Long distance hiking puts a person into a peculiar mindset.
As with any niche group, there is a particular vocabulary, traditions, and “inside baseball” experiences that outsiders may comprehend. But usually leaves them more confused than enlightened. 🙂
Geolyn Carvin, with her Boots McFarland alter-ego, encapsulates this specific culture in a way that rings true.
For well over a decade, the Boots cartoons have been coming into my email box weekly. As of this writing, I have comic #623 in my mailbox!
The comics run the gamut of the long distance hiking experience. From hiking in the rain to explaining to others why they are out in the rain and to enjoying the simple pleasures of the backpacking life.
In recent years, I’ve enjoyed the Boots cartoons that also shows thru-hikers trying to balance a standard life while pining for the long journey again. A theme that certainly relates to my life in recent years!
And now you can purchase On The Trail with Boots McFarland: Volume 1 and enjoy some more popular and poignant comics from over the years.
The book reads quickly. Interspersed with some of Geolyn’s more popular comics are some of her journals from her experience on the PCT. Geolyn walked the walk, but also writes about it very well!
The book is often found by our couch. We look at the photos and chuckle. And any guests usually give a knowing smile, too!
In the end, I found On The Trail with Boots McFarland a perfect collection of comics for the thru-hiker tribe. A collection that captures the experience of hiking in the dust with sweat, Snicker bar wrappers, bugs, and rain rather well!
On The Trail with Boots McFarland: Volume 1 is available for purchase and makes a suitable gift for a Chrismahannakwanzakah gift for the thru-hiker in your life, anyone aspiring to hike the long trails, or yourself.
Get yourself a copy, smile, and reminisce. You’ll probably enjoy the book!
Disclosure: I received a copy of this book at no charge.