Are you looking for something in our Travel Books department? If so, you might be interested in these items. Travel Books Skywalker–Close Encounters on the Appalachian trail Bill Walker, Jerry Gramckow, Audra George Price: $4.95 Stumbling Thru: Hike Your Own Hike A. Digger...

  Let me assure you of two things. First, if you have gotten the idea of attempting an Appalachian Trail (AT) thru-hike lodged in your head, the great odds are that sooner or later you will find yourself–backpack bravely strapped on–facing north at Springer Mountain in north Georgia. That is the good news. The bad news–and I am even more sure of this–is that you will never find a perfect time to attempt your...

“Have you heard any snow reports?’ PCT (Pacific Crest Trail) thru-hikers are accustomed to spending the winter before their thru-hikes obsessing over snow levels in the so-called ‘High Sierra’. For good reason. The High Sierra is the most daunting and beautiful part of the PCT. Hands down. This section both haunts and beckons. It’s all about the snow. In 2006, the year after my AT (Appalachian Trail) thru-hike, I...

The annual Trail Days Festival in Damascus, Virginia is one of the outdoor world’s marquee events. For good reason. It was started in 1987 with the idea of bringing together hikers from previous years. It has succeeded signally in that regard; but it is also a lot more than that. The whole outdoor community seems to be on display. For starters, Damascus is the perfect place to have the event; it is widely known as the friendliest town on...

“I would definitely go to the Kickoff.” Time after time, when I asked ex PCT-hikers for advice, that was the first thing they suggested. They were referring to the annual Pacific Crest Trail Kickoff Party held every year on the last weekend in April in Lake Morena County State Park in the southern California desert. The PCTactually begins at the Mexican border; Lake Morena State Park is 21 miles north of the border. Thru-hikers...

“You’ve never seen anything like it.”This is what I was repeatedly promised by countless people before walking the Pacific Crest Trail in 2009 and the Annapurna Circuit in 2012. I can assure you that both were correct. The Himalayas, of course, are the mecca for outdoor enthusiasts the world over. Almost all of the world’s greatest peaks (Everest, K-2) lie within this mountain range. The greatest hikers and climbers in...