Tag Book reviews

Pacific Crest Trail: What Is Your Plan?

Reg Spittle Leave a comment

Whether you are thinking of tackling a section of the Pacific Crest Trail, walking the entire 2,653 miles, or want to glimpse the trail from your armchair, these guidebooks are for you.

In the Pacific Coast Trail: Oregon and Washington, Jordan Summers presents a user-friendly guide that addresses my questions: Could I walk the two states’ sections? Or just one state? Or should I try a short section first?

Summers’ book, updated in 2020, includes PCT history, mile-by-mile points of interest, permitting, and equipment. Topographic maps and elevation charts accompany blue text boxes highlighting all-important water sources. Looking for campsites or resupply information? Summers has you covered.

In Hiking the Pacific Coast Trail: Oregon, Eli Boschetto covers similar basics for the middle state of the PCT.

After walking five famed distance trails in Europe, I wondered if I could enjoy a backpacking trip in the USA, without the perks of hostels, hotels, and places to eat at the end of each day. I read both guidebooks as I prepared to walk California’s John Muir Trail in August 2021. For a month, I filtered water, bathed in streams and lakes, and lived in a tent. I was part of a group of 11 backpackers who were mule-supported, relieving us of the need to carry a heavy pack for 243 miles on the northbound walk through the Sierra Nevada.

The high-elevation trek included summitting Mt. Whitney and conquering 12 passes as high as 13,150 feet. It was the greatest physical challenge of my life, but, as tough as it was, I long for more.

The next logical step would be to tackle another section of the PCT, but without mule support. No doubt, I hear the PCT calling, but I have yet to answer.

At the very least, these books allowed me to appreciate and understand the challenges of one of the world’s great trails. If I decide to answer the call, even if just for a weeklong section, I will return to their pages.

Check out my new book about my adventures on four iconic trails in Europe: Trippin’ Through My Sixties.

My first book is Camino Sunrise: Walking With My Shadows.

The President Becomes a Superhero

Reg Spittle 2 Comments

What if the world wide web disappeared? And all its data on every device was gone? Your bank accounts. The power grid. Medical records. Everything online. Backups erased. No way to bring any of it back.

In The President is Missing, President Jonathan Duncan goes undercover in a desperate attempt to save the world from cyberterrorists.

Impossible? In Bill Clinton’s and James Patterson’s thriller, the plot has enough plausibility to make the book a page turner.

The former president created the leader he wished he could be. War hero. James Bond-like tactician. A man who could not be distracted from his purpose.

Duncan battles the death of his wife, a nagging disease, and a speaker of the House who plots to have him removed from office. The Russians are bad guys and the plot involves the Saudi royal family. There is also an enemy within, a traitor in the president’s inner circle.

If you are a James Patterson fan, you will recognize the storytelling style. I was drawn to the idea that the president of the United States could transform himself into an unrecognizable character who could use his or her talents to do good outside of the political world.

A president by day. A superhero by night?