With the hype over Wild, here’s a look at my favorite thru-hiking memoir: On the Beaten Path.

With the hype, hoopla and hullabaloo over Wild, my thoughts turned to a lesser known book, but one that better encapsulates the long trail experience: On the Beaten Path: An Appalachian Pilgrimage (OTBP). 

Unlike the more well-known A Walk in the Woods that came out at the same time, OTBP has less snark, humor and light-heartedness.  It is more brutally honest about the good and bad of what a long journey by foot entails.

And while Wild and OTBP both share insights to what the inner journey is like on a long trek, OTBP is less about a person’s singular vision on the journey.  Rather OTBP is about a person’s journey in the context of the wider community.

Continue reading On the Beaten Path – A reflection at PMags.com.