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View Full Version : im writing a sequel to "a walk in the woods."



corduroy
02-24-2006, 20:10
Alright, before I even sink my teeth into this I'd like to clear up some really vulgar rumors that are currently circulating the trail world about me.
I am not hiking this year.

Ridge
02-24-2006, 20:35
Use a Black Bear on the cover, you know, like the ones you find on the AT. Not like the Grizzly Bear, you know, like the ones you find in Yellowstone or Kodiak Island off the coast of Alaska, on the first book, Oh yea, I'll not be buying one, regardless.

corduroy
02-24-2006, 20:59
I know what youre saying ridge, but after re-reading Bill Brysons masterpiece for a thirthy fourth time this week, I've decided to put an image that is completely out of context on my cover.

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.hidalgotexas.com/images/killerb.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.hidalgotexas.com/original%2520page/killerbee.asp&h=779&w=1172&sz=539&tbnid=xZFC3Klkndqw8M:&tbnh=99&tbnw=150&hl=en&start=5&prev=/images%3Fq%3DKiller%2BBee%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%2 6lr%3D%26sa%3DG

This is what I think I'm going with, and I believe it's faily obvious what motvated the decision. I feel it really pins down mans struggle with the unknown, which all of us thru hikers can really identify with.


Enjoy my totally authentic and original sequel to the original. It is temporarily titled "The Great Contagious Gospel of Vermin."

Ridge
02-24-2006, 21:09
You know, I like Killer Bees. Ever since the SNL bunch did skits, John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, etc, I've wanted to get a bunch of hikers dressed like that, you know, with the antennas bopping around on top of their heads and the striped shirts of yellow and black. Would be a sure crowd pleaser at Damascus Trail Days.

Doctari
02-24-2006, 21:09
I am not hiking this year.

Not hiking this year? So what, not hiking the AT didn't keep Bryson from writing the first one, why should it stop you from writing the sequel?

Hiking fiction can be written anywhere, I say go for it.

Ridge
02-24-2006, 21:11
Not hiking this year? So what, not hiking the AT didn't keep Bryson from writing the first one, why should it stop you from writing the sequel?

Hiking fiction can be written anywhere, I say go for it.


You got that right.

corduroy
02-24-2006, 21:18
Guy's whatre you talking about? Will hiked the entire thing mostly, sort of. I know this first hand, I mean just read that book another six or seven times.

Tin Man
02-24-2006, 22:47
Nice timing on this thread as I just read the passage where Bill and his invisible buddy Katz did their transformation from thru-hikers to yellow blazers...

"And how did I feel about giving up the quest when a granny in sneakers, a human beachball named Woodrow, and over 3,900 others had made it to Katahdin? Well, pretty good, as a matter of fact. I was still going to hike the Appalachian Trail; I just wasn't going to hike all of it. Katz and I had already walked half a million steps, if you can believe it. It didn't seem altogether essential to do the other 4.5 million to get the idea of the thing."

[Bryson, B. (1998). A Walk in the Woods, Broadway Books, p. 114]

Brock
02-27-2006, 10:47
Whats with all the hate towards Bill Bryson?
I haven't read his book in a long time, but why do you hate him and his book? Why is "Bill Bryson is a Candyass"?
His book is entitiled "A Walk In The Woods", not "A Thru-hike of the AT". So why hate on him if he quit the trail yet still decided to write about his experiences walking in the woods?
It sounds to me that some people are jealous of his success and fame from this book. Other people (who probably have thru-hiked) are just sad they missed the opportunity to write about the AT and now that opportunity is past. Would you knock Jan Curran too if he had ultimately failed hiking the AT? Come on, make a joke about him, it took him 2 years to finish the AT, what a candyass.
I don't mean to open up a huge can of worms here, just give me the brief specifics why everyone hates Bill Bryson.
For all the people that say "hike your own hike", I sure hope none of you are putting the hate on Bryson for hiking his own hike.

JoeHiker
02-27-2006, 11:57
Agree completely. I've never understood the venom this guy generates.

Doctari
02-27-2006, 12:05
Whats with all the hate towards Bill Bryson?
For all the people that say "hike your own hike", I sure hope none of you are putting the hate on Bryson for hiking his own hike.

