The Best Adventure Books You Should Read Right Now, Published By Patagonia

You may be questioning why an outdoor apparel and gear company would get into book publishing. To answer that, you’d have to know about Patagonia’s ethos. Founder, Yvon Chouinard, learned how to rappel in 1953 due to his love of falconry, which lead to rock climbing, followed by an interest in blacksmithing to create and sell climbing hardware. Adventure garb came next. Patagonia, since 1985, has been committed to the environment, donating 1% of sales to grassroots environmental groups. Brand devotees buy new and used clothing from this company to power their nature quests skiing, snowshoeing, fly fishing, surfing, kitesurfing, mountain biking, trail running, and, of course, climbing. So, why book publishing? The retort: why not?

Inspiration to move our bodies in the outdoors, under tree canopies, on the water, or through the desert, has