Jeff > Recent Status Updates

Louie has decided to build a new camp that will be even more luxurious than any other. An Indian, Johnny Leaf was caught stealing Louie's traps and Johnny pulled a knife but Louie knocked him out. His new camp has many new functions from a smoke house to an ice hole. It becomes more advanced as more outsiders come in. A mass migration of bears passed through, 400 were spotted and at least 75 were killed and sold.

Louie arrives at Jocks Lake and visits old friends there. In 10 days he traveled 40 miles on foot and 30 miles by boat. He has camped 4 nights, fished 18 hours, and took 12 pounds of trout. A bear cub was found in a cave and was brought back to town where it was raised for years behind the bar in a zoo-like enclosure. It became an adult and it would often be given whiskey for fun. They had to kill it after awhile.

Louie has expanded his territory to hundreds of unclaimed acres of wilderness. He brings in hundreds of dollars a year from his hunting, fishing, trapping, and gum-picking. Louie now sees many visitors at his camps who pay for lodging and boat rental. The money he makes is all spent in a week when he visits town. He buys children candy and everybody drinks. Louie decides he is going to scout new land to the west.

Louie continues to live in his camps where he hunts, fishes, traps, and grows his food. He came across a lake with very large lake trout in it and these new trout attracted new people, so Louie became a guide to these people although he hated the outside world and enjoyed the solitude of his little camps. He was a savior as well, he made efforts to keep the fish and game population thriving rather than decimating it.

Louie Seymour is introduced as a rough and strong young man that has been raised in the wilderness of the Adirondacks. He joined the circus at 8 and then at 12 he got his first job working on the Erie Canal. In his 30's he spent time on lumber jobs from Indian Lake to Saratoga. He spent all the money he made on liquor every week. He soon built lean-to camps across Upstate New York where he trapped and sold his furs.

Callahan is on his 76th day of survival and is growing very weak when he sees lights in the distance. He is headed for the island of Marie Galante where is soon picked up by some fishermen. He is taken to a hospital to begin his recovery. His parents are informed and they come to visit him. He has lost 44 pounds and is severely dehydrated and starved. He recovers in Marie Galante for awhile, he is finally at ease.

Callahan has been adrift for 75 days now. He has seen another ship pass close by but it does not see him. His water still is now completely rotted and torn. He has to rely on rainwater and his tools to collect it. Callahan's spear is almost useless now but he has started catching birds that rest on his raft. In the states his family is still looking for him and they now begin to think he is dead.

Callahan has recovered from his severe depression and finally fixes the hole in the raft for good. He creates a more efficient water collecting system but the water becomes tainted with waste and poisons him. Callahan makes a sextant and finds his location on a map. He is en route to land but he could overshoot it. Callahan floats into a highway of trash miles long in which he gathers many more supplies.

Disaster has struck Callahan while fishing. His spear has ripped a large gaping hole into his raft. He desperately tries to repair it and he eventually slows the leak down but he can't stop it. His spear tip has broken and now he has lashed his knife to the end of his spear which proves effective. After a rough night and depleting food and energy, he has given up the will to live and is within deaths grasp.

Callahan is still without rescue. His spear is now broken and he can no longer shoot the spears. He has to manually stab the fish, which has proved very difficult. His fresh water still no longer works, so he is using the less efficient back-up still. He is becoming extremely weak. His mental and physical health are deteriorating at an alarming rate. No ships have passed in awhile, and now rescue seems hopeless.

Callahan has been adrift for 24 days now. He continuously catches and eats the Dorados that have formed a permanent school around his raft. Three ships have passed, two within a hundred feet, but no rescue has seen him yet. Sharks continue to batter the raft in the night almost capsizing it. His fresh water supply now rapidly grows after patching the still. He has reached a shipping lane and rescue seems imminent.

Callahan is still adrift in the Atlantic Ocean. He is rationing his water and food. Exposure to saltwater has caused boils to form which can lead to infections. Sharks now frequently bump his raft. He has made a solar still for fresh water. Eventually he catches a small fish which can be added to his food supplies. He is gradually becoming schizophrenic from lack of sleep and his overall health is deteriorating

Steven Callahan is an American that has completed a transatlantic voyage on his boat, the Napoleon Soto. He built it himself and has put years of work into it. He sets out from Spain for the Canary Islands which should take him only two weeks. Soon he is struck with a rogue wave and is forced to abandon ship. He escaped on his 6 person raft with little supplies. Now he is alone and adrift in the vast Atlantic Ocean.