Somewhat far from the shores of our islands, it's a good read from one of our favourite authors so we think it's worth a mention. Grizzly Bears and Razor Clams tells the story of Chris Townsend's journey along the Pacific Northwest Trail in 2010 shortly after it was made a National Scenic Trail. It runs for 1200 miles from the Continental Divide westwards to the Pacific ocean.
The book is in a landscape rather than the more usual portrait format, which fits the use of many large, rich, landscape photographs very well. The story is easy to read with his day-to-day highs and lows coming through clearly in the writing. Descriptions of the wild countryside abound, as do notable events. He includes his frustrations with busy road sections. Encounters with wildlife, the Border Patrol. And mentions the few people he met on the trail. Camping high at over 2000m, way above Ben Nevis, whilst still in the trees would be a novelty for us and his descriptions of his campsites adds to the ambiance of the book. Whilst there is some information on the route he took it wouldn't be enough to use as a guide, that wasn't his intention. It is the story of his walk and it's a cracking read.
You can comment on this post in our forum.