Alone in the Appalachians: A City Girl's Trek from Maine to the Gaspésie

Christine Hughes is manager, Policy Coordination, Developmental Services
Branch, Ontario Ministry of Community, Family and Children’s Services.

In July 2000, Monique Dykstra left Montreal to begin a 1000-kilometre
walking journey along the new International Appalachian Trail (IAT). The
IAT is the Canadian extension of the Appalachian Trail, the most popular
hiking trail in North America. This book vividly recounts her two-month
solo adventure, which began at Mount Katahdin in Maine, took her through
New Brunswick, and ended at the tip of Cap Gaspé in Quebec.

Readers who are interested in hiking the IAT will find this book a
useful resource. In particular, “The Essential Guide” at the back of
the book includes IAT contacts, park addresses, equipment lists, and
very detailed descriptions of each section of the trail, including
directions, number of days to complete, restaurants and accommodations,
and pricing. It is meant to be used with official IAT hiking guides, but
provides some valuable information not typically available in
traditional guides but necessary for trip planning. (This section is
also posted on the Internet so that readers can provide corrections and
updates.)

Armchair readers will also enjoy this book for its many color
photographs of spectacular scenery, wildlife, and flowers, and for its
readability; Dykstra employs an easy, conversational writing style as
she describes the interesting sites and people encountered along the
way.

Dykstra is a Montreal-based photographer and writer who has published
articles in various national and international journals. Since 1998, she
has written a regular column in the Montreal Gazette profiling
extraordinary people.