A Walk Atop America : Fifty State Summits and a Dream to Reach Them All

In A Walk Atop America , Douglas Butler chronicles his quest to scale the highest geographical point in each of the 50 United States. Some state summits were easy Florida s highest point is a 345-foot-high sandy knoll; Delaware s is a suburban intersection. Other peaks tested Butler s stamina and resolve. California s Mt Whitney required a 22-mile hike. To reach the top of Alaska s Mt. McKinley, Butler endured Arctic storms and minus 20-degree temperatures. Throughout this book, Butler intersperses climbing narratives with the tales of the places he visited and the people he met. Chapter 1. The Dream -- Chapter 2. Fire And Ice -- Mt. Rainier -- Chapter 3. Seeking Summits -- Iowa -- Chapter 4. A Changing Landscape -- The Southern Appalachians -- Chapter 5. Speakin' Mississippi -- The Deep South -- Chapter 6. A Real Mccoy -- The Central Appalachians -- Chapter 7. Silence -- The Lower Mississippi Valley -- Chapter 8. Downhill -- The Northeast -- Chapter 9. Solitude -- The Upper Midwest -- Chapter 10. Rock! -- Wyoming -- Chapter 11. Heading South -- The Rocky Mountains -- Chapter 12. Catharsis -- The Southern Rockies -- Chapter 13. The Trail Forks -- Nevada -- Chapter 14. An Early Winter -- North Dakota -- Chapter 15. A Snowy Panorama -- The Southern Plains -- Chapter 16. Retreat -- Mt. Hood. By Douglas Butler. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Climb every mountain ... or fifty state highpoints. Douglas Butler set out on a quest, a long-held dream, to hike, trek or climb to the highest geographical point of each state. But he did not race from mountain to mountain; instead his was a journey of discovery, traveling throughout our nation, studying our history, seeing our land and meeting our people. He carried a journal and camera along with an innate curiosity and love of adventure. In this book, A Walk Atop America - Fifty State Summits and a Dream to Reach Them All, he lovingly and vividly recounts that journey. Come share the adventur