Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail

A corvid is a passerine bird, such as a crow, raven, or magpie, that belongs to the Corvidae family. According to a woman Strayed meets in Reno, the corvid feather Doug gave her symbolizes the void, specifically, the place where things are born. Thus, the feather is not just a good luck charm but also an allusion to her rebirth on the PCT as the person she was before her mother’s death.

The Dream of a Common Language (1978) is a collection of poems by Adrienne Rich, a feminist and award-winning American poet. The book is divided into three sections: “Power,” “Twenty-One Love Poems,” and “Not Somewhere Else, But Here.” Strayed reads “Power” on the PCT, drawing inspiration from the Rich’s descriptions of accomplished women.

The Novel (1991) by James A. Michener tells the story of an Amish author from four different viewpoints: the Writer, the Editor, the Critic, and the Reader. Michener is one of Bobbi’s favorite authors. As a college student, Strayed looked down on Michener’s work. However, she enjoys The Novel when she receives the book at Packer Lake Lodge both because of her mother’s fondness for Michener and because she is an aspiring writer.

The PCT is a hiking and equestrian trail that stretches from Campo, California to Manning Park, British Columbia. Catherine Montgomery developed the idea of creating a long-distance trail on the West Coast in 1926. Six years later, Clinton Churchill Clarke, an oilman from Pasadena, lobbied the federal government to pursue the idea, envisioning a trail that ran from Alaska to Chile. Clarke advocated for the creation of the PCT for 25 years. Warren Rogers, an acquaintance of Clark, took up the cause after the latter’s death in 1957. Congress designated the PCT in 1968. The trail was completed in 1992.