Adventure Travel Memoirs

Updated June 6, 2026
Rochester Public Library RPL Staff
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Adventure Travel Memoirs

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Wild : from lost to found on the Pacific Crest Trail
Strayed, Cheryl
Paper Book
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * A powerful, blazingly honest memoir: the story of an eleven-hundred-mile solo hike that broke down a young woman reeling from catastrophe--and built her back up again. A Kirkus Reviews Best Nonfiction Book of the Century At...
Spirit run : a 6,000-mile marathon through North America's stolen land
?lvarez, No
Paper Book
In this New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice, the son of working-class Mexican immigrants flees a life of labor in fruit-packing plants to run in a Native American marathon from Canada to Guatemala in this "stunning memoir that moves to the rhythm of feet, labor, and the many...
A walk in the park : the true story of a spectacular misadventure in the Grand Canyon
Fedarko, Kevin
Paper Book
* Winner of the National Outdoor Book Award in Outdoor Literature * Winner of the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction * Named a Best Book of the Year by The New York Times, Air Mail, Smithsonian Magazine, and Financial Times "A...
A walk in the woods
Bryson, Bill
Paper Book
God only knows what possessed Bill Bryson, a reluctant adventurer if ever there was one, to undertake a gruelling hike along the world's longest continuous footpath--The Appalachian Trail. The 2,000-plus-mile trail winds through 14 states, stretching along the east coast of the...
Eat, pray, love : one woman's search for everything across Italy, India and Indonesia
Gilbert, Elizabeth
Paper Book
One of the most iconic, beloved, and bestselling books of our time. This beautifully written, heartfelt memoir touched a nerve among both readers and reviewers. Elizabeth Gilbert tells how she made the difficult choice to leave behind all the trappings of modern American success...
The lost city of the Monkey God
Preston, Douglas J.
Paper Book
The #1 New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller. Named one of the best books of the year by The Boston Globe and National Geographic. An acclaimed journalist takes readers on a true...
Down under
Bryson, Bill
Paper Book
It is the driest, flattest, hottest, most desiccated, infertile and climatically aggressive of all the inhabited continents and still Australia teems with life âe" a large portion of it quite deadly. In fact, Australia has more things that can kill you in a very nasty way than anywhere else. ...
Nowhere for very long : the unexpected road to an unconventional life
Madia, Brianna.
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * WALL STREET JOURNAL BESTSELLER * USA TODAY! BESTSELLER In this beautifully written, vividly detailed memoir, a young woman chronicles her adventures traveling across the deserts of the American West in an orange van named...
The way of the hermit : my incredible 40 years living in the wilderness
Smith, Ken (Hermit of Treig)
Paper Book
*INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER* Subconsciously, I pressed myself into the loch's banks as that summer inched forward. We'd got off to a rocky beginning, but I started to see Treig in a different way. There was something about this land that told me just to hold on a while...
Tracks
Davidson, Robyn
Paper Book
Now a major motion picture starring Mia Wasikowska and Adam Driver'I experienced that sinking feeling you get when you know you have conned yourself into doing something difficult and there's no going back.' So begins Robyn Davidson's perilous journey across 1,700 miles of hostile Australian...
North : finding my way while running the Appalachian Trail
Jurek, Scott
Paper Book
From the author of the bestseller Eat and Run, a thrilling memoir about his grueling, exhilarating, and immensely inspiring 46-day run to break the speed record for the Appalachian Trail. Scott Jurek is one of the world's best known and most beloved...
The adventurer's son : a memoir
Dial, Roman
Paper Book
NATIONAL BESTSELLER  "Destined to become an adventure classic." --Anchorage Daily News Hailed as "gripping" (New York Times) and "beautiful" (Washington Post), The Adventurer's Son is Roman Dial's extraordinary and widely acclaimed account of his two-year quest to unravel...
Dark star safari : overland from Cairo to Cape Town
Theroux, Paul
Paper Book
In the travel-writing tradition that made Paul Theroux's reputation, Dark Star Safari is a rich and insightful book whose itinerary is Africa, from Cairo to Cape Town: down the Nile, through Sudan and Ethiopia, to Kenya, Uganda, and ultimately to the tip of South Africa. Going by train, dugout...
Tales of a female nomad : living at large in the world
Gelman, Rita Golden.
Paper Book
The true story of an ordinary woman living an extraordinary existence all over the world. "Gelman doesn't just observe the cultures she visits, she participates in them, becoming emotionally involved in the people's lives. This is an amazing travelogue." --Booklist...
Girl in the woods : a memoir
Matis, Aspen
Paper Book
Girl in the Woods is Aspen Matis's exhilarating true-life adventure of hiking from Mexico to Canada--a coming-of-age story, a survival story, and a triumphant story of overcoming emotional devastation. On her second night of college, Aspen was raped by a fellow student. Overprotected by her...
The Amur River : between Russia and China
Thubron, Colin
Paper Book
'Thubron on top form. Richly detailed, immaculately written and full of insights and encounters that bring a complex corner of the world to life' MICHAEL PALIN 'A masterpiece' WILLIAM DALRYMPLE 'Unforgettable' ANTONY BEEVOR As read on BBC Radio 4's...
After the North Pole : a story of survival, mythmaking, and melting ice
Kagge, Erling
Paper Book
"A dazzling book -- soulful, awe-inspiring, and deeply thought-provoking. Erling Kagge takes readers on a journey they'll never forget." -- Jonathan Eig, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of King: A Life "After the North Pole is a thrilling, insightful, and magical journey with something...
