drama of a boy separated from his stern dad, twin brother, and others.
Thankfully, there's a happy ending.
Fendler went missing from his group in a fast-moving storm as they neared the summit of Katahdin in July of that year.
He realized within hours that he 'was in trouble' and he started to 'panic,' he told Bangor Daily News in 2009.
So, he turned to his Boy Scout skills, a 'never-give-up attitude,' his faith in God and prayers.
'It taught me to keep a calm head and calm down,' he said.
He ate strawberries and checkerberries and sheltered as best he could though the chilly nights.
The boy followed a stream and a telephone line, which led him out to a hunting camp near Stacyville, some 35 miles from where he started.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
If this happened to a 12-year-old today, they’d have to use Google for advice. In other words, they’d just die.
This story also proves how much the Boy Scouts have gone to pot.
I used to guide trout fishing in the Smoky Mtns...I offered to take some Boy Scouts fishing, furnish rods and lures and lunch if they would spend the afternoon cleaning trash off the river banks...
The “Scoutmaster” told me no, that they were into computer training and didn’t have time...
That’s my last time ever speaking to Boy Scouts.....
The poor kid must have not spent much time in the woods. It is hard to not reach civilization if you have any hiking and backpacking experience. Sorry, but it just is.
Yep...If you find a stream, just follow it down...It will lead to where people are...
I’ll bet there are many young kids today who don’t even know what the Boy Scouts is all about other than there are girls in it now.
At 12 years of age, he only had a year or so in Boy Scouts. Leaders must have really ingrained some basic concepts into him early.
mark
Even then, a 12 year old would not likely have that kind of experience.
I grew up in Northern New England. There is really only one place where you can get REALLY lost…and that is if you get turned around in Northwest Maine.
Everywhere else, if you know how to walk in a straight line, you will cross a road in 5-10 miles. Of course, the inability to walk a straight line might cause you to get lost in the first place. ha ha.
Of course the best advice when you are lost in the woods….sit down. Stop moving. You will be easier to find.
💯.
That’s right.
I grew up in Montana and did two hikes in the Bighorn Mountains of Wyoming. Here was the hiking schedule when I was 11 and 12:
Day 1: 10 miles uphill
Day 2: 10 miles uphill
Day 3: 10 miles uphill over 8500' pass
Day 4: camp at 6500’ elevation with a 12 mile round trip hike without backpacks
Day 5: 20 mile downhill and out.
It totaled to 62 miles of backpacking in 5 days and none of us got lost.
I knew most of the stuff because I was the youngest of three boys and were “adventuring” on a regular basis.
But if this was a city kid or even a town kid…they might not know how to navigate in the woods. And that is some deep woods up there. Especially back then.
This was back in the late 30’s so it was more better back then
Orienteering was one of the best merit badges I ever earned. It pretty much saved my life some 20 years later when I got stuck in a heavy snowstorm up in New Hampshire while hiking in some woods.
Grit, faith in God, training….a wonderful story and a worthy read.
I missed the “Terrifying Warning”
These days, all you have to do is damage the wires on the poles and they’ll know right away, exactly where you are.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.