The Trail: Guides & Meditations

This year's All Henrico Reads title, Wild by Cheryl Strayed, has us reflecting on trails: their origins, where they lead us, and the experiences they provide along the way. Read on for upcoming related programs and recommended travelogues, meditations, and guidebooks on trails.

UPCOMING PROGRAMS

In addition to Wild film screenings and book discussions, we invite you to attend programs that highlight the experiences of others who have hit the trail and how you can too!

• Bob Singer Senior Series: Becoming Grandma Gatewood
• A Lifetime of Adventuring by Bicycle: From the Blue Ridge Parkway to the Alps
• Trail Magic: The Grandma Gatewood Story
• Traversing Ancient Mountains: 2,000 Miles on the Appalachian Trail
• Barbarian Utopia: Encounters on the Appalachian Trail, Documentary Film
• Intro to Camping for Teens
• Let’s Go Hiking: The Appalachian Trail with Virginia State Parks

MEDITATIONS

• A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson (also available on Hoopla)
  • After a twenty-year stint in Britain, author Bill Bryson returns to the U.S. and sets out to walk the Appalachian Trail, a 2,100 mile stretch from Georgia to Maine. Inspiring and full of laugh-out-loud moments, Bryson’s travelogue introduces readers to a quirky cast of fellow hikers, relays the history of the trail, and argues the importance of its conservation.

• Grandma Gatewood’s Walk: The Inspiring Story of the Woman Who Saved the Appalachian Trail by Ben Montgomery (also available on Hoopla)
  • Using family interviews, trail journals, and letters, author Ben Montgomery shares the story of Grandma Gatewood, the first woman to hike the entire Appalachian alone. At the age of 67, Gatewood raised awareness about the trail, which was less-known at the time, and proved it’s never too late to cross items off your bucket list.

• The Old Ways by Robert Macfarlane
  • Starting in Cambridge, England, Macfarlane follows paths in Britain and beyond. Along his walks, Macfarlane explores how history, geology, cartography, and literature intersect to tell the story of trails and their travelers.

• On Trails: An Exploration by Robert Moor
  • Follow Robert Moor as he explores trails across the globe, examines their origins, and questions how our connection to nature and technology has shaped the world around us.

• Walking: One Step at a Time by Erling Kagge
  • Kagge argues that, in the context of our fast-paced world, traveling by foot can be a radical act that allows for discovery and reflection. While the practice of walking is universal, what drives us to walk and how we experience the journey is deeply personal.

• Windswept: Walking the Paths of Trailblazing Women by Annabel Abbs (also available on Hoopla)
  • Abbs reflects on the power of walking in the wilderness and frames her memoir within the history of five incredible women who also turned to the trail.

GUIDEBOOKS

We are fortunate to have several wonderful trails in our own backyard! Visit a Henrico County park, hit the Capital Trail, or take a hike along the James River. The list below also includes trails and summits throughout Virginia, the Mid-Atlantic, and beyond.

• 60 Hikes within 60 miles Richmond: Including Williamsburg, Fredericksburg, and Charlottesville by Phil Riggan (also available on Hoopla)
• 100 Trails, 5,000 Ideas: Where to Go, When to Go, What to See, What to Do by Joseph Yogerst (also available on Hoopla)
• Great Hiking Trails of the World: 80 Trails, 75,000 Miles, 38 Countries, 6 Continents by Karen Berger
• Hiking Coastal Trails of Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia: Waterfront Hikes from the Delmarva Peninsula to Virginia’s Tidewater Region by Erin Gifford
• Hiking with Kids Virginia: 52 Great Hikes for Families by Erin Gifford
• Rail-Trails Mid-Atlantic: The Definitive Guide to Multiuse Trails in Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, and Washington, D.C. by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (also available on Hoopla)
• Virginia Summits: 40 Best Mountain Hikes from the Shenandoah Valley to Southwest Virginia by Erin Gifford