* Compelling adventure with an environmental focus
* An informative natural and cultural history of one of our last wild
coastlines
* Author is a pioneer in "packrafting," an emerging trend in
backcountry travel
In June 2007, Erin McKittrick and her husband, Hig, embarked on a
4,000-mile expedition from Seattle to the Aleutian Islands, traveling
solely by human power. This is the story of their unprecedented trek
along the northwestern edge of the Pacific Ocean-a year-long journey
through some of the most rugged terrain in the world--and their
encounters with rain, wind, blizzards, bears, and their own emotional
and spiritual demons.
Erin and Hig set out from Seattle with a desire to raise awareness of
natural resource and conservation issues along their route: Clear-cut
logging of rainforests; declining wild salmon populations; extraction of
mineral resources; and effects of global climate change. By taking each
mile step by step, they were able to intimately explore the coastal
regions of Washington, British Columbia, and Alaska, see the wilderness
in its larger context, and provide a unique on-the-ground perspective.
An entertaining and, at times, thrilling adventure, theirs is a journey
of discovery and of insights about the tiny communities that dot this
wild coast, as well as the individuals there whom they meet and inspire.
