The Last Wild Road is a raucous, gripping, sometimes terrifying, often
hilarious, and deeply meditative journey through the heart of the
outdoors in the modern world. Collected from more than 20 years of
hunting and fishing cover stories, columns, and adventure tales written
by T. Edward Nickens for Field & Stream, this book is a road trip that
takes in a huge sweep of the North American landscape--blackwater rivers
in the wilds of eastern North Carolina, deserts and prairies of the
American West, remote tundra of northern Canada, and the wildest rivers
of Alaska. Along every rutted road and rough trail, with a rod, gun, and
pen, Nickens meets unforgettable characters--old French-speaking Cajuns
at Louisiana squirrel camps, a one-armed fly-tyer in the ancient
Appalachians, Pennsylvania brothers who lost their father in a hunting
accident decades ago and return to the scene for a powerful, poignant
encounter with history. He explores remote wilderness waters to chase
trout and ducks, but finds rich meaning, too, in the familiar and
close-to-home: fishing with his children, plumbing the forests of local
farms, and butchering deer in his basement as a thanksgiving for the
gifts of the outdoors. When it comes to hunting and fishing, writing
often falls into the categories of where-to-go, the how-do-it, and
the-what-to-bring. This book embarks on the question of "why." Why does
the pursuit of game and fish, and the travel to the wild places where
they thrive, bring meaning and clarity to living in the modern world?
Why do we laugh more, and live more deeply, far from the sidewalk? If
you've ever felt that way, you'll find yourself in The Last Wild Road.