The general concensus is that for the most part, Bryson's "Hike" never happened, at least not by him. I have lost the sources, but: many of the people mentioned by him, have no memory of him or Katz, and from what he says in his book, Katz would be seriously memorable. All in all, the book seem to be a merging of several journals, with a touch of his wit.

And, for me (Yes I read the book) my dislike for the man is from his almost constant put down of: locals, hostel providers, merchants, everyone. The only one mentioned in a good light was Wingfoot, someone by his own admission whom he never met.

Yes, there are some funny bits, I did laugh much of the time. But not enough.

His final line: "I hiked the AT" Is much like someone who took a tiny nibble of a great steak, (or even just saw a picture of it) & said "I have eaten well".

In order to "Hike your own hike" you have to actually hike.

Just my $0.02

Doctari.

grassyknoll44
02-27-2006, 12:08
I've could probably count all the books I've read cover to cover with the fingers on one of my hands, and most of those were for school. A friend gave me this book to borrow and I actually read the whole thing- which if you knew me says a lot. It is a great book!

waterboy99
02-27-2006, 12:42
When I thru hiked in 1999, Bryson,s book was on the best seller list and I met many people (in town and day hikers) that had just read his book. A great many of these people asked me about the trail because they had read his book. All were very friendly to me and several said " I have seen hikers before but never spoken to or given rides to them, but after reading Bryson"s book I came out here to talk to hikers" . Now, I always enjoyed talking to anyone I met so this was no problem for me. I had one lady ask if I could talk to her book club as they had just finished Bryson's book but the next meeting was 3 days away. I told her to just wait and offer so food and she would have all the hikers she wanted to speak to her group.

I would really like to hear how anyone feels that Bryson's book hurt their hike.

Waterboy99

weary
02-27-2006, 12:49
Whats with all the hate towards Bill Bryson?
I haven't read his book in a long time, but why do you hate him and his book? Why is "Bill Bryson is a Candyass"?
His book is entitiled "A Walk In The Woods", not "A Thru-hike of the AT". So why hate on him if he quit the trail yet still decided to write about his experiences walking in the woods?
It sounds to me that some people are jealous of his success and fame from this book. Other people (who probably have thru-hiked) are just sad they missed the opportunity to write about the AT and now that opportunity is past. Would you knock Jan Curran too if he had ultimately failed hiking the AT? Come on, make a joke about him, it took him 2 years to finish the AT, what a candyass.
I don't mean to open up a huge can of worms here, just give me the brief specifics why everyone hates Bill Bryson.
For all the people that say "hike your own hike", I sure hope none of you are putting the hate on Bryson for hiking his own hike.
A negative book review is not evidence of hate. And in Bryson's case, just good judgment.

Bryson worked all the stereotypes and produced a passably funny book. But it had virtually nothing to do with the trail I saw in 1993, or the trail I have hiked and worked on for the past three decades.

He obviously hiked some on the AT. Equally obviously, he didn't like the trail and he didn't like or even talk to many of the people he met on the trail.

He padded the thing to book length by spending quite a few days in libraries and tapping his imagination.

Weary

BigE
02-27-2006, 13:19
I say we turn the whole matter over to Oprah ;)

I bought the book. I read it and was entertained. It was worth the cover price. Beyond that I'm not gonna get my britches in a knot over it. I've read most of the AT books and enjoy them all, some are better than others of course but aint that the way with everything.

=e=

The Solemates
02-27-2006, 17:47
I've could probably count all the books I've read cover to cover with the fingers on one of my hands, and most of those were for school. A friend gave me this book to borrow and I actually read the whole thing- which if you knew me says a lot. It is a great book!


Im an avid reader, so unlike you, I can probably count all the books that I DID NOT read cover to cover with the fingers on one of my hands. Bryson's book was one of them. I read about half of it, and it was so horrible that I could not finish. Not only does it incorrectly portray trail life, his literary skills are boring as well.

Ridge
02-27-2006, 18:39
Whats with all the hate towards Bill Bryson?............

"Hate" is probably more like "Dislike". He's basically an IDIOT who didn't thru the AT. Also, has a Grizzley Bear on the cover of his book, IDIOT.