The good girl's guide to getting lost : a memoir of three continents, two friends, and one unexpected adventure
Friedman, Rachel
Paper Book
Rachel Friedman has always been the consummate good girl who does well in school and plays it safe, so the college grad surprises no one more than herself when, on a whim (and in an effort to escape impending life decisions), she buys a ticket to Ireland, a place she has never visited. There she...
Eat, sleep, ride : how I braved bears, badlands, and big breakfasts in my quest to cycle the Tour Divide
Howard, Paul
Paper Book
For Paul Howard, who has ridden the entire Tour de France route during the race itself--setting off at 4 am each day to avoid being caught by the pros--riding a small mountain bike race should hold no fear. Still, this isn't just any mountain bike race. This is the Tour Divide.
Swimming to Antarctica : tales of a long-distance swimmer
Cox, Lynne
Paper Book
International Swimming Hall of Famer and Alex Award-winner Lynne Cox's classic sports memoir Swimming to Antarctica is "a portrait of rare and relentless drive" (Sports Illustrated).Here is the acclaimed life story of a woman whose determination inspires everyone she touches. Lynne Cox started...
In the shadow of the mountain : a memoir of courage
Vasquez-Lavado, Silvia
Paper Book
"In climbing the Seven Summits, Silvia Vasquez-Lavado did nothing less than take back her own life--one brave step at a time. She will inspire untold numbers of souls with this story, for her victory is a win on behalf of all of us."--Elizabeth Gilbert Endless ice. Thin air....
No summit out of sight : the true story of the youngest person to climb the seven summits
Romero, Jordan
Paper Book
Terra incognita : travels in Antarctica
Wheeler, Sara
Paper Book
It is the coldest, windiest, driest place on earth, an icy desert of unearthly beauty and stubborn impenetrability. For centuries, Antarctica has captured the imagination of our greatest scientists and explorers, lingering in the spirit long after their return. Shackleton called it "the last great...
Touch the top of the world : a blind man's journey to climb farther than the eye can see
Weihenmayer, Erik.
Paper Book
The incredible, inspiring story of world-class climber Erik Weihenmayer, from the terrible diagnosis that foretold of the loss of his eyesight, to his dream to climb mountains, and finally his quest to reach each of the Seven Summits.Erik Weihenmayer was born with retinoscheses, a degenerative eye...
Halfway to Heaven : my white-knuckled--and knuckle-headed--quest for the Rocky Mountain high
Obmascik, Mark.
Paper Book
Fat, forty-four, father of three sons, and facing a vasectomy, Mark Obmascik would never have guessed that his next move would be up a 14,000-foot mountain. But when his twelve-year-old son gets bitten by the climbing bug at summer camp, Obmascik can't resist the opportunity for some high...
Turn right at Machu Picchu : rediscovering the lost city one step at a time
Adams, Mark
Paper Book
What happens when an unadventurous adventure writer tries to recreate the original expedition to Machu Picchu? In 1911, Hiram Bingham III climbed the Andes in Peru and 'discovered' the famed archaeological site. While history recast Bingham as a liar and a thief, Mark Adams set out to retrace the...
The River of Doubt : Theodore Roosevelt's darkest journey
Millard, Candice.
Paper Book
NATIONAL BESTSELLER * At once an incredible adventure narrative and a penetrating biographical portrait--the bestselling author of River of the Gods brings us the true story of Theodore Roosevelt's harrowing exploration of one of the most dangerous rivers on earth. ...
Travels with Charley : in search of America
Steinbeck, John
Ebook
An intimate journey across and in search of America, as told by one of its most beloved writers, in a deluxe centennial edition In September 1960, John Steinbeck embarked on a journey across America. He felt that he might have lost touch with the country, with its speech, the...
Notes from a small island
Bryson, Bill
Paper Book
After nearly two decades in Britain, Bill Bryson made the decision to move back to the States for a while, to let his kids experience life in another country, to give his wife the chance to shop until 10 p.m. seven nights a week, and, most of all, because he had read that 3.7 million Americans...
The geography of bliss : one grump's search for the happiest places in the world
Weiner, Eric
Paper Book
Part foreign affairs discourse, part humor, and part twisted self-help guide, The Geography of Bliss takes the reader from America to Iceland to India in search of happiness, or, in the crabby author's case, moments of un-unhappiness.
The salt path
Winn, Raynor
Paper Book
One of the most talked about books of the decade, an inspiring true story of hope and the healing powers of the natural world. OVER 2 MILLION COPIES SOLD WORLDWIDE THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER INCLUDED IN THE SUNDAY TIMES...
Under the Tuscan sun : at home in Italy
Mayes, Frances
Paper Book
Now in paperback, the #1San Francisco Chroniclebestseller that is an enchanting and lyrical look at the life, the traditions, and the cuisine of Tuscany, in the spirit of Peter Mayle'sA Year in Provence. Frances Mayes entered a wondrous new world when she began restoring an abandoned villa in the...
Ghost rider : travels on the healing road
Peart, Neil
Paper Book
Within a ten-month period, Neil Peart lost both his 19-year-old daughter, Selena, and his wife, Jackie. Faced with overwhelming sadness and isolated from the world in his home on the lake, Peart was left without direction. This memoir tells of the sense of personal devastation that led him on a 55...
Down the Nile : alone in a fisherman's skiff
Mahoney, Rosemary.
Paper Book
Rosemary Mahoney presents an exciting and amusing adventure that offers a fresh view of Egypt in the past and the present.
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