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On the Beaten Path: An Appalachian Pilgrimage

Name: On the Beaten Path: An Appalachian Pilgrimage
Author: Robert Alden Rubin
ISBN: 9781599214979

by Robert Alden Rubin

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Overview

How one man’s six-month, end-to-end hike of the Appalachian Trail led him back home with a new afterword by the author
Leaving mortgage, wife, and cul-de-sac life behind to walk the Appalachian Trail, Robert Rubin found himself part of a strange culture of pilgrims and dropouts, a world with its own rules and rituals. With eloquence and humor, he recounts his 2,160-mile-long trek—the people he met, the landscapes he passed through, and the spiritual and physical endurance involved. On the Beaten Path is a wise, witty look at one of the few remaining pilgrimages in our disillusioned age.

Synopsis

An eloquent, wise, and witty account of how one man's six-month, end-to-end hike of the Appalachian Trail led him back home.

Library Journal

Depressed and tired of his dead-end life, 38-year-old Rubin (former editor of Carolina Quarterly) set out to walk the 2000-mile Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine, thereby becoming one of the elite "thruhikers." Reminiscent of Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods (LJ 4/98), Rubin's account discloses the mystic aspects of the trail in even greater detail. Unlike Bryson's adventurous journey, during which he aimed to "rediscover" America, Rubin's is a six-month pilgrimage aimed at resolving personal issues and redirecting the author's life. The poignant tale of his predicament is well balanced with his descriptions of trail traditions, the thruhikers he meets on the trip, and various other experiences that only a thruhiker encounters. This engaging and enjoyable account is recommended for all travel collections.--Nancy J. Moeckel, Miami Univ. Libs., Oxford, OH Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.\

About the Author, Robert Alden Rubin

Robert Alden Rubin is a writer and editor whose previous books include The Weather Wizard’s 5-Year Weather Diary, Poetry Out Loud, and Love Poetry Out Loud.

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Editorials

Library Journal

School Library Journal

YA-Rubin recounts his 2000-mile journey from Springer Mountain, GA, to Mount Katahdin, ME. The journalist, whose trail name was Rhymin' Worm, began as an overweight, dispirited, burned-out urbanite, yet completed this feat in one season. This is not a "how to" book for thruhikers or a history of the AT, although bits of both can be found here, including maps of each section. It is really Rubin's reaction to the life and lore of the trail and his search for what is true and valuable about his life. He introduces readers to Rock Dancer, One Ramp, Loon, Bigfoot, Grizz, Java Joe, and a host of other muddy, sweaty, ragged but determined hikers. Through dialogue and description, he introduces the fellowship of the trail and throws in plenty of trivia without breaking stride. He talks about the fetish for fashionable hiking gear, quotes Henry David Thoreau, and explains "trail magic" and "slackpacking." With the finer but less esoteric details of life without baths, through days of rain and bugs, he helps readers understand why many thousands start the trail, but far fewer are true thruhikers. With finesse, Rubin succeeds as an informed journalist, a backpack-hoisting hiker, and a philosophical observer. Hikers, dreamers, and pilgrims of all sorts will find this an entertaining odyssey.-Cynthia J. Rieben, W. T. Woodson High School, Fairfax, VA Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|