Last night, I veered away from my usual Netflix diet of foreign cinema and noir thrillers to watch something a little different: 180 South, a documentary about mountain climbing and surfing in Patagonia. It was a gorgeous film - how could a film set in Patagonia not be gorgeous? But I had a realization: no matter how much I admire the outdoors, I'm very different from the kind of person whose idea of fun is a yearlong hiking trip.Jeff Johnson, the film's narrator and protagonist, quotes Yvon Chouinard, founder of outdoor clothier Patagonia, to the effect that mountain climbers are "conquerors of the useless." Indeed. Since retirement, Chouinard has been involved with land preservations efforts in South America, including the sometimes controversial work of Conservacion Patagonica. It's an interesting case, yet one the film explores with little depth. Shades of neo-colonialist environmentalism? Perhaps.
Mostly, I was struck by one of Johnson's statements: that every time he finds himself in a wild, desolate place, he comes back with answers to questions he didn't know he had. I'm completely the opposite: when I find myself in a wild, desolate place, my thoughts go something like this: Wow, this is pretty. Is it time for dinner?
Regardless, I enjoyed the movie. I think I'd love to go to Patagonia someday.
(Photo credit: DailyHiker.com)
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