Almost There
02-27-2006, 19:37
I didn't hate the book, but I recognized his attempt to satirize the trail.That being said, as I have come to know more and more trailfolk and hiker trash I can say he stereotyped quite often unfairly. I do know that he did stop in at Rainbow Springs near Franklin as people there did remember him..and not necessarily in a kindly light. I also agree with others that with what was probably his greatest success he never donated back to the trail, not that he was obligated to, but it would have been nice if he had given back to that which made him more money than I'll make any time in this lifetime.

Lone Wolf
02-27-2006, 19:40
How do you know he didn't donate to the ATC? Lots of folks do so anonymously.

Tin Man
02-27-2006, 20:07
Whether he donated monetarily is only part of the equation. Bill did raise awareness of the trail. For starters, he got me interested in hiking the trail and I'm sure you are all happy to have me here. :p And I think there was some generally positive buzz that came out of the book.

I for one liked his book when I first read it and before I became "trail aware". I am reading it a second time now and am having lots of trouble with his portrayal of towns, town people, and other hikers. The history stuff is kind of fascinating, but I wonder how slanted that might be given his slant on the trail.

Anyway, the book is entertaining, but not as realistic as many others.

Almost There
02-27-2006, 20:07
Touche! LW you may be right! What would I do without your infinite wisdom in such matters!!!:D

Ridge
02-27-2006, 20:17
How do you know he didn't donate to the ATC? Lots of folks do so anonymously.


I would bet good money if he had it would be heavily advertised. It's be sort of like the tobacco companies donating 10 million to cancer research then spending 50 million advertising that fact.

Also, he should have donated, but 1000 to 1 odds he didn't.

Disney
02-27-2006, 20:48
Why don't I like him?

He was overly critical of the people I found to be warm and friendly.
He didn't mention several key aspects of the trail that are common knowledge leading me to believe he lied about the amount he actually did. (trail names/trail magic). And I know for a fact that at least one of the "facts" he reports is actually wrong. He refers to a superintendent of West Point in 1785. West Point was founded as a school in 1802. It may seem like a small thing, but it leads me to question his other facts.

bullseye
02-27-2006, 21:03
Personally, I thought Bryson's book was a funny satire, but then again I laugh at my own jokes.:D I asked Keith Shaw Sr and Jr. about Bryson and they vaguely remembered him, and had no recollection of Katz. Most people seem to think he was figment of Bryson's imagination. If you take it seriously you'll be offended and disturbed, but if you can look at it as the fiction/satire that it seems to be, there is some humor there.

Skidsteer
02-27-2006, 21:24
I asked Keith Shaw Sr and Jr. about Bryson and they vaguely remembered him, and had no recollection of Katz. Most people seem to think he was figment of Bryson's imagination.

That's interesting especially as I found that part of the book to be among the most poignant sections of the narrative. Wasn't that when Katz broke down and had a couple beers? Perhaps I remember incorrectly.

KirkMcquest
02-27-2006, 21:56
I'd be interested in a book written by someone who's hiked the whole trail in one attempt

Skidsteer
02-27-2006, 21:59
I'd be interested in a book written by someone who's hiked the whole trail in one attempt

Well, there's a bunch out there.

KirkMcquest
02-27-2006, 22:20
Any good ones?

Skidsteer
02-27-2006, 22:28
Any good ones?

http://dx.doi.org/10.1036/0070444587

Interesting information on black bears as I remember.;)

astrogirl
02-27-2006, 22:35
The thing about Bryson is that he's travel writer. This was just one of his travels. I've read all of his books because I think he's hilarious, but 1) I read a lot and 2) you have not worry about what's true and what isn't. Travel writing is in some ways like "fish stories", if you know what I mean.

As to the bear on the cover, I doubt he had any part of that. The publisher made that choice, and likely by the time anyone realized there was a species error there, it was too late.

Disney
02-27-2006, 23:03
My presonal favorite is As Far As the Eye Can See by David Brill.

There are many good books by people who have actually completed a thru hike. Here's a thread on this subject.

http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=11463
(not trying to resurrect a dead thread of course)

If you want to see one before you get to the bookstore:
http://www.skwc.com/exile/Hail-nf.html
This is very much like a book, much much more than an online journal.

Marta
02-27-2006, 23:04
As Astrogirl said, Bryson is a travel writer. He is also an American, but lived most of his adult life in the UK, and is possibly the best-selling living author over there. When I lived in England ('96-'99) his book "Notes from a Small Island" was the #1 bestseller for well over a year, and was threatening the sales records of authors like Tolkein. As he does in "Walk," Bryson walked and travelled spottily around the UK and told anecdotes about his experiences. When he was in a bad mood, he criticizes and ridicules everything about the place he was. When he was cheery, he reports more kindly. I enjoyed the book, but it is hardly a travel guide to the Small Island.

