Hiking the Triple Crown : Appalachian Trail - Pacific Crest Trail - Continental Divide Trail - How to Hike America's Longest Trails [Paperback]

Karen Berger (Author)

Book Description

Series: Official Guides to the Appalachian Trail | Publication Date: March 2001

Berger, a thru-hiker of all three, walks the reader through the basics of long-distance hiking but also the special characteristics of each of the three major trails: the Appalachian, Pacific Crest, and Continental Divide. She explores seasons and strategies, food and technique.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Mountaineers Books (March 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0898867606
• ISBN-13: 978-0898867602
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 7.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #427,432 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Karen Berger writes about travel, the environment, hiking and backpacking, scuba diving, music, global health, and the business of being self-employed.

Her books here on Amazon.com are divided into three categories:

Eleven books on hiking and backpacking, including accounts of walking the entire 3,000 mile Continental Divide from Mexico to Canada ("Where the Waters Divide") and walking the Pacific Crest Trail from Mexico to Canada ("Along the Pacific Crest Trail"). Her hiking books also include instructional guides for those new to the sport -- and for those seeking to further develop their skills.

One book on Scuba Diving: "Scuba Diving: A Trailside Guide" was developed with the assistance of Tec Clark, the former director of the Y.M.C.A.'s instructional scuba program.

Three books on learning and teaching music for the "Complete Idiot's Guide" series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome!, May 25, 2001

By 

Mike MacFerrin (Baton Rouge, LA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hiking the Triple Crown : Appalachian Trail - Pacific Crest Trail - Continental Divide Trail - How to Hike America's Longest Trails (Paperback)

"Hiking the Triple Crown" is an awesome volume. If you're not familiar with any of America's three great Wilderness trails, this is a head-first dive into refreshing waters.

Even those who consider themselves pseudo-expert hikers, well-read on these thru-hikes (like myself), will find delightful insights when seeing them presented back-to-back-to-back like this. For example, many PCT- and CDT-hikers tend to refer to the Appalachian Trail as "that wussy trail back East" because of its shorter mileage, lower elevation, and the fact that you really don't need a map because of crowds and blazed markings. However, she explains that the AT is actually the most difficult of the three when it comes to frequent steep climbs and rocky footpaths. Having only hiked sections of the PCT and CDT myself, I never knew that. Ground-leveling comparisons like that (no pun intended) abound through the text.

Being one of the few people ever to have finished the whole Triple Crown, Karen brings great perspective to the nature of America's greatest trails that few can claim to have. A fantastic book for anyone interested in ANY of these trails.

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great overview of the three trails, December 31, 2001

By 

Candace Scott (Lake Arrowhead, CA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hiking the Triple Crown : Appalachian Trail - Pacific Crest Trail - Continental Divide Trail - How to Hike America's Longest Trails (Paperback)

This is a fine overview of the three major hiking trails that criss-cross the United States. The major focus of the book is on the renowned Appalachian trail, with most of the text devoted to the AT. The Pacific Crest Trail has some useful information, though the chapters on this trail are shorter and less detailed. The Continental Divide Trail is given more sparse coverage, because the trail is not yet completed and is not attempted by very many hikers, except the very bravest souls.

This book is recommended for people who are not in the immediate stages of planning a thru hike. If you're planning on tackling any of these trails, specific books on each individual trail is the way to go. There is too much general information here for those seriously considering a hike in the near future. This book is fine as an overview and to give you a sample feel of each hike, but is less successful for one planning a hike in the coming year.

The writing is excellent and the book is riveting in sections. For all those obsessed with hiking any of the grand thru trails in America, this is an excellent and recommended resource.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book, November 5, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Hiking the Triple Crown : Appalachian Trail - Pacific Crest Trail - Continental Divide Trail - How to Hike America's Longest Trails (Paperback)

For those of us out there who dream of tackling one (or all!) of the triple crown trails, this book is an awesome resource. Karen Berger is realistic and frank yet encouraging in her advice to long-distance hikers.

Berger's love of these magnificent trails is what makes this book--klike her other books, especially "Where the Waters Divide"-- shine; she obviously has a profound respect for these national treasures and realizes the importance of making others aware of them as well. It's easy to read, has some great photos, and offers shorter hikes to those less inclined to set off on a 6-month thru-hike. The book is useful as both a general hiking reference tool as well as in the planning stages, especially for the At and the PCT; it is also useful for those who wish to do shorter hikes on any of the triple crowns.