Cross country bike trip revisited in gripping new memoir, “Uphill and Into the Wind”

When David Reed and his two friends began to pedal up Skyline Drive into Shenandoah National Park, they got more than they bargained for. Five-mile-long hills, a bear encounter which damaged gear and a plane crash, only minutes old, were a sobering start.

But things improved, with an enchanting hike through a now extinct hemlock forest and down White Oak Canyon, ending with a nighttime climb of Old Rag Mountain.

The trio were witness to rare sights: a vast migration of butterflies from a mountaintop, the arrival of warblers in droves through the greening forest, and other wonders of Appalachian spring.

By the time they completed this leg of their long journey, on the most sinewy road ever; a 105-mile-long crinkled worm, that climbs, dips, curls, jogs, and zigzags along the ridge lines of the Shenandoah, they had become seasoned bike-trippers, ready for the adventures which lay ahead.

Recently released, Uphill and Into the Wind, a 1970s bike and hike odyssey from the Garden State to the Golden Gate covers 5,420 miles, eleven crossings of the Continental Divide and two months hiking in the great national parks, beginning with the Shenandoah.

Brimming with adventure, the book chronicles the sudden and surprising glories of nature, the raw beauty of the land, and the ferocious grandeur of the American landscape.

David Reed will be presenting his memoir, Uphill and Into the Wind via Zoom, compliments of Royal Oak Bookshop on February 24, 2022 at 6:30 p.m. Eastern Time. The talk which is free, will be followed with Q& A. Reservations requested, please contact: uphillandintothewind.com, or connect at: Zoom – The Zoom link will be active 15 minutes before the presentation.

PRAISE FOR UPHILL AND INTO THE WIND

“David Reed’s fine book reminds us of what was unique and often forgotten about the generation that came of age in the ‘60s and ‘70s. The freedom, the love of country, a kind of patriotism rare today; the romanticism, the saying ‘yes’ to life; and most of all, the hope. David’s book reminds us of the America we went looking for, and, with courage and faith, might once again seek.”

– Richard Louv, international bestselling author of Last Child in the Woods and Our Wild Calling 

“An exuberant trio takes to the road and invites us to cycle along with them. Together we climb mountains, brave icy storms, wonder at wildflowers and pronghorns, and drift peacefully into a night sky of a million billion stars. From the mundane (PB&J sandwiches, fixing spokes) to the spectacular, lyrical descriptions that do justice to the magnificent scenery), riding along with David Reed as he and his friends pedal across American is to see this country through the eyes of discovery and reverence.”

– Judy Reeves, Author of A Writer’s Bok of Days and Wild Women, Wild Voices

“From seed to stalk, field to plain, Reed’s reverent witness conveys in stunning prose the minute glory and ferocious grandeur of the American Landscape.”

– Melissa Fischer, author of The Advocacy