Crossing Paths

A Pacific Crest Trailside Reader

  • 304 pages
  • Mountaineers Books
  • 978-1-68051-570-1
  • Apr 15, 2022

Paperback / softback
$21.95
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Description
"Crossing Paths is an informative, enchanting anthology of stories and poems by Pacific Crest Trail-lovers" ? Foreword Reviews
  • Contributors include Cheryl Strayed, Carrot Quinn, Barney "Scout" Mann, Aspen Matis, Nicholas Kristof, Heather Anderson, Will "Akuna" Robinson, and many more
  • Shares new stories over the last decade to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the original PCT Readers
  • Sidebars address some of the issues affecting the PCT today
  • Includes a map of the PCT to follow along with the stories

What’s it like to be a trail angel and can romance truly blossom from first meeting to marriage on the Pacific Crest Trail? How do trail names get bestowed and what does it mean when you find yourself roaring back at a mountain lion? How have climate change, technology, and the sheer number of hikers affected life on the PCT?

Find the answers to all these questions, and so many more, in the diverse writings gathered in Crossing Paths, an anthology of stories and poems written by PCT hikers. Reflecting the contributors’ rich and varied individual experiences, this collection includes both ordinary and extraordinary experiences, from dodging lightning strikes on an exposed ridge south of Sonora Pass or surviving early fall snowstorms in the Cascades, to deeply personal walks-as-therapy following military service or cancer treatment. The selection represents geographic, gender, ethnic, and age diversity, and strives to reflect the totality and depth of life on the trail.

Contributors

Edited by Howard Shapiro and Rees Hughes
Details
  • 304 pages
  • Mountaineers Books
  • 978-1-68051-570-1
  • Apr 15, 2022
Reviews
  • ...this anthology covers a wide variety of themes relating to the trail, from climate change to increasing foot traffic to the role of technology on trail. The different authors also wrote in a range of tones, which reflects the scope of emotions and experiences that one has on trail.
    Penina Satlow, The Trek
  • This book covers the gamut of events that can happen along 2,650 miles of wilderness trail. There are mishaps with mice, and encounters with snakes, bears and cougars. There are moments of solitude and episodes of fellowship. There’s an impromptu wedding between hikers who meet on the trail and become soulmates. In sum, Crossing Paths will leave you wanting s’more.
    Barbara L McMichael, Discover Our Coast
  • Enhanced by beautiful illustrations, the anthology testifies to human hunger for contact with the natural world, for a place where the noise of civilization ceases and inner messages can be heard; where the roughness of human conflict is replaced with the kindness of “trail angels,” and where solitary communion with nature dissolves strife and striving into the vastness of distant horizons...Crossing Paths is an informative, enchanting anthology of stories and poems by Pacific Crest Trail-lovers who have met its challenges and been touched by its beauty, magic, and transformative power.
    Kristine Morris, Foreword Reviews

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