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Post by Deleted on Oct 22, 2016 12:47:47 GMT -8
I enjoyed the book, too, but found it difficult to relate sometimes.
I don't become annoyed encountering others in the backcountry unless there are a lot of them or if they're being thoughtless in some respect.
I've never read (or even seen) 'The Winds of Mara' or 'The Man in the Cave'.
My favorite of his titles was the 'Thousand Mile Summer', followed by 'The Complete Walker'.
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Post by lonerock on Oct 22, 2016 17:04:56 GMT -8
I've never really been big on thru hikes although I 've hiked several sections of the PCT in the Sierras and Cascades. Some of it I 've enjoyed but much of it didn't compare to other trails I 've been on. I guess that's why Secret Worlds has been one of my favorites since it's focus is on his shorter trips to an interesting variety of places.
If you haven't read Walking Man:The Secret Life of Colin Fletcher by Robert Wehrman I would highly recommend it. I've known the author for some time now and he's talked about the enormous amount of Colin's writings that have never been published. One item was a much larger version of Secret Worlds that eventually got pared down to Secret Worlds. I would really like to see it sometime. I think it would really be fascinating.
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Post by lonerock on Oct 26, 2016 8:59:42 GMT -8
I'm not sure if I respect Colin less after reading Walking Man. We might be shocked about any public figure we admire if we read the kind of in depth personal biography like that presented in Walking Man. Colin's life was shaped by many things over the years, including his horrible experiences in WW2. All of these things resulted in producing someone who bucked social conventions and backpacked the length of California and the Grand Canyon N.P. in addition to his fascination with Trunkman. You can't separate Colin's personlity (including his quirks) from his accomplishments.
I too can understand his desire for privacy whether at home or in the wilderness. IT's doubtful whether most of us would react to the invasion of that privacy the way he did but I know that at least some of those same thoughts run through my mind when I encounter inconsiderate hikers in the wild.
Colin had his quirks, especially when it came to social interactions, but learning about them has simply added another layer to the man who loved to explore the "green world". I didn't end up with less respect but rather a greater understanding of the man who led countless people to get out and explore the wild and in turn help protect it.
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Post by lonerock on Oct 30, 2016 8:55:01 GMT -8
I disagree that the world is a much better place wih fewer people like Colin. Some of our greatest composers,scientists,writers and philosophers have been those who lived on the fringe of society and what we would describe as "normal behavior". I'm certainly not trying to excuse his behavior nor would he probably be someone I would chose as a friend. I do think that it is this quirky, eccentric behavior that propeled Colin, and many others similar to him, to do things others have not done. I'm not talking about just his more well known adventures but his lifestyle that led him to explore many of the more remote places that most people don't venture to.
As one who has worked in the field of psychology I don't think you can separate the psychological makeup of a person from their acts. Those things that deeply affected Colin's behavior also affected his writing.
I do agree with you that Colin was flawed but if he wasn't, there a good chance we wouldn't be talking about a man named Colin Fletcher. I'm not saying you have to be flawed to accomplish new things but sometimes those flaws can direct individuals into a different and sometimes great place.
A debt of gratitude goes to Robert Wehrman who was able to illuminate the life of Walking Man. Hopefully his book, along with the writings of Colin, will continue to encourage others to get out to explore and protect nature.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 3, 2016 8:37:19 GMT -8
Thanks for telling about 'The Winds of Mara' and 'The Man in the Cave'. I have never encountered them in print.
I also did read 'River' and 'The Man Who Walked Through Time', and while I enjoyed them, I didn't like them quite so well as 'The Thousand Mile Summer' or 'The Complete Walker' (I've only read the original 'Complete Walker', not the later updates). I thought 'Secret Worlds' was in some respects as nice as 'The Thousand Mile Summer', but he kind of lost me when he got into ruminating (with anticipation!) that some disease or catastrophe might come along and wipe out a large share of the human population(?!).
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Post by lonerock on Nov 6, 2016 9:14:52 GMT -8
Colin did suggest one time that the answer to saving the earth might be a humane virus that would leave the human population sterile. Perhaps a bit extreme, or not.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 2, 2016 7:53:39 GMT -8
Good!!!
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Post by hikerjer on Dec 11, 2016 18:29:29 GMT -8
I'm going to read it.
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