Category Archives: books and magazines

Heather Anderson – NAT GEO Adventurer of the Year

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Heather Anderson, who goes by the trail name Anish, has thru-hiked the U.S.’s mega trails—the Appalachian, the Continental Divide, and the Pacific Crest—three times. …

Since 2013, Anderson has speed-hiked 28,000 trail miles—a greater distance than the circumference of Earth at the equator. …

Anish outdid herself last year, when she became the first woman, and fifth person, to complete the Triple Crown—7,944 miles—in a calendar year. She pulled off the feat in stunning fashion, hiking an average of more than 31 miles a day to finish in 251 days, 20 hours, and 10 minutes. (Cam “Swami” Honan holds the overall record at 231 days.) …

All this from a girl who was 70 pounds overweight and often teased while growing up …

National Geographic

How does anyone do this kind of thing?

You hike a lot of 18-hour days — waking up 4 a.m. and walking until 11 p.m.

AND Heather won’t accept rides in and out of town to pick-up her resupply!

She has a new book. Available in paperback and Kindle.

In her new memoir, Thirst: 2600 Miles to Home, Heather, whose trail name is “Anish,” conveys not only her athleticism and wilderness adventures, but also shares her distinct message of courage–her willingness to turn away from the predictability of a more traditional life in an effort to seek out what most fulfills her. …

Thirst: 2600 Miles to Home

Ascent – Chris Bonington’s autobiography

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In 2016 Sir Chris Bonington updated his 1989 biography.

He added accounts of his later expeditions to Greenland, India, Morocco and his re-ascent of the Old Man of Hoy in 2014, with new climbing companion Leo Houlding. The Old Man climb was filmed by BBC. Chris was not at all sure he could still do it.

Bonington was one of the few high altitude mountaineers to survive the kind of climbs he did. AND he’s an excellent writer.

He’s known a lot of tragedy including the drowning death of a young son.

Though known as one of the great expedition leaders he had many die under that leadership.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28955087-ascent

All that said, I did enjoy this book. And recommend it to everyone regardless of whether or not you have an interest in mountaineering.

Boys of Everest by Clint Willis

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The Boys of Everest: Chris Bonington and the Tragedy of Climbing’s Greatest Generation (2007) is the full title.

Of the famed high altitude climbers I’ve always related most to Bonington. He seemed to be the smart, articulate and careful one.

Not so, I learned. There were a dozen times Chris could have / should have died like so many of the others.

Though reviews have been mixed, I did enjoy this book. Especially the audio version reader James Adams.

… courage, achievement, and heartbreaking loss tells of Bonington’s Boys, a band of climbers who reinvented mountaineering during the three decades after Everest’s first ascent. …

Next I’ll be reading Bonington’s biography – Ascent (2017)

new Torres del Paine trekking guidebook

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Paine in Chile is one of the best hiking destinations in the world. No question.

But foreigners are endlessly frustrated trying to organize their trip from abroad. Many — including myself — show up on a hope and a prayer trying to make it happen onsite.

Check our Paine Circuit Information page.

Try downloading Trekking Torres del Paine (2016) by Rudolf Abraham long in advance of your trip. It’s available for Kindle.

NEW book – Reaching Beyond Boundaries

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A Navy SEAL’s Guide to Achieving Everything You’ve Ever Imagined

I recommend this book for anyone who loves outdoor adventure.

It’s philosophy from the astonishing and inspiring life of Don Mann  … but I read it because of co-author Kraig Becker who adds his expertise as the Adventure Blogger and Podcaster. 

For the last decade, decorated Navy SEAL, accomplished athlete, and bestselling author Don Mann has been traveling across the country giving motivational talks and in the process inspiring hundreds with the secrets behind his awe-inspiring achievements. …

As an elite Navy SEAL, Mann performed seemingly impossible tasks on a regular basis. Here he details the lessons he learned from his training and shows how the rest of us can apply those teachings to our daily lives in terms of learning to push beyond our internal boundaries and achieve the goals we’ve set for ourselves, both professionally and personally. …

Amazon

I recommend the audio version of the book because it’s read by Don Mann. That ownership makes his extreme stories come to life for me. When you hear Don’s voice, you know he’s the real deal. The kind of guy who could push himself to the point of passing out during extreme exercise. The kind of guy who will not quit.

The book intersperses Don’s life story — hundreds of outdoor races included — with stories of the people who inspired him.

Reinhold Messner, for example.

Before reading this book I’d never heard of the fantastic first American, all-woman summit of Annapurna in 1978. That blew my mind. They were decades ahead of their time.

I recommend this book even if you are an armchair adventurer. It’s going to make you want to get up off the couch and get outside.

 

 

 

 

 

 

2,600-mile loop in the Pacific Northwest

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… a new thru-hike created by Ras and Kathy Vaughan.

Full-time adventurers, the Vaughans, married for 22 years, have made a habit of setting only known times where they establish never-before-recorded routes. They call themselves Team UltraPedestrian, and they named their new trail the UltraPedestrian (or UP) North Loop.

The thru-hike combines parts of four established long trails to create a 2,600-mile loop through the best of the Northwest. …

… Though much of the loop is rugged and less than ideal from a scenic perspective—it includes at least 200 miles of road walking and several areas with limited water resources …

Outside

They’ve got a book, as well.

98 Days Of Wind: The Greatest Fail Of Our Life

It’s an account of their attempt at at Grand Enchantment Trail yoyo.

Walking the Himalayas by Lev Wood

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I was disappointed in this book.

Others disagree. It’s got fairly good ratings on GoodReads.

I learned very little about the Himalayas. Indeed most of the book has him nowhere near the mountains. He’s road walking in the lowlands.

I assume Lev’s boring route had to do with logistics for the film crew following along.

Ryan Sandes and Ryno Griesel ran much higher trails by comparison.

The book is poorly written too.

He got travel advice from the Dalai Lama. That bit I enjoyed.

And the tale of their vehicle crash was horrific. One of the real dangers of the Himalaya is motor vehicle accident.

related – TV series – Walking the Himalayas