I like his books but I also know that he 1) is a misanthrope 2) dislikes the US in general, preferring the UK and looking on his adopted country with a more kindly eye 3) particularly dislikes, fears, and is willfully ignorant about the South. I find this particularly weird since he's from Iowa, for goodness sake, which hardly seems more cultured and cosmopolitan than Georgia.

Even so, his description of buying gear and going through "retail burnout" cracks me up every time I read it. The bear on the cover of the book is a fantasy bear, so realism plays no part in how it looks, since the only bears which bothered him were bears existing only in his head.

Another part of the book that resonates with me every spring...when he's getting the shuttle ride to the start and talks with the driver about people who start the Trail and quit almost immediately because it wasn't what they expected. Do the driver think he and Katz will make it? Uh, sure.

However, if he doesn't amuse you, then there is absolutely no excuse to read the book. It has very little redeeming social value.

RITBlake
02-28-2006, 04:18
during our thru hike one of the most commonly asked question by people in town was "did you Bryson's book?" It never failed. I happily answered yes. Not sure what all the negative attention around Brysons book is. As someone pointed out its never presented as a book about thru hiking the entire AT. And at least he is honest. We hiked w/ several people who didnt even come close to thru hiking and claimed they had done the entire trail atop of Springer mtn.

Another note of interest... it's amazing how much impact a 'best-seller' has on the american culture psyche. There are plenty of books on the AT. However, this is without question the best known (outside the AT community) book on the AT. Maybe people are jealous, maybe they are afraid of having the AT privacy invaded. I don't know. Its a popular book about the AT.And Brysons laughing all the way to the bank. Write your own book and see how many copies you sell.

RITBlake
02-28-2006, 04:22
As someone pointed out its never presented as a book about thru hiking the entire AT.

what I mean by this is that the book is never advertised or promoted as a book about thru hiking the entire AT. Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail could mean 20 feet or 2000 miles. Its a story, its entertainment.

Now that enough people have bashed the book, maybe we can start another anti wingfoot thread.

squirrel bait
02-28-2006, 05:54
Marta, J.K. Rowling is most likely the best selling author in the UK.

squirrel bait
02-28-2006, 05:57
Oh goodness, not an Iowan. :eek:

Marta
02-28-2006, 08:07
Marta, J.K. Rowling is most likely the best selling author in the UK.

You are absolutely right, as of now. I was just moving away as Harry Potter was bursting on the scene. My kids' friends were trying to get them to read Book 1, and they were saying, "We don't read kids' books anymore!" Little did we know...

Ridge
02-28-2006, 19:45
Bryson's an IDIOT and all the rumors about Redford and Newman doing a movie is hopefully just that, a big rumor.

Jack Tarlin
02-28-2006, 20:09
In re. to one of the above posts:

1. Bryson hasn't lived most of his life in Britain. He was born in '51, and has
spent 20-odd years there, i.e. less than half his life.

2. He is certainly NOT the best-selling author in Britain. Last I heard, for
many years, this would be D.G. Hessayon, who specialized in books
about gardens and herbs. The best selling writers in Britain the past
few years are, in all likelihood, J.K. Rowling and Dan Brown, same as here.

ed bell
02-28-2006, 20:33
I find this particularly weird since he's from Iowa, for goodness sake, which hardly seems more cultured and cosmopolitan than Georgia.
I'm originally from Iowa and my family on both sides came to the US in the 1800's and settled in Iowa. You are right on about the rural similarities with Ga. Its been my experience that mid-westerners are usually pretty laid back, down to earth and above all non-judgemental. Having now lived in the South for virtually my entire adult life, I've found that I fit right in.:sun

No Belay
03-18-2006, 21:14
Hiking fiction can be written anywhere, .

Ya got that right. Check out a bunch of the post on WB.;)

maxNcathy
04-29-2006, 15:29
I got the idea that Bill thought it was very TOUGH doing the AT...even maybe a bit too tough for himand his buddy.Maybe he had time constraints with his wife not so enthused with his being away so long from home.

