The Cactus Eaters: How I Lost My Mind - and Almost Found Myself - on the Pacific Crest Trail (P.S.) [Paperback]

Dan White (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 20, 2008 | Series: P.S.

The Pacific Crest Trail stretches from Mexico to Canada, a distance of 2,650 grueling, sun-scorched, bear-infested miles. When Dan White and his girlfriend announced their intention to hike it, Dan's parents—among others—thought they were nuts. How could two people who'd never even shared an apartment together survive six months in the desert with little more than a two-person tent and some trail mix? But when these addled adventurers, dubbed "the Lois and Clark Expedition" by their benevolent trail-guru, set out for the American wilderness, the hardships of the trail—and one delicious-looking cactus—test the limits of love and sanity.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Traversing broiling deserts, snowy mountain passes and dank rain forests on its crooked way from Mexico to Canada, the Pacific Coast Trail is an epic challenge for die-hard backpackers. White and his girlfriend, Melissa, set out, late in the season and bereft of experience, to tread all 2,650 miles of it, leaving behind lousy reporting jobs and hoping to find self-definition and a deepened relationship. (They call their trek the Lois and Clark Expedition.) Hilarious greenhorn misadventures ensue—including the author's ill-advised chomp, while dizzy with dehydration, into a reputedly moisture-laden prickly-pear cactus—that tested their survival skills and commitment as a couple. The trail becomes less an itinerary than a world unto itself, full of squalor, discomfort and majestic scenery, and peopled by charismatic misfits and an austere cult of ultra-light speed-hikers, as the couple rely on arcane camping gear and bizarre gummy-bear-and-marshmallow diets. The wilderness authenticity the author seeks proves elusive; all journey and no destination, the story itself eventually trails off with the hero even more callow and confused than when he started. Still, White's vivid prose and hangdog humor make readers want to keep up. (June)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

“Dan White forges miles past travelogue to carve a poignant, uproarious, and deeply compelling love story between man, woman, and the land between. The Cactus Eaters is as impressive and enjoyable as the ground it covers.” (Franz Wisner, NY Times Bestselling Author of Honeymoon with My Brother )

“Drawing on diaries he kept at the time, White polishes up these memories, serving them forth with brio and dash…[The Cactus Eaters] brings a fresh perspective to the timeworn adventure-travel genre.” (Kirkus Reviews )

“It is a funny, frequently harrowing, and altogether mesmerizing memoir about just how wrong a backpacking expedition can go….‘The Cactus Eaters’ is far more than a Sierra Club-approved romp. It’s gorp for the soul, a fascinating and surprisingly moving testament to the call of the wild.” (Steve Almond, Boston Globe )

“In the well-written, laugh-out-loud, self-deprecating spirit of Bill Bryson’s A Walk In The Woods and Nora Ephron’s When Harry Met Sally, Dan White takes us along for a walk on the wild side of adventure and love. I could not put it down.” (Eric Blehm, National Outdoor Book Award-winning author of THE LAST SEASON. )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Harper Perennial; 1ST edition (May 20, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061376930
• ISBN-13: 978-0061376931
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (59 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #293,966 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great read!, June 21, 2008

By 

A. Bradshaw (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Cactus Eaters: How I Lost My Mind - and Almost Found Myself - on the Pacific Crest Trail (P.S.) (Paperback)

If you're looking for a guide to the Pacific Crest Trail - this isn't that kind of book. BUT, if you're looking for an extremely well-written, hard-to-put-down, hysterically funny account of a very personal 2,650 mile journey - Cactus Eaters is for you!

I strongly disagree with the reviewer who tagged this book a yawn-inducing personal narrative with too little emphasis on The Trail itself. I've done a long distance hike (Appalachian Trail) and, to be honest, a description of the *actual* trail experience has HUGE potential to be quite tedious. You walk a lot. Body parts hurt. Your gear fails you. If you're inexperienced, you make stupid mistakes. If you're experienced, you make well-educated ones. There lots of trees and the occasional animal. Other hikers can either entertain or irritate you.

It's what happens to a person in the face of all these things that transforms the experience into a real journey and Dan White does an amazing job of bringing the reader along on his.

I was so taken by Cactus Eaters that I dusted off my backpack and hit the trail for a few days after reading it. Can't recommend it enough :)

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hilarious and poignant, June 29, 2008

By 

Kate Evans "www.beingandwriting.blogspot.com" (California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Cactus Eaters: How I Lost My Mind - and Almost Found Myself - on the Pacific Crest Trail (P.S.) (Paperback)

I read all the reviews of this book, and I find it interesting that a couple of the critiques say there's not enough "trail" in the book. Clearly people read for different reasons. Personally, I found a lot of trail in the book. I loved all this book's descriptions of the realities of the beauty and dreariness of the trail--and I found myself looking forward to relishing Dan White's hilarious (and often deceptively poignant) riffs on what all of this means to him. This is a memoir, not a travel guide, which the subtitle ("How I lost my mind and almost found myself on the PCT") makes clear.

This is about someone facing adversity, boredom, beauty and physical pain--all shaped by good writing into one riotous scene after another. It's not just about exploring a trail but about exploring one's coming-of-age existential questions about what to do with one's life.

That said, the humor of this book cannot be overstated. The book often reads like David Sedaris meets the Three Stooges. I can't remember the last time I laughed out loud so much while reading.

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Cactus Eaters is sharp and tasty!, June 23, 2008

By 

Lisa Haneberg "Business Writer and Consultant" (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Cactus Eaters: How I Lost My Mind - and Almost Found Myself - on the Pacific Crest Trail (P.S.) (Paperback)

I loved reading The Cactus Eaters because Dan White has written it using vivid, luscious and sometimes strange details. For the price of a few lattes, I traveled with White as he came upon one moment of truth after another, and got to see the consequences of his choices. Along with being a great travel narrative, White has crafted a funny, sad and beautiful true story - well told and timed. I particularly enjoyed the realness of this book - White did not sugar-coat things, even when his actions ended up being wrong or ill-thought through.