Why do you think that this story of a lone dead hiker made its way from the local Alaskan papers, across the country to the NY Times? What did people recognize in this story?

In my opinion, people were at first horrifed by Chris' actions, and what most considered foolishness. After the story broke, he became an enigma, someone that most people were trying to figure out.... someone who fascinated us. Let's face it, there are a lot of people who think about doing what Chris did, and then change their minds. Maybe they even regret not taking an opportunity for adventure. Chris did something people dream about, even if the ending didn't turn out as planned.