From the chapter, “Black Tide” in my narrative Hiking on the Edge: Dreams, Schemes and 1600 Miles on the California Coastal Trail. The 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill marked the birth of the enivronmental movement and led to the first Earth Day in 1970.

“On Earth Day, April 22, and every day, begin the restoration of nature by restoring yourself,” urges author John McKinney. Excerpt from “Hiking the Holy Mountain: Tales of Monks and Miracles on the Trails of Mt. Athos, Greece.”

“God has two dwellings: one in heaven, and the other in a meek and thankful heart,” declared Izaak Walton, the 17th century English writer now regarded as the “patron saint of fishing.” Walton’s walks by the river Dove and along the banks of many other brooks and ponds, inspired him to write “The Compleat Angler,” […]

The Lost Coast is California’s wildest coast with cliff-edge trails, redwood groves and black sand beaches. We all need one place on the map, one place in hearts that is lost. Enjoy this passage from “Hiking on Edge: Dreams, Schemes, and 1600 Miles on the California Coast” by John McKinney. Soul-stirring, read more. Lost Coast […]

“Why Do Otherwise Smart People do Such Stupid Things in the Great Outdoors?” An editorial about hikers I wrote for the Los Angeles Times asked this question and generated quite a lively response from readers around SoCal and across the country.

My op-ed, “Nature Has Something to Tell Us and it’s Time We Listened” was published recently in the Washington Post. The Post asked me to write a story about the California wildfires that was “personal, not about policy.”  I wrote about watching my “home mountains” (the Santa Monica Mountains) burn and our connection to, and […]

“God has two dwellings: one in heaven, and the other in a meek and thankful heart,” declared Izaak Walton, the 17th century English writer now regarded as the patron saint of fishing. Walton’s walks by the river Dove and along the banks of many other brooks and ponds, inspired him to write “The Compleat Angler,” […]