In any case I liked his writing and found him humorous.

Our own mindset makes the Trail and hike what it is at the time.Probably no two hikes feel the same, even for the same hiker.

I wish others would write a book about hiking the AT...even if they hiked 800 miles on it. One can learn alot even the first 500 miles!

Ridge
04-29-2006, 18:54
I got the idea that Bill thought it was very TOUGH doing the AT...even maybe a bit too tough for himand his buddy.Maybe he had time constraints with his wife not so enthused with his being away so long from home.

In any case I liked his writing and found him humorous.

Our own mindset makes the Trail and hike what it is at the time.Probably no two hikes feel the same, even for the same hiker.

I wish others would write a book about hiking the AT...even if they hiked 800 miles on it. One can learn alot even the first 500 miles!

Try http://www.trailjournals.com are just google for journals, better than a book.

Hana_Hanger
04-29-2006, 19:45
Personally, I thought Bryson's book was a funny satire, but then again I laugh at my own jokes.:D I asked Keith Shaw Sr and Jr. about Bryson and they vaguely remembered him, and had no recollection of Katz. Most people seem to think he was figment of Bryson's imagination. If you take it seriously you'll be offended and disturbed, but if you can look at it as the fiction/satire that it seems to be, there is some humor there.

No doubt that is why he put the Grizzly Bear on the front cover over putting the Black Bear there...goes along with the satire of the whole book!:p

brancher
04-30-2006, 08:06
No doubt that is why he put the Grizzly Bear on the front cover over putting the Black Bear there...goes along with the satire of the whole book!:p

I agree, it was a satire. But there were some hilarious moments which, at a little stretch, all hikers can laugh at. I've met some very unusual folks on the trail - not bad, just unusual. And, I've felt some of the same feelings.... y'know, the "hill after hill after hill" stuff. And, I wasn't crazy about the negative treatment of locals and hostel owners, but that's just me.

One thing to remember: this is not a book about the AT. It is a book about two guys who try for whatever reason, to do something unreasonable for them.

This is a funny story about midlife stuff, and the AT is just a backdrop - a canvas, so to speak. A similar book could have been written about someone training for an ultra-marathon, or a long-distance swim, or whatever.

CaptChaos
05-01-2006, 00:36
Well, interesting thread.

While I have read the book, I was not that taken by it.

As one who has never done the whole trail I am sure that he left out many things or did not see them to begin with.

For me, since I hike between Spence Field, Russell Field and Mollies Ridge, I have to admit that after my trip in October when Rita was pounding away at me at Spence Field that I did find his account of spending the night at Spence Field right on when it came to being stuck in the rain all day.

I seem to recall the trip back to Cades Cove Ranger station sucked big time. By the time I made it back to the car it would have been hard to tell if I was human or a prune.

John

weary
05-01-2006, 08:07
I agree, it was a satire. ..... .
HMMM. That's a new twist, though the book contains little intrinsic evidence that satire was intended. I suspect it wasn't. It's simply a travelogue of a failed AT hike, stretched to book length by a bit of research into such things as coal mine fires and some imagined speculation about hikers, the US Forest Service and other mildly related matters.

Weary

Rendezvous01
05-01-2006, 21:03
My biggest gripe about Bryson is that he really really skewered one of the best parts of the Trail, which is the Community. He had very little positive to say about other hikers, hostel owners, and the neighbors of the Trail who make the thru-hike, or even a section-hike, the experience that it is. He missed out, and that was his loss. While I truly enjoyed the hiking, the challenge, and the scenery of my three months on the Trail, more than anything else I enjoyed the people I met. I rediscovered America on the AT, and Bill didn't.

One of the reasons for the success of his book, IMO, was that he failed to complete what he (allegedly) set out to do--to which all of us can relate. Because all of us are prone to failure in our lives, we enjoy experiencing the failures of others, particularly when those experiences are painted in a somewhat humorous light. When we put down the book, we chuckle and say "Gee, I bet I could do better than him."

Bryson raised our national awareness of the AT, and, by association, other long-distance hiking trails. I would surmise that a sizable portion of those who attempted a thru hike in the past half-dozen years were inspired, in part, by Bryson's book.

