Читать книгу One Night Wilderness: Portland. Quick and Convenient Backcountry Getaways within Three Hours of the City онлайн

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Most of us are parents now, determined to drag our children away from the pervasive influence of video games and inane television fiction into the outdoors where they can experience the beautiful “real” world of nature. We do not, however, want that introduction to be so grueling that it will cause tired young legs to reject backpacking for the rest of their lives. Once again, short one-night hikes are what we seek, the kinds of relatively easy trips that get the kids excited about the outdoors, but don’t cause too many sore muscles or painful blisters.

This book is designed with you in mind. The bookstore shelves are already filled with numerous dayhiking guides. I wrote one or two, and a few of the others are pretty good. But these volumes do not address the unique needs of the backpacker. Hikers looking for overnight adventures are forced to wade through dozens of trips that are unsuitable for backpacking in order to find the few that meet their needs. In addition, these guidebooks rarely provide the kind of information that is most useful to backpackers, such as specifically where to find the best campsites, the location of the nearest water source, or what overnight permits are required. All of these concerns are addressed here.