The Science of Stephen King

Meg:“The character in the novel remembers an episode ofLittle House on the Prairie(1974–1983) that recommended if lost to follow a creek. Is this good advice?”

Les Stroud: “It is hit and miss. Thousands of creeks lead to absolutely nowhere. As a general rule, sure, going downhill tends to be a good direction to take and most creeks flow into bigger creeks and into rivers and into civilization. But not all. Many people have become horribly lost because they attempted to follow a creek out to safety when in fact climbing up would’ve been the better choice.”

Kelly:“If someone finds themselves lost in the woods what advice would you give them?”

Les Stroud: “First, calm down. Then, practice the Survivorman Three Areas of Assessment: Take stock of what you have close at hand (backpack with food, friends, two people injured, a tent), then take stock of what is near (fresh water, one canoe left, plenty of firewood). Then, finally assess what is further out (a cabin one mile back up river, a highway one mile due east through the bush, a trail two miles down the river’s shore). Now you have a lot of information and you can make an informed decision on what to do next.”

Kelly: “Meg, I’m sorry to say if you were lost in the woods with me I’d probably only have a six-pack of beer and maybe some lipstick on me!”

Meg: “Just promise you’ll share!”

Meg:“The girl in the book is suffering from hunger and dehydration. What are the safety measures to take when finding water to drink in the wild?”

Les Stroud: “Search for moving water instead of stagnant. If it is deep, try to weigh down a container and lower it to the deeper areas of the water body before pulling up quickly, as there are likely to be less pathogens there. Remember that dew in the morning can provide a lot of liquid in some places. Look for changes in vegetation in the forest as that often indicates the presence of water. Collecting rain will be safer than ground water. Travel upstream if possible so you get to the purest spot of a stream where it is likely to be less contaminated by animal feces.”

Bear attacks happen about forty times per year globally.2

Kelly:“The character inThe Girl Who Loved Tom Gordonends up in a confrontation with a bear at the end of the novel. What should people do if they encounter a bear in the woods?”

Les Stroud: “If a black bear, play tough, make noise, try to look big, fight back … do all you can to scare it off. If a grizzly bear, play dead and hope it gets bored with you. In both cases, never run. If it’s a polar bear … pray.”

Meg:“Do you have a favorite Stephen King book or movie? What is it about the story that draws you in?”

Les Stroud: “The Green Mile by far. I hate that I am drawn in due to this horrible fear of being wrongly accused but I am elated when there is redemption and payback at the end.”

Hopefully we will never find ourselves lost in the woods, but with Les Stroud’s advice, we feel more prepared if it ever happens!

Around two thousand people get lost in the woods each year.

Trisha is suffering from hallucinations from hunger or dehydration as the days go by in the book. Does this actually happen to the human body? People can survive for a period of time without adequate food or water but our bodies begin to preserve energy and live off of fat reserves before moving on to muscle breakdown. Various bodily systems will begin to break down after just a few days without food or water and side effects may include faintness, dizziness, a drop in blood pressure, a slowing heart rate, abdominal pain, body temperature fluctuation, heart attack, or even organ failure.3 Since children naturally have a lower fat and muscle reserve than adults, they are more at risk for developing symptoms and complications much sooner. Trisha absolutely could have been suffering the effects of starvation within this time period and hallucinating.