Ron Strickland (born March 19, 1943) is an American conservationist,

long distance trail A long-distance trail (or long-distance footpath, track, way, greenway) is a longer recreational trail mainly through rural areas used for hiking, backpacking, cycling, horse riding or cross-country skiing. They exist on all continents excep ...

developer, and

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

. He is the founder of the 1,200-mile (1,900 km)

Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail The Pacific Northwest Trail (PNT) is a 1200-mile hiking trail running from the Continental Divide in Montana to the Pacific Ocean on Washington's Olympic Coast. Along the way, the PNT crosses three national parks, seven national forests, and tw ...

(PNT) and of the proposed transcontinental Sea-to-Sea Route. He is the author of nine books including his 2011 memoir ''Pathfinder: Blazing a New Wilderness Trail in Modern America''.

Education and career

Born Ronald Gibson Strickland in

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay ...

, Strickland attended Tower Hill School in

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington ( Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...

, and graduated with three degrees from

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

. Strickland wrote his dissertation about the politics of the

National Wilderness Preservation System The National Wilderness Preservation System (NWPS) of the United States protects federally managed wilderness areas designated for preservation in their natural condition. Activity on formally designated wilderness areas is coordinated by the Na ...

. He developed an early passion for

backpacking Backpacking may refer to: * Backpacking (travel), low-cost, independent, international travel * Backpacking (hiking), trekking and camping overnight in the wilderness * Ultralight backpacking, a style of wilderness backpacking with an emphasis on ...

that led, in 1970, to his desire to develop an east-west

hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...

trail from the

Continental Divide A continental divide is a drainage divide on a continent such that the drainage basin on one side of the divide feeds into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea, or else is endorheic, not ...

to the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

. He incorporated the Pacific Northwest Trail Association in 1977, and was its executive director for twenty years. In 1984 and 2001 he published the first and second editions of the ''Pacific Northwest Trail Guide''. In March 2009, Congress added the

into the National Trails System where it is now a permanent part of America’s national heritage. Strickland’s most ambitious project has been his proposed Atlantic Ocean to Pacific Ocean Sea-To-Sea Route. In 1996, he wrote that when completed it would provide a transcontinental framework for the hitherto disparate long distance trails of the National Trails System. In 2005, thru-hiker Andrew Skurka hiked it straight through from east to west in 11 months. Strickland’s awards include the $10,000 Chevron Conservation Award, the $50,000 American Land Conservation Award, the 2008 National Trails Symposium’s Lifetime Service Award, and the 2010 LL Bean Outdoor Heroes Award. The Pacific Northwest Trail is a story of "unstinting devotion...Ron Strickland's tale fits the landscape through which he traveled: out of scale, and a bit bigger than life usually is.". He and his wife, autho
Christine W. Hartmann
live in Bedford, Massachusetts.

Publications

* ''The North Country Trail: The Best Walks, Hikes, and Backpacking Trips on America's Longest National Scenic Trail''. (Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press, 2013) * ''Pathfinder: Blazing a new Wilderness Trail in Modern America''. (Corvallis, OR: Oregon State University Press, 2011) * ''The Pacific Northwest Trail Guide'', 2nd Ed. (Seattle: Sasquatch Books, 2001) * ''Shank's Mare: A Compendium of Remarkable Walks'', (New York: Paragon House, 1988) * ''Vermonters: Oral Histories from Down Country to the Northeast Kingdom'', (San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1986; Hanover, NH: University Press Of New England, 1998) * ''River Pigs and Cayuses: Oral Histories from the Pacific Northwest'', (San Francisco: Lexikos, 1984; Corvallis, OR: Oregon State University Press, 2001) * ''Whistlepunks & Geoducks: Oral Histories from the Pacific Northwest'', (New York: Paragon House, 1990; Corvallis, OR: Oregon State University Press, 2001) * ''Texans: Oral Histories from the Lone Star State'', (New York: Paragon House, 1991) * ''Alaskans: Oral Histories from the Last Frontier'', (Harrisburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 1992)

References

External links

Sea to Sea Route

Pacific Northwest Trail Association

"The Prophet Of The PNT"
by John Harlin, Backpacker Magazine, May 2000

* ttp://www.pnt.org/trail/guides-and-references/ PNT Guides and References {{DEFAULTSORT:Strickland, Ron 1943 births Living people American conservationists American writers