About the Author

Randy Johnson is a widely published authority on the Appalachian outdoors and has lived near the Parkway most of his life. He’s the author of the bestselling guidebooks Hiking North Carolina and Hiking the Blue Ridge Parkway (both FalconGuides), among others. Articles and photos by this award-winning photojournalist have for decades brought the Appalachians to readers of national magazines, newspapers, and major outdoor Web sites. As editor of the country’s most award-winning airline magazine, he often focused on accessible adventure.

A trail designer and builder, Randy was the founding wilderness manager at Grandfather Mountain and helped ensure the preservation of this significant North Carolina summit as a United Nations–designated biosphere reserve and now a state park. He was a trail design consultant for the Parkway’s Tanawha Trail and worked to mesh the then private and Park Service trails into the system in place today. Randy was instrumental in making the Tanawha Trail part of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail, and as co-chairman of the Central Blue Ridge Task Force, he helped design and construct a portion of that statewide path. He’s a longtime resident of the North Carolina mountains and lives in Banner Elk.

Visit www.randyjohnsonbooks.com to check out his television and radio appearances, videos, and publications, to send him an e-mail, and to see much more.