Looking for an Adventure

I am super lucky to be having many adventures this summer:

  • Family coming to visit this week for adventure and half marathon cheering this weekend
  • Sister getting married in Colorado- I am honored to get to be the photographer
  • Headed to Minneapolis to visit my best friend and her fiance with a side of finishing my 30 before 30 half marathons goal
  • Back to Minneapolis to celebrate my best friend's marriage
  • Run, run and more running
  • ...and any other adventures I can find.
If you are looking for an adventure that does not require leaving home check out these:

Bill Bryson- A Walk in the Woods
When looking for a fun travel read I feel the best thing to do is ask a travel writer. Lucky for me I happen to know one. His recommendation is Bill Bryson. A Walk in the Woods is a hilarious tale of an attempt to hike the Appalachian Trail. The author and I share the same, slightly irrational, fear of bears and delusion that we can do anything. While Bill is not successful in hiking the trail in its entirety, he does succeed in blending a hilarious story of a self described average person's attempt to do something extraordinary with ecological and historical information about the trail which never crosses the line into dull facts. If you are looking for a laugh out loud travel adventure I would recommend this read. If you have ever started out a hiking trip, a camping trip or even a road trip with the idea that you are wholly prepared only to realize within ten minutes you are very, very mistaken you will appreciate this author. 

Doug Mack- Europe of 5 Wrong Turns a Day
The above mentioned travel writer I happen to know is Doug Mack and his travel book Europe on 5 Wrong Turns a Day happens to be one of my favorites. And not just because he is marrying my friend. Although for some reason I do feel that gives me the right to ask him all kinds of crazy travel questions. Welcome to the family Doug! If you have ever wanted to stuff items into a backpack and book a ticket to Europe to get away from it all this book is for you. Doug weaves a tale of his own travels through Europe using a 1963 edition of a travel book while exploring the idea of the traveler's search for authenticity while bumping into other traveler's in locations that have become solely focused on catering to tourists. This book is entertaining, letting you explore Europe from the comfort of your home, while making you think what your expectations are of traveling to far away locales or even local tourists spots and what you hope to find when you jump the pond to the other side of the Atlantic. 

Cheryl Strayed- Wild
In contrast to the Appalachian adventure of Bill Bryson, Wild takes place along the Pacific Crest Trail. Unlike the above two books, this book is not a travel book in the traditional sense. Though Cheryl travels many miles along the Trail, it is a backdrop to personal forgiveness and finding one's self and strength. After losing her mother and her marriage Cheryl decides to hike the Pacific Crest Trail and in doing so begins to find herself healing from her loss and self inflicted wounds. Her story is riveting and though it is not a light read it is a worthwhile read. At the end I wondered if I would have the strength to attempt something as daring as tackling the Pacific Crest Trail. It made me put that adventure on my bucket list. 

Are you a fan of travel books?
What are your summer read recommendations?

Comments

  1. UnknownMay 31, 2013 at 5:34 AM

    My wife LOVED Wild! She had me watch the interview of Cherly with Oprah.

    As for summer reading, I really need to get back into it! I usually blog during my morning commute and listen to music in the afternoon. Most of the reading I do now is to my toddler! lol

    ReplyDelete
  2. kilaxMay 31, 2013 at 6:01 AM

    I love travel/adventure books! Those all sound like ones I would like! Have you read Cycling Home from Siberia?

    Are you running North Shore this weekend? A friend and I will be volunteering :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. BeanJune 1, 2013 at 5:56 AM

      Running North Shore- Hope to see you out there. I am in corral D so will probably be middle of the pack-you know the super sweaty one with a pained expression ;).

      Delete
  3. UnknownMay 31, 2013 at 7:34 AM

    We just read Wild for our book club and I loved it! I'm not really big into hiking or anything but I just loved reading about her adventure!

    ReplyDelete
  4. AnonymousJune 1, 2013 at 4:59 PM

    My fave travel books are by Josie Dew who is a British girl about my age who spent her twenties cycling round the world. She totally inspired me in my cycling days!

    ReplyDelete

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