Book picks similar to
How to Rock Climb! by John Long


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non-fiction
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The Beckoning Silence


Joe Simpson - 2002
    Since his epic battle for survival in the Andes, recounted in Touching the Void, Joe Simpson has experienced a life filled with adventure but marred by death. He has endured the painful attrition of climbing friends in accidents which call into question the perilously exhilarating activity to which he has devoted his whole life. Probability is inexorably closing in. The tragic loss of a close friend forces a momentous decision. It is time to turn his back on the mountains that he has loved. Never more alive than when most at risk, he has come to see a last climb on the mile-high North Face of the Eiger as the cathartic finale to his climbing career.In a narrative that takes the reader through extreme experiences from an avalanche in Bolivia, ice-climbing in the Alps and Colorado and paragliding in Spain -- before his final confrontation with the Eiger -- Simpson reveals the inner truth of climbing, exploring the power of the mind and the frailties of the body through intensely lived accounts of exhilaration and despair. The subject of his new book is the siren song of fear and his struggle to come to terms with it.

The Little Red Book of Fly Fishing


Kirk Deeter - 2010
    There are no complicated physics lessons here. Rather, conceived in the “take dead aim” spirit of Harvey Penick’s classic instructional on golf, The Little Red Book of Fly Fishing offers a simple, digestible primer on the basic elements of fly fishing: the cast, presentation, reading water, and selecting flies. The Table of Contents includes:Part One: The Cast: 45 Tips to Help You Cast Straighter, Longer, and More AccuratelyPart Two: Presentation: 60 Tips to Help you Place and Drift Your Flies So that Trout Will Want to Eat ThemPart Three: Reading Water: 37 Tips to Help You Find Trout in a Rive and Effectively Cast to themPart Four: 43 Tips to Help You Select, Rig, and Fish the Right Fly at the Right Time in the Right WayPart Five: Miscellaneous: 65 Tips on Fighting Fish, Wading, Choosing Ger, and Everything Else That MattersIn the end, this collection of 240 tips is one of the most insightful, plainly spoken, and entertaining works on this sport—one that will serve both novices and experts alike in helping them reflect and hone-in their approaches to fly fishing.

Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mount Everest Disaster


Jon Krakauer - 1997
    Everest, saw nothing that "suggested that a murderous storm was bearing down." He was wrong. The storm, which claimed five lives and left countless more--including Krakauer's--in guilt-ridden disarray, would also provide the impetus for Into Thin Air, Krakauer's epic account of the May 1996 disaster.

Fixing Your Feet: Prevention and Treatments for Athletes


John Vonhof - 2000
    Foot expert John Vonhof discredits the conventional wisdom of "no pain, no gain," teaching instead how the interplay of anatomy, biomechanics, and footwear can lead to happy or hurting feet. With a focus on individual and team care, this fifth edition covers everything that an active person needs for immediate and long-term foot care solutions. Vonhof's advice comes not only from his own experience but also from many foot experts and endurance athletes. He offers numerous solutions for each problem, as there is no one best solution — different treatments work for different feet. This comprehensive resource covers footwear basics, prevention, and treatments along with clear diagrams, photos, and charts that demonstrate techniques and solutions. If it can happen to a foot, it's covered in this book.

John Muir Trail: The essential guide to hiking America's most famous trail


Elizabeth Wenk - 2007
    Each year, thousands of backpackers traverse some or all of the trail, relying on Wilderness Press's John Muir Trail. The completely updated edition of this Sierra classic includes significant information found nowhere else. The new John Muir Trail meticulously describes the entire trail and is written for today's hikers. The book includes GPS coordinates, not only for every junction, but also for every established campsite, bear box, and mountain pass that the trail crosses. The guide has separate descriptions for northbound and southbound hikers; for each direction, a junction chart shows all the trail's ups and downs.

Self-Coached Climber: The Guide to Movement, Training, Performance


Dan Hague - 2006
    Hague and Hunter base their methods on the four fundamental components of all human movement--balance, force, time, and space--and explain how to apply these principles to achieve efficient results. The DVD presents live demonstrations of training exercises and features an original documentary of a 5.14a/b redpoint attempt by Adam Stack and Chris Lindner. Includes 52 practical training exercises designed to advance technique, detailed anatomical illustrations that explain climbing physiology and an 85-minute DVD that shows concepts in action.

How to Shit in the Woods: An Environmentally Sound Approach to a Lost Art


Kathleen Meyer - 1989
    Kathleen eyer, river-runner and longtime outdoorswoman, corrects this oversight in How to Shit in the Woods. What was once instinct now needs to be learned. "Until roughly ten years ago, no one ever considered it unsafe to drink directly from mountain streams. You could stretch out on the bank of a high mountain meadow creek and just push your face into the water to drink ... no longer can we drink even a drop before purifying it without running the risk of getting sick." With more people in the outdoors than ever, it is important that each of us knows how to take care of our own waste.

Everest - The First Ascent: How a Champion of Science Helped to Conquer the Mountain


Harriet Tuckey - 2013
    Everest in 1953 and a biography of her father, Dr Griffith Pugh, whose role was absolutely pivotal, yet mostly untold. As the expedition’s physiological consultant, Pugh designed almost every aspect of the survival strategy for the expedition, the acclimatization program, the oxygen- and fluid-intake regime, the diet, the clothing and the high altitude boots. Without him and his work, the ascent of Everest would have been impossible.

No Way Down: Life and Death on K2


Graham Bowley - 2010
    but second to no peak in terms of danger. From tragic deaths to unbelievable stories of heroism and survival, No Way Down is an amazing feat of storytelling and adventure writing, and, in the words of explorer and author Sir Ranulph Fiennes, “the closest you can come to being on the summit of K2 on that fateful day.”

All New Square Foot Gardening


Mel Bartholomew - 1981
    Sure, it's even simpler than it was before. Of course, you don't have to worry about fertilizer or poor soil ever again because you'll be growing above the ground. However, the best feature is that anyone, anywhere can enjoy a square foot garden - children, adults with limited mobility, and even complete novices can achieve spectacular results. But, let's get back to the ten improvements. You're going to love them: 1. New Location - Move your garden closer to your house by eliminating single-row gardening. Square foot gardens need just 20% of the space of a traditional garden.2. New Direction - Locate your garden on top of existing soil. Forget about pH soil tests, double-digging (who enjoys that?), or those never-ending soil improvements.3. New Soil - The new "Mel's Mix" is the perfect growing mix. We give you the recipe, and best of all, you can even buy the different types of compost needed.4. New Depth - You only need to prepare a SFG box to a depth of 6 inches! It's true - the majority of plants develop just fine when grown at this depth.5. No Fertilizer - The all new SFG does not need any fertilizer - ever! If you start with the perfect soil mix, then you don't need to add fertilizer.6. New Boxes - The new method uses bottomless boxes placed above ground. We show you how to build your own (with step-by-step photos).7. New Aisles - The ideal gardening aisle width is about three to four feet. That makes it even easier to kneel, work, and harvest.8. New Grids - Prominent and permanent grids added to your SFG box help you visualize your planting squares and properly space them for maximum harvest.9. New Seed-Saving Idea - The old-fashioned way advocates planting many seeds and then thinning the extras (that means pulling them up). The new method means planting a pinch - literally two or three seeds - per planting hole.10. Tabletop Gardens - The new boxes are so much smaller and lighter (only 6 inches of soil, remember?), you can add a plywood bottom to make them portable. Of course, that's not all. We've also included simple, easy-to-follow instructions using lots of photos and illustrations. You're going to love it!

The Rock Climber's Training Manual | A Guide to Continuous Improvement


Michael L. Anderson - 2014
    

The Lost Art of Reading Nature’s Signs: Use Outdoor Clues to Find Your Way, Predict the Weather, Locate Water, Track Animals—and Other Forgotten Skills


Tristan Gooley - 2014
    The roots of a tree indicate the sun’s direction; the Big Dipper tells the time; a passing butterfly hints at the weather; a sand dune reveals prevailing wind; the scent of cinnamon suggests altitude; a budding flower points south. To help you understand nature as he does, Gooley shares more than 850 tips for forecasting, tracking, and more, gathered from decades spent walking the landscape around his home and around the world. Whether you’re walking in the country or city, along a coastline, or by night, this is the ultimate resource on what the land, sun, moon, stars, plants, animals, and clouds can reveal—if you only know how to look!

The Rock Warrior's Way: Mental Training for Climbers


Arno Ilgner - 2003
    Rock Warriors Way: Mental Training

ChiRunning: A Revolutionary Approach to Effortless, Injury-Free Running


Danny Dreyer - 2004
    This new edition is fully updated with fresh insights and innovative training techniques from one of the sport's leading voices. Danny Dreyer teaches us how to heal and prevent injuries and also to run faster, farther, and with much less effort at any age or ability.With more than 150,000 copies in print, this groundbreaking program makes running safe and fun for beginning and seasoned runners, while also giving competitive runners the edge they seek. ChiRunning employs the deep power reserves in the core muscles, an approach found in disciplines such as yoga, Pilates, and in this case T'ai Chi. Make knee pain and shin splints a thing of the past Experience the natural efficiency of the midfoot strike Dramatically reduce your potential for injury Transform your running with our new 10-step training program ChiRunning provides powerful insight and transforms running from a high-injury sport to a body-friendly fitness phenomenon. Join the revolution!

Hold the Enlightenment


Tim Cahill - 2002
    He also ventures to find a Caspian tiger in Turkey and giant centipedes in the Congo. Cahill is one of the last great intrepid journalists, and his thirty wildly entertaining essays display sparkling wit and unstinting curiosity. When not on the move, he debunks hoary notions of the kindness of dolphins and ruminates on religion, death and the perplexing phenomenon of yoga. Charming, incisive and absolutely fearless, Cahill is the perfect travel companion.