Ridge Rat
05-02-2006, 00:08
HMMM. That's a new twist, though the book contains little intrinsic evidence that satire was intended. I suspect it wasn't. It's simply a travelogue of a failed AT hike, stretched to book length by a bit of research into such things as coal mine fires and some imagined speculation about hikers, the US Forest Service and other mildly related matters.

Weary

Just as a tidbit on the coalmine fires. I will have to say that he has actually been to Centralia to be able to portray it the way he did. Living in PA and not being a native, the first time a friend of mine took me to centralia I was dumbfounded. I would say it's one of the weirdest things I have ever seen in my life. If you have never been there and have the chance I would say it is a great destination. I applaud him on adding centralia as being a very vital piece of PA history that is little known and should be made more aware of. These people lost their town, their life and everything due to the city trying to burn some trash for memorial day weekend. Now it's a ghost town and I am sure it will be for years to come and maybe in the future it will again be a great piece of unaltered land for our grandchildren to enjoy.

spittinpigeon
05-16-2006, 22:38
This reminds me of "Passion of the Christ". There was an argument in a different forum where all the atheists ridiculed it for having a white Jesus, or that Gibson made a lot of money, therefore it's completely innacurate. S'all Jealousy.
The same thing happens with every Michael Moore movie. "He's fat, and he made a lot of money."

Tinker
05-16-2006, 22:52
Though Bryson's style is hilarious, I wonder if he isn't at least a little misanthropic. I guess we can all be when we're out of our element in the midst of those who are completely at home in the same setting.

I hear that he's wisely left the little town of Hanover, NH, and is probably on the run, trying to stay a step ahead of Buddy and Jensine.:D

Frolicking Dinosaurs
05-16-2006, 23:50
I read the book and wasn't thrilled by Bryson's literary talent (?). Personally, I think the journal of Troll, Anchor and Oblivious from their 2005 thru (http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?trailname=3002)is a far better read. Some publisher really should print and sell that journal as a book - it is a far more accurate protrayal of the experience and Anchor is a better writer than Bryson IMO.

Jaybird
06-15-2006, 10:59
Alright, before I even sink my teeth into this I'd like to clear up some really vulgar rumors that are currently circulating the trail world about me. I am not hiking this year.




Hey you are NOT HIKING this year....WOW!
Just like Bryson...(the Candy A*S!)


Maybe you can take your photos from the road looking @ the A.T.
Maybe you can interview "real" hikers so that you can get some background info (is that research?) for your book....hmmmmmmm...sounds familiar!:D

BlackCloud
06-15-2006, 11:12
Its a popular book about the AT.And Brysons laughing all the way to the bank. Write your own book and see how many copies you sell.

It's easier to sell a good story when you've fabricated it...

BlackCloud
06-15-2006, 12:53
S'all Jealousy.
The same thing happens with every Michael Moore movie. "He's fat, and he made a lot of money."

Michael Moore is a lying socialist who makes propaganda films against capitalism in general and the United States in specific.

He is dangerous.

Ridge
06-15-2006, 12:58
Michael Moore is a lying socialist who makes propaganda films against capitalism in general and the United States in specific.

He is dangerous.

He hikes with dogs too.

BlackCloud
06-16-2006, 07:42
He hikes with dogs too.

WHAT?:-??????

mingo
06-16-2006, 14:19
there's no question in my mind that bryson made up katz. katz is in a lot of bryson's books. he's the funniest thing about them. he's always just popping up at the last minute to come along with bryson on some trip or another. it's too convenient. if he's not fiction, then he's an idiot unless he gets a big cut of bryson's royalties.

Cookerhiker
06-16-2006, 19:06
there's no question in my mind that bryson made up katz. katz is in a lot of bryson's books. he's the funniest thing about them. he's always just popping up at the last minute to come along with bryson on some trip or another. it's too convenient. if he's not fiction, then he's an idiot unless he gets a big cut of bryson's royalties.

I don't think off unless Wes Wisson is in on it. When I needed a shuttle to Springer in February 2004, I contacted Wes. During the ride, the first question I asked him was whether Katz was real. He said "there were two of them" and also described how Katz had all kinds of things hanging from his pack, specifically mentioning shower flip-flops.

Cookerhiker
06-16-2006, 19:11
My biggest gripe about Bryson is that he really really skewered one of the best parts of the Trail, which is the Community. He had very little positive to say about other hikers, hostel owners, and the neighbors of the Trail who make the thru-hike, or even a section-hike, the experience that it is. He missed out, and that was his loss. While I truly enjoyed the hiking, the challenge, and the scenery of my three months on the Trail, more than anything else I enjoyed the people I met. I rediscovered America on the AT, and Bill didn't.....

On the whole I liked the book. Out of all the gripes and criticisms I've heard about Bryson and the book, your's is the most insightful Rendezvous. You hit the nail on the head.

mweinstone
06-18-2006, 20:22
there have allways been folks who lie about having thru hiked. why? because there dumb.no one ever lies about having hiked the pct.but you can read so much about out AT that it becomes possible to lie and fool most people. all real AT lovers know exactly the level of hiking someone has done by listening to them.were a family and we reconize our own.

BlackCloud
06-19-2006, 07:18
there have allways been folks who lie about having thru hiked. why? because there dumb.no one ever lies about having hiked the pct.but you can read so much about out AT that it becomes possible to lie and fool most people. all real AT lovers know exactly the level of hiking someone has done by listening to them.were a family and we reconize our own.

In addition to examining people's equipment, I agree that a good judge can often determine if people are bluffing about the AT.

I don't look @ how expensive equip. is but rather if it looks worn out, well fitted the wearer, ergonomic, etc. Also, when someone starts talking about a place on the trail, I'll often start asking questions about it....always digging.......

Chris Vreeland
08-13-2006, 21:38
there's no question in my mind that bryson made up katz.

I too had a similar discussion with Wes during my shuttle to and from the airport for an Amicalola to Neels section hike in the 90s. He related picking the two fellows up, pretty much as described in the book.

Maalox
10-11-2006, 16:52
The general concensus is that for the most part, Bryson's "Hike" never happened, at least not by him. I have lost the sources, but: many of the people mentioned by him, have no memory of him or Katz, and from what he says in his book, Katz would be seriously memorable. All in all, the book seem to be a merging of several journals, with a touch of his wit.

And, for me (Yes I read the book) my dislike for the man is from his almost constant put down of: locals, hostel providers, merchants, everyone. The only one mentioned in a good light was Wingfoot, someone by his own admission whom he never met.

Yes, there are some funny bits, I did laugh much of the time. But not enough.

His final line: "I hiked the AT" Is much like someone who took a tiny nibble of a great steak, (or even just saw a picture of it) & said "I have eaten well".

In order to "Hike your own hike" you have to actually hike.

Just my $0.02

Doctari.
Interesting. I attempted the AT this past year. Got to Peekskill and quit, although I first thought about quitting in Virginia. I am writing a book about my failure - well, it may not be worth a whole book, but I am writing about it.

(You can read my journal here: http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?trailname=4112. It's not really a journal; there are only 27 entries, but they are usually fairly substantial in terms of content.)

Your equation of thru-hiking with "eating well" caught my attention, because I think largely wrong. Eating "well" is an assertion of the quality of an experience; I found thru-hiking to be more like eating too much. In fact, I liken it (in my upcoming final journal entry and in numerous conversations I have had since, oh, mid-July) to eating 150 slices of the best cheesecake in the world - one after the other.

That first piece may be dreamy. You may even have a second and enjoy it just as much. If you are a pig, you may eat an entire cheesecake (8-12 slices) and still be happy. But the 50th piece - ugh. The 100th? The 150th? You gotta gag 'em down. They're not pleasant.

And the thing is, I suspect some thru-hikers understand this on some level. There's a guy about to finish now, named Wooly Bear, who is about to finish. Reading his journal, the guy sounds miserable. I quote: "Thank God this will be over soon." I hiked with Wooly Bear off an on for a few days in Pennsylvania; we shared a couple slackpack rides. In Pennsylvania, he was upbeat. He was enjoying himself, as much as was feasible. He's not enjoying himself now. He's not "eating well."

Doctari, if you ate had eaten 150 slices of cheesecake instead of walking 150 days, I don't reckon you'd be soliciting compliments on his achievement or belittling others because they didn't do as much as you. Because you would know that 150 pieces of cheesecake is too damned many.

I'm not merely squeezing sour grapes here, or making light of other thru-hikers' accomplishments because I quit and went home. I'm glad I quit, because it was time. I'm not a thru-hiker; I haven't the stuff for it, and I perversely admire those who do. But I think, on some level, a lot of hikers understand that thru-hiking is a perverse activity, and certainly they all realize that it's not the boulevard of self-fulfillment it's made out to be. Most of the time it's just a teeth-grinding slog.

