Sierra Blogging Post Archives

Remember Aron Ralston - the climber who got his arm stuck in a boulder and was eventually forced to cut it off in order to survive? Well, Hollywood is making a movie about his ordeal.

The Fox Searchlight film, set to be directed by Danny Boyle, (Slumdog Millionaire) is aptly titled "127 Hours."

It's the stuff great movies are made of. Ralston was climbing in Canyonlands National Park in Utah in 2003 when an 800-pound boulder fell on top of him and pinned his arm so tightly he was unable to free it. He was deep in the remote BlueJohn Canyon and hadn't told anyone where he was going, (big mistake - always let someone know when and where you're headed into the backcountry and when to expect you back) so a rescue mission was highly unlikely.


After taking stock of his food - two burritos and candy bar crumbs - Ralston began chippping away at the boulder with his multi-tool pocket knife. He did this for 4 days until he realized it was never going to work and there was only one way he was going to live. By first breaking and then amputating his own arm. So that's what he did - with a multitool generic Leatherman dulled from 4 days of chipping away at a boulder.

His grueling story should translate well to film, but if I'm picturing it correctly it might be a little intense to watch. I imagine lots of grimacing and eye-shielding in the audience. Can't imagine what it was like to live it.

Read Aron Ralston's full story at Outside magazine.