Triple Crowner booksigning at ATC Sat. for Holiday Open House (Dec. 6)

[Lauriep]

On Saturday (12/6), Triple Crowner Karen Berger will be at ATC from 10 am - 3 pm signing her extraordinary new book, America's Great Hiking Trails. The coffee table book has incredibly gorgeous photos, truly inspired overviews, highlights, and cool maps of the AT, PCT, and CDT plus these trails: North Country, Ice Age, Potomac Heritage, Florida, Natchez Trace, Arizona, Pacific Northwest, and New England.

Leaf through this book and you will want to hike (or re-hike) the A.T. starting today. You'll also want to expand your trail horizons to some of these other magnificent trails in our country, some of which are very little known but deserve this great publicity.

Karen has hiked the A.T., Pacific Crest Trail, Continental Divide Trail, and parts of many other long-distance trails in the U.S. and around the world. The Appalachian Long Distance Hikers Association (ALDHA) 2012 directory lists the following abbreviations for the trails she had completed at that time: AT, PCT, CDT, PHR, CCW, SUW, GR5, GR10, AZT, BFT, HST, ACT, HLT, MT, ATT, KTNZ, TGAC, MKC. I don't even know what all of them are. There's a key in the ALDHA directory but it would be more fun to see how many people can guess.

She's written for magazines and newspapers ranging from National Geographic Traveler to Backpacker to New York Times to Scouting magazine to ForbesTraveler to Budget Traveler.

Our Holiday Open House (9-5) is always a fun event with homemade cookies and treats, hot cider, and coffee from 9 am - 5 pm. I don't know anywhere you can go this time of year and find so many A.T. enthusiasts, ranging from thru-hikers to trail maintainers to Trail Dames to dreamers. Ron Tipton, ATC's awesome executive director (GA-ME '78, and the guy who has personally signed most of the 2013 and all the 2014 2,000-miler certificates and letters), will be there will his wife Rita in the afternoon. Of course Pop Tart and I, Anne Baker, and a bunch of awesome ATC volunteers will be there.

You can read more at these links:

America's Great Hiking Trails on ATC's Ultimate Trail Store (Support ATC with your purchase)
America's Great Hiking Trails on Amazon (read more in-depth reviews, but it's sold out here)
Frederick News Post article (about book and book signing event at ATC Saturday)
ATC's Events page (Overview of the Holiday Open House)
ATC's Facebook page (see some of the people who are coming or let the world know you're coming too)

Olde Tyme Christmas is taking place in downtown Harpers Ferry this coming weekend, and there's also a Breakfast With Santa at The Country Cafe in Bolivar (1 mile west) from 9-12 on Saturday.

Hope to see some WhiteBlazers there!

Laurie P.
ATC

[Lauriep]

I just looked at Karen's 2,000-miler report and learned some interesting things.

1) She did an 8-month thru-hike of the A.T., starting in January 1994. From what I've been able to tell comparing Amicalola Falls rosters with those who report finishing the A.T., those who start hikes in January have a significantly lower success rate than other hikers. In the last three years (2012 - 2014), only 9 out of 1652 northbounders who've reported completions to ATC started in January.

2) Karen's trail name was "Hemmingway." Although I don't know how she got it, the name seems somewhat prophetic, in the sense that she has become one of the most prolific writers of books about long-distance hiking and traveling, and has been a world traveler, like Hemingway himself.

Another tidbit: Karen was among the earliest hikers of the CDT.

[Dogwood]

If I was within 200 miles I'd go see her, stop in at the ATC, and take in the Harper's Ferry seasonal scene.

I've enjoyed several of her books. I'm looking forward to checking out her latest one. I've always wanted to meet her. Never knew her trail name.

Got me. Some of those trail abbreviations I've never heard of.

Thanks Laurie

[Mags]

Another tidbit: Karen was among the earliest hikers of the CDT.

Karen Berger, along with her hiking partner, left a register at the Cuba, NM post office way back in May 1990. In May 2013, it finally filled up and was scanned in. Worth checking out as you can see how the CDT has evolved so much over years.

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B3bf...it?usp=sharing


Blog post for more deets:
http://www.pmags.com/cdt-trail-regis...-1990-may-2013

Karen's book in the Trailside series for backpacking was one of the first books I read on the outdoors.

[Lauriep]

Cool info, Mags. Thanks for the nice post, Dogwood.

[Lauriep]

If the rain has cancelled your hiking plans and you don't want to go to the theater to see Wild during daylight, ATC in Harpers Ferry will be very cozy. I'm mulling the cider right now and staff members and volunteers are baking right now.

Karen Berger has arrived in Harpers Ferry from New England. Tomorrow we're expecting at least two or three 2014 thru-hikers (one of whom, Sisu, is now volunteering for both ATC and PATC). We've also got lots of PATC folks, Pam Underhill (as volunteer), and Ron Tipton (who just saw Wild last night). And of course a bunch of other ATC staff and volunteers, including Pop Tart and Judo.

Dave Startzell, ATC's former longtime executive director, has taken to hiking long sections of the A.T. this year and goes by the trail name of "Ghost." He just posted on Facebook that he is being tempted to come by the free cookies, if nothing else. It's a sign he's turning into a serious hiker in his retirement.

[Miner]

I once picked up a used copy of her book of her CDT hike, "Where the Waters Divide". It describes a different trail and journey then the trail journals you read today. It's worth reading if you are interested in what the CDT use to be. If I lived on the other coast, I'd like to drop by.