I suspect Bryson's detractors in the thru-hiking community fear that when he benefits financially from his experience -while not hiking the whole trail, hiking a mere fraction of it, or possibly not hiking it at all- his success somehow diminishes their achievement. (In fact I heard thru-hikers say as much.) In other words, Bryson's fame makes them insecure.

No one who has thru-hiked the trail should feel that way. No thru-hiker who has "eaten well" should care one iota about whether someone else deserves to write or sell a book on the AT. If they do, they are not "eating well."

Whether he hiked a step of the trail or not, Bryson wrote what is easily the best AT book out there from a literary standpoint. I've read every AT book I could get my hands on, and in my humble opinion, most of them are quite bad. Many of the authors can't write, can't write revealingly, or can't write without pseudonaturalist affectation.

Here's the bottom line on Bryson, the central principle which explains why he has a top-selling book about hiking even though he apparently hasn't hiked the AT much...

Being a good hiker doesn't make you a good writer, just as being a good writer doesn't make you a good hiker. If you want to thru-hike the AT, do it. If you want to write a book, do it. Either project will be damned hard, and I can tell you that attempting both is even harder. But don't kvetch about what somebody else did that you didn't do.

Go out and do what you do, and be happy with that. That's my two cents anyway.

Maalox
10-11-2006, 16:55
Apologies for the horriblle syntax and stray words. I guess we can't edit here, huh?

Skidsteer
10-11-2006, 17:22
Apologies for the horriblle syntax and stray words. I guess we can't edit here, huh?

You can if you give WB a piece of cheesecake (http://www.whiteblaze.net/index.php?page=atdatabase). ;)

Maalox
10-11-2006, 17:27
My biggest gripe about Bryson is that he really really skewered one of the best parts of the Trail, which is the Community. He had very little positive to say about other hikers, hostel owners, and the neighbors of the Trail who make the thru-hike, or even a section-hike, the experience that it is. He missed out, and that was his loss. While I truly enjoyed the hiking, the challenge, and the scenery of my three months on the Trail, more than anything else I enjoyed the people I met. I rediscovered America on the AT, and Bill didn't.[quote]
This is actually where I thought Bryson was most accurate. I had very little interest in the "community" part of it. Maybe it's that, at 39, I was either much older or much younger than about 75% of the "community" but I found that a lot of my conversations with people were pretty cursory. I was usually focused on keeping myself moving forward, doing chores, or getting some sleep. I didn't feel like talking about equipment or talking about birds. I certainly didn't feel like talking about jam bands and how much fun it is to be stoned, which were the most frequent topic of conversation among a group of twentysomethings I got wedged in with for about two weeks. (Wasn't fast enough to outrun them, was too worried about pressing forward to slow down.)

This is not to say that I didn't like the PEOPLE I met. I met individuals whom I liked very much, including a couple I still keep in touch with. (Got an email from Barb Weinstock today, in fact.) But I wasn't out there to meet folks. I was there to walk, see the country and hopefully lose some weight. As a result I met a lot people with whom I discussed the weather and the terrain and the distance to Erwin, and whose named I now find, distressingly, that I cannot remember.

I had a few "community" episodes. Hanging out at the Greasy Creek Friendly with Breeze; Daedalus and Bearly giving me cold McDonald's cheeseburgers and doughnuts when I was out of food in Tennessee - I guess there are the community experiences you're talking about. But those are experiences you can have anywhere. There's plenty of community at home, too, and frankly, I've got a LOT more in common with the folks at home than I do with bearded ex-military men or loud hippie-chicks who want to talk about what "the big corporations" are doing to America. I've got plenty of friends already; I'm happy to make more, but that's not why I went out there. And anyway, the best friend out there is a thin-crust New York-style pizza.

[quote]One of the reasons for the success of his book, IMO, was that he failed to complete what he (allegedly) set out to do--to which all of us can relate. Because all of us are prone to failure in our lives, we enjoy experiencing the failures of others, particularly when those experiences are painted in a somewhat humorous light. When we put down the book, we chuckle and say "Gee, I bet I could do better than him."
I agree 100%.