A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson

In A Walk in the Woods, Bill Bryson undertakes to hike the 2,200 mile Appalachian Trail that runs from Georgia to Maine. Bryson enlists the help of an unfit friend, Katz, who can barely tackle a staircase. Together they meander along the trail meeting other people with the same goal. Statistics are clearly against them. Most people who begin this arduous trek drop out within the first 100 miles. Bryson is keen to inform on the trail's storied history, the colossal mismanagement by the Forest Preserve and the sad demise of tree species. The movie, by the same title and starring Robert Redford and Nick Nolte, focuses more on the human story between the two men, but is still a delight to watch if just for the beautiful scenery. Bryson has that rare gift of mixing humor and fact with a good story -rendering a unique book for the national treasure that is the Appalachian Trail.