Chapter 3 "The Night Shift" Summary and Analysis

Chapter 3 returns to Ralston trapped in Blue John Canyon, an hour and a half into his confinement. He tries to assess how much of the chockstone's weight that his right arm is supporting. He tries to chip away at the boulder with his knife and then with the file on his multi-tool, only to discover that he's wearing the grooves away on the file instead of making any progress with the boulder.

Ralston soon realizes that this is a futile and that the only one way he will survive is to cut his arm off. Of course he doesn't want to do it. He knows that he lacks the tools to cut through bone, so he continues chipping away at the chockstone.

While he is working on the chockstone, Ralston remembers visiting Utah...