Author Talk: Celia Ryker “Walking Home: Trail Stories”

Celia Ryker’s Walking Home: Trail Stories is about more than mud, sweat, and blisters while distance hiking the Long Trail. Reminiscent of Cheryl Strayed’s Wild, Ryker’s mind wanders as her legs carry her forward, beyond a woodland path, to places and people she thought she had forgotten. Her grandmother’s spirit appears on Mount Baker. A lost cousin waits for her at the bottom of every ladder. Her late father’s words reverberate among the calls of barred owls. There were days when she didn’t see another hiker, but she was never alone. Celia began writing about a difficult hike and ended up writing about people who inspired her throughout her life. These are her “trail stories.”

In one of our first-in-a-year in-person events, Celia will give a slide show and talk about her trail experiences on the Long Trail, her new book, and even give us a quick tutorial on what to put in your backpack and how to organize it for maximum efficiency and usefulness.

About the author: Celia has been a horse trainer, horticulturalist, and hiker and has been writing all of her life. Walking Home is her first book. Celia and her husband Don live between Vermont and Michigan with their border collie Flurry. Visit her website, CeliaRyker.com