A top student from Emory University, Christopher McCandless spent several months tramping around the United States, including a brief trip to Mexico, from 1990 to 1992. Inspired by Thoreau and Tolstoy, he donated his entire savings account to charity, cut off contact with his friends and family, and rid himself of all his possessions. He moved to the Alaskan bush in 1992. He survived off the land for several months but became ill and died after eating poisonous seeds. His body, along with a diary, were found by hunters four months after entering the bush.

McCandless' life and Alaskan voyage is recounted in the book Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer.