THE COMPLETE WALKER IV, by Colin Fletcher and Chip Rawlins, Knopf Publishers, 2002, 845 pages, $22.95.
Whether you are a serious mountain climber, a highpoint bagger, a leisure hiker or just a fitness walker, you will benefit from this extensive new reference volume.
This vastly updated version — the first in 18 years — is most helpful, although it isn't a book you'll read cover-to-cover in one sitting.
"Walker" features discussions about tents, clothing, walking sticks, stoves, food, backpacks, crampons, ice axes, water filters, altimeters, cell phones and even guns. It also contains some hiking philosophy and "how to's," plus data on rattlesnakes, so it's more than mere equipment information.
The book probably has enough detail to satisfy the most elite of climbers and yet could also help beginners be more comfortable.
Colin Fletcher, born in Wales, published the first edition in 1968. Now that he's pushing 80, he enlisted the help of Chip Rawlins of Laramie, Wyo., to co-author this version.
I especially enjoyed the lengthy discussion on hiking sticks, an often overlooked subject; a look at altimeters and how all but the most expensive models are affected by air pressure changes that they record as elevation changes; and the fact that you burn almost twice as many calories hiking up a 10 percent incline versus level walking.
There's even a discussion on an unusual diet plan.
Safety is stressed throughout, especially in chapters on rattlesnakes (hikers will likely encounter more snakes this year due to dry weather conditions), guns and mosquito protection. Unfortunately, Utah is mentioned only a few times in passing.
The only two drawbacks to the book are its title, which isn't going to catch the attention of many hikers and its lack of attention to the need for adequate hiking shoes.
Otherwise, Fletcher and Rawlins — who have hiked around the country a lot — know what they're talking about. It deserves the "Hiker's Bible" nickname.
E-MAIL: lynn@desnews.com