Year: 2008

Here is the most updated list, as of today. I will, of course, bring photographs and other materials to share, along with your choice of flora/fauna stamps. It will be great to meet all of you. As you can see, I’ve added some dates, and I’m getting quite a lot of emails because of Salon’s selection of The Cactus Eaters as part of its recommended summer reading list . Their other selections are When You Are Engulfed In Flames by David Sedaris, The Importance of Music to Girls by Lavinia Greenlaw, and Swish: My QuestTo Become The Gayest Person Ever, by Joel Derfner, and Drunkard: A Hard-Drinking Life by Neil Steinberg. Now I’ll have to read all the books on the list (except, of course, for mine, which I’ve read about 134 times.) And here is that list of interviews and readings: June 11InterviewNational Geographic Weekenda weekly syndicated talk show….

Apparently I bear a striking resemblance to another San Francisco-based author. Twice, I’ve gone into bookstores and have had employees launch into fandom freakouts — “oh my goodness. How fantastic that you would just drop in on us out of the blue. Let me get the manager! Oh, this is such a privilege. Would you like a coffee or something?” And then I’ve had to explain to them, sorry, I’m not that person, and then they slink off into various corners of the store. I’m thinking of shooting the guy an email to see if we can pose for a photo together. Then people will see that we don’t look completely alike. Or maybe I’ll just pretend to be him and try to steal his fans. http://cactuseaters.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default

What an incredible three days. The last time I was up in your area, I arrived on foot and left on the Green Tortoise hippie bus (which all of you should try at least once in your lifetime. It’s crazy.) I started out in Bellingham, where I spoke at Village Books in the historic Fairhaven area. Bellingham is one of those towns that pays tribute to its past without ever looking like a ‘museum town.’ It felt very alive and real to me. Then I drove on to Seattle, where the Secret Garden bookstore and Ballard Branch of the Seattle Public Library organized a fantastic reading night — killer turnout, great questions, and I hope I convinced at least five or six people to try a through-hike on America’s greatest long-distance footpath. Then I rolled on to Portland, which was one of the biggest surprises of all. Of course, I…

I will see you all at the reading after my urban trail run through this beautiful town. Tomorrow, leaving the city might be a slight problem. Aside from the fact that I will be leaving reluctantly, there is, apparently, a huge parade going right past my hotel around 8 a.m.!! http://cactuseaters.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default

Everything is elevated to a whole new level of quality in this city. Even the meatloaf is good out here. I had a fantastic reading at Seattle Public Library’s Ballard branch, sponsored by the Secret Garden Bookstore. The library itself is something you have to see. (It’s all green construction. There is a field of actual grass growing on the roof!!) The audience was fantastic. More about all this later, but I’m leaving for Portland this very second. (look for my interview in today’s Portland Oregonian. I’m speaking tonight at 7 p.m. at Barnes & Noble, 12000 S.E. 82nd Ave, Portland. http://cactuseaters.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default

Thanks to all of you for sending me your stories about backcountry mishaps and truly enormous pack weights. You are doing wonders for my backpacking and camping self-esteem. I’m thinking of having some sort of contest for the best stories about overpacking, getting lost, etc. Stay tuned on that front. Meanwhile, I hope to see you all at the Ballard Branch of the Seattle Public Library tonight at 6:30 p.m. http://cactuseaters.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default

What a beautiful town. The people here are all smart and engaged with the world — and they all look about 20 years younger than they are. (I guess everyone eats well and does a lot of trail running. No swilling of double martinis out here.) I had a very good time reading at Village Books. I’ll crash for about 13 hours now and then I’m heading off to Seattle. http://cactuseaters.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default

For this week’s readings up in Oregon and Washington, I’ve unearthed some trail artifacts and a couple of really scary photographs and journal entries dating to the “Lois and Clark Expedition.” I’m looking forward to sharing a few trail stories with you (and hearing yours, too.) http://cactuseaters.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default

If you are in the Bellingham, Washington area, and happen to be awake on the early side, switch on your radio and listen in on my brief live interview on KGMI at 7:15 AM PST. Immediately after the interview, I will board a plane and fly up to one of my very favorite places in America, the Pacific Northwest, where my “Cactus” tour will begin. However, I will most likely leave my backpack behind because he’s picked up a terrible odor from my last outdoor sojourn in the Southeast. (bear scat? Whatever it is, it won’t go away.) Anyhow, I’m looking forward to meeting readers and hikers up there. Many of the loveliest sections of the PCT are right there— Crater Lake, the Goat Rocks, the Pasayten Wilderness. The list goes on and on. Out in the Pacific Northwest, I ate too many huckleberries, stomped through pumice flats, and stayed…

And this just in — a good talk with influential lit blogger Little Clay Pig, right here in San Francisco. Actually, you should read that blog regularly; it’s a good one. Little Clay Pig By the way, this week I will figure out a way to put in clickable links for my readers. Sorry about that. What can I say? I am a total Luddite. Also, if you happen to be a reader of the Chicago Tribune, Hartford Courant and NY Newsday, look for the LA Times review, which is reappearing in various places. Also, I had a really good podcast talk with the author Lisa Haneberg this week. I will include the link to that podcast at some point next week. http://cactuseaters.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default