From reviewers…

trailplace.com, April 1999

"This beautifully-written book has everything—including some wonderfully sly humor and a plot that draws you along so strongly you can hardly put the book down."

Appalachian Trailway News, December 2000

"This has long been an 'underground classic' in AT circles."

From readers...

"This is absolutely my favorite book about an Appalachian Trail hike, and I've got lots of them. Mr. Lowther's dialogue is absolutely perfect. I felt as though I were there listening. And it's a gentle book. This is a fascinating family. I wish he'd write lots more about them and their lives."

"This book earned my five stars because it details the daily life of the folks on the trail but not in a guide book manner. It was a story with trail details imbedded in a way that easily blended the facts with the story. I like the way the author described the thought process of the many decisions they made on the trail. I enjoyed the physical description of the trail, the shelters, the plants and animals and the other hikers. This book answered many questions about daily life on the trail. Thank you for the entertainment and the information."

"I have read several AT books and this one has been the most enjoyable so far. I laughed out loud several times. I also really felt a wide range of emotions for their trials (rain, rain, rain). If you enjoy AT stories, don't miss this one."

"This is only the third book I've ever read about the AT, but it is my favorite. I felt as if I were walking with them, and felt their disappointments, frustrations, joys. I thought that by including how the daughter and mother felt along the way, not just the author-dad, I got a better picture of what it was like to walk so far, and how people experience things differently. Great balance of trail details and personal feelings. An enjoyable and inspiring book. Didn't want their walk to come to an end. Makes you want to get out there and hike too!"

"Mic Lowther self published this book in 1990. Finally publishing it for the public in 2001. I am sorry he did not do it sooner. After reading virtually every account that has been written about walking the entire trail or in part, this book is my favorite…. It is an excellent balance of what the trail is about, the emotions that ensue and the personal relationships that develop between hikers and their immediate family. I highly recommend this book for anyone who has dreamed of hiking the trail or mystified why people actually attempt it."

Walking North book cover

About the book:

Walking North is a story of discovery, a story of realizations about the natural world that come slowly, gradually, to one who doesn’t even know he is looking for anything.

Mic and Jerrianne Lowther, with ten-year-old daughter, Kyra, start optimistically one first day of spring to walk from Georgia to Maine along the Appalachian Trail. The path is more than 2,000 miles long and follows the very crest of the Appalachian Mountains. All uphill, hikers say, in either direction.

They walk through the usual elements such an adventure brings - snow, rain, wind, cold, heat, swarming bugs. Through bogs, rocks, mud, and river crossings. And from Georgia to Maine, the backdrop is mountain scenery - vivid, spectacular, ever-changing.

Bears, skunks, and raccoons invade their camps, along with a motorcycle gang, a helicopter gunship, and a colorful assortment of hikers making their way casually, methodically, or obsessively toward Maine.

Differing objectives become evident early on. Jerri has come to see things growing and green, to follow spring north, to walk without hurry through a full change of seasons. Mic counts the miles, plotting each day as a means toward the goal: Maine. And Kyra, well, who knows what she’s thinking….

Walking North is a thoughtful narrative, descriptive at times, touching at times, humorous throughout. It is a story of working the day’s problems, of understanding personal differences, and of slowly discovering one’s place in the natural world.

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