Newlywed woman swept away by river while trying to reach abandoned bus made famous by ‘Into The Wild’ movie
A newlywed woman who drowned after being swept away by a river in Alaska was trying to reach an abandoned bus made famous by the book and film Into the Wild.
Veramika Maikamava, 24, from Belarus, and her husband, Piotr Markielau, also 24, were heading for the bus where hiker Christopher McCandless met his death in 1992.
However, as the couple tried to cross the Teklanika river along the Stampede Trail near Healy, the woman was swept under water, local state troopers said.
The river was flowing high and fast because of recent rains.
Mr Markielau said he was able to pull his wife out of the water a short distance away downriver, but she had died by then.
He called police late on Thursday to report her death.
The bus has been the source of multiple rescues since it was made famous, first by Jon Krakauer’s book published in 1996 and then by Sean Penn’s 2007 film.
Both chronicled the life and death of Christopher McCandless, who hiked into the Alaska wilderness in April 1992 with little food and equipment and spent the summer living in the bus. The hiker was found dead inside almost four months later.
In May 2013, three German hikers had to be rescued trying to reach the bus on the Stampede Trail, near Healy, located about 10 miles north of the entrance to Denali National Park and Preserve on the Parks Highway.
They told troopers the river they crossed getting to the bus had become impassable for the return due to high, swift-running water. The hikers had proper gear but only enough food for three days, troopers said.
Additional reporting by Associated Press
