Classic Hikes of the World: 23 Breathtaking Treks

by Peter Potterfield

Inspiration and information to help you plan (and dream about) your next big trek. This book will help you realize your dreams of hiking among the world's highest peaks and most scenic canyons, discovering wilderness far from the clamor of civilization, encountering rare birds and animals, glorying in sunsets over glacier-clad ranges, and feeling the joy and achievement of hiking some of the world's most spectacular trails.

Peter Potterfield has selected the great hikes of the world from personal experience, having hiked and photographed hundreds of trails to arrive at this selection. The adventures described range from weekend overnights to four-day hut trips to epic journeys that take a few weeks out and back. None requires technical mountaineering skill. Features include details on trail conditions, levels of difficulty, best seasons, approach strategies, hazards, and maps. Hikes include: John Muir Trail, California; Wonder Lake to McGonagall Pass, Alaska; Tour de la Vanoise, French Alps; Kungsleden, Swedish Lapland; K2 Base Camp; Grand Canyon rim to rim; Mount Kilimanjaro; Cerro Fitz Roy, Argentina; and Shackleton's Crossing, South Georgia. 115 photographs

Genres: Nonfiction, Travel

224 pages, Hardcover

First published February 7, 2005

About the author

Journalist Peter Potterfield writes about wilderness and adventure for newspapers, magazines, books, and on-line publishing. He is currently editor of GreatOutdoors.com.

Potterfield is the author of a dozen books, including the critically acclaimed In the Zone (The Mountaineers Books, 1996), and the Banff Book Festival Award winner, High Himalaya (The Mountaineers Books, 2001). His most recent books are Classic Hikes of the World (WW Norton & Co., 2005), Himalayan Quest (National Geographic Books, 2003) and Everest, the Anthology, a collection of first-hand narratives from the world's highest peak (The Mountaineers Books, 2003). He is the author of the best-selling climbing guide to the Cascade Range, Selected Climbs in the Cascades, in two volumes (The Mountaineers Books, 1994, 2000, 2002). He edited the first collection of funny climbing narratives for his anthology, Over the Top, Humorous Mountaineering Tales (The Mountaineers Books, 2002).

Potterfield has made a specialty of covering mountaineering and backcountry adventure for the popular press, and he has written on these subjects for National Geographic Adventure, Conde Nast Traveler, Outside, Reader's Digest, Backpacker, Modern Maturity, Summit, Smithsonian Air & Space, and other publications. He was named a finalist for the National Magazine Award for General Excellence during his twelve-year tenure as editor of Pacific Northwest Magazine. As editor of MountainZone.com from 1996 to 2003, he developed electronic adventure journalism by pioneering live reporting of Mount Everest expeditions and other real-time adventure stories from remote locations. A highlight was the discovery by a 1999 MountainZone.com-sponsored expedition of the long-lost climber, George Mallory. His work at MountainZone.com, according to The New York Times, "made a spectator sport out of Himalayan climbing."

A veteran of expeditions to the far corners of the world, Potterfield has roamed the Himalaya, explored the mountains of Canada's Coast Range, crossed the Swedish Arctic solo, traveled on foot through the wild southern reaches of New Zealand, and retraced Sir Ernest Shackleton's route to salvation on South Georgia Island. Potterfield is currently the editor of GreatOutdoors.com, one of the most frequently visited online adventure magazines, where he writes his monthly column, Wilderness Notes.

Reviews

[Jackie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't want to return this book to the library. I've renewed it 2 times now and they're only going to let me keep it for another 8 days. So now I'm plotting which 7 treks to re-read before bed each night. I'm seriously considering buying my own copy and it will live on my nightstand as there is no better way to end a tough day than to read one of these entries and fall asleep wondering about the airfare to Peru.

I'm not a huge backpacker, preferring day hikes, but he book has inspired several dream vacations and my ideal 30th birthday celebration. Unfortunately, reservations in the Grand Canyon are required 4 months in advance, so that will have to wait for 31... I will backpack the Grand Canyon. And Kilimanjaro, and Patagonia, and the Royal Trek, and The Wonderland Trail...

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book. Only 23 hikes (but if it had 150 I would still want more). Great pictures, enough information to give a good overview and also gives sources for further information. My only real complaint is the the edition I have is 10 years old and many things have changed. Loved it. Could do with a few more like this.