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1-Page Summary of A Walk In The Woods

Overall Summary

Chapter 1

Bill Bryson decides to hike the Appalachian Trail after living abroad for a few years. He thinks it will help him get in shape, reconnect with his homeland, and learn how to survive in nature. He jokes that it will make him feel manly as well. Bryson knows that global warming might soon destroy this natural wonderland, so he wants to see it before it’s gone.

Bill Bryson talks to a few people who’ve hiked the Appalachian Trail and realizes that he’s in over his head. He thinks about all the dangers he might face, including rattlesnakes, coyotes, wolves, drunk hillbillies with guns, skunks with rabies and owls. He imagines himself meeting his demise surrounded by wolves or fire ants. Then he starts thinking about murderers—at least nine hikers have been murdered since 1974.

Bryson wants to hike the Appalachian Trail, but he doesn’t want to get caught in bad weather. So, instead of hiking the whole trail at once (which would take him five months), he decides to start his adventure in March and finish by October so that he can avoid bad weather. The Appalachian Trail is a long trail that’s about 2,150 miles long. It goes through several mountain ranges and is very difficult for hikers because it’s steep and rocky. Bryson estimates that if he hikes five million steps (about 10,000 miles) on the trail, it will take him about five months’ time. He had imagined having a nice stroll along the way with some good meals at country inns—but soon realizes that camping will be necessary as well as carrying his own food supplies so that he won’t have to rely on restaurants or hotels along the way.

Bryson is looking to buy some hiking equipment. He ends up talking with a salesman who’s an avid hiker and knows his stuff. The salesman explains the different kinds of materials used for backpacks, including air-flow channels and webbing loops. Bryson learns that it’s important to keep your load as light as possible when you’re hiking, otherwise it will be hard work carrying all those supplies around. It turns out that all this gear is expensive too, but there are plenty of options available if you want them—which Bryson does, because he wants everything he needs in one place so he doesn’t have to worry about forgetting anything on his trip. He also cracks a joke at the end about whether or not he should get the bottom part of the pack too (since it didn’t come with one), but Dave doesn’t laugh; however, Bryson thinks it was funny anyway.

Bryson sets up his tent in the basement. He tries to imagine himself being out camping, but he realizes that he hasn’t been in a tent since he was nine years old and that it’s not going to be fun at all.

Chapter 2

In July 5, 1983, a group of campers set up their tents by Lake Canimina in Quebec. They hung their food from a tree to keep it away from bears. However, one night a bear ripped the bag down and ate all the food. Later that night, the same bear came back for more food and dragged 12-year-old David Anderson into the woods where he was killed by his injuries.

Bryson imagines that he could have been eaten by a bear if he had gone on the Appalachian Trail. He thinks about everything that could go wrong, such as forgetting to bring candy or using a scented gel in his hair. In reality, this is highly unlikely because bears are only found in western states and they’re very dangerous animals. Bryson reads an account of a man who was attacked by a bear and survived, but it still scares him.

Bryson knows that he is more likely to encounter a black bear than a grizzly. However, Herrero writes in his book Bear Attacks: Their Causes and Avoidance that the best thing to do when encountering a grizzly bear is to back away slowly and climb a tree. Bryson thinks this advice sounds easy for someone who’s writing about it rather than actually being there in the woods with one of these bears. For black bears, on the other hand, you should make noise and run toward them because they will usually leave you alone if they know you’re coming towards them.