Wild Year

By J.R. Ball

This is the true story of how I used a dead-end job-with an unrelenting travel schedule-as the perfect alibi to secretly spend a year exploring America's national parks. This once-in-a-lifetime adventure captures the spirit of a country rediscovering nature in record numbers amid the pandemic.

THE PHOTOGRAPHS: Over 150 high-resolution, color photos paint a vivid portrait of the unspoiled, protected lands across the contiguous U.S.-from our most beloved natural landmarks to remote vistas and prairies. From coast-to-coast, nearly every type of topography is recorded in rich detail; from rugged mountains and arid deserts to ancient forests and thundering waterfalls.

THE STORY: A series of long-form essays-recorded in real-time, on-location-accompanies the book's dramatic photography. The story transports the reader into the backcountry and illustrates how I evolved over the course of the year, adding levity and a relatable, first-person perspective to the adventure.

THE PARKS: Told in chronological order, each chapter focuses on a specific national park and relays my experiences-from coming face-to-face with wolves and bears to traversing glaciated mountains and kayaking freshwater oceans-at these incredible wild spaces: Muir Woods, Olympic, Yellowstone, Mt. Rainier, Great Smokey Mountains, Voyageurs, Arches, North Cascades, Yosemite, Joshua Tree, Sequoia & Kings Canyon, Grand Canyon, Badlands, Chickasaw, Pinnacles, Rocky Mountains.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0998762695
• ISBN13: 9780998762692
• Release Date: March 2021
• Publisher: City Limits Publishing LLC
• Length: 264 Pages
• Weight: 1.87 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 7.5" x 9.3"