Posts Tagged ‘tips’

From the moment I opened the cover, until the moment I fell asleep, then woke up and finished it, this book was nothing but a thrill to read.

This book should be considered the “Bible of Backpacking”.   It covers just about any issue you could possibly think of, plus it is full of awesome tips and tricks to make your hiking life easier.  From blisters to backpacks, everything is covered in this book.

Karen Berger, the author, is an experienced hiker with over 10,000 miles of bragging rights, and a hilarious sense of humor which comes out in each page.  Her jokes keep the reading fun, and also gives you a fantastic method to remember important facts and tips. 

Out of all the backpacking and hiking books I’ve ever read, this is by far the best one to date.  By the time that I was done reading it, I was left with a pleasant feeling of “Well then…” which only comes when a book has completely satisfied your curiosity. 

So stop reading this, get in your car, and go buy this book.  Right now.  You won’t regret it.  Why are you still reading this?  Go!  Shoo!

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If you had $5.00, what would you do with it?  Let me think of some fun things that I would do.   I could eat a fine cheeseburger, see 3/4 of a movie, or even change it all into pennies and toss them at cars going down the road.  All of these would be just dandy.  Let me tell you something that you should NOT do with $5.00, and that would be to purchase this book.

To be fair, I will tell you that I give all hiking and backpacking books a fair chance.  All are equal in my eyes, that is, until I am done reading them.  Until this book, I had never found myself disagreeing aloud with something that wasn’t consisted of at least 99% meat.

I started my path to dissension and righteousness around tip #13.  That section describes clothing.  I remember an old hiking phrase that states “Cotton kills”.  Words to live by in my opinion.  This book however thinks that your base layer should be a nice tight cotton shirt.  I don’t expect everyone to agree with me, but I think that’s a horrible idea to give to beginning hikers.

The book does contain a few helpful sections; how to pack your backpack efficiently, and… well I can’t seem to find any others.

The book also contains a few sections that I found myself giggling like a teenage girl who has had too much sugar.  These sections are as follows:

• Reading Maps:  Yes, it actually tells you that the “blue” spots on the map is water.
• Difficult Terrain:  With beautiful images showing you how to “go around a hill” instead of hiking UP it.
• Dangerous Animals:  Literally it just says “Don’t go near them, they’re bad.”

Luckily, it is a very small book, and short bus short in height.  It reads fast, and made me giggle nearly to the point of urination.  It is almost as if you had just watched a very fascinating NOVA special about frogs, and then someone told you to write a book on frogs with your newly acquired complete knowledge of them.  Besides saying “they’re green, and sexy” you would have a difficult time.

This book reads in that similar fashion.  I would strongly recommend reading this book, just not purchasing it.  It’s very easy to read, and does have a few scattered good points that I agree with.  It is the type of book that needs to be read while sitting in the comfort of the bookstore enjoying a hot spiced pseudo soy-based coffee-like beverage, not sitting on your own couch with a receipt next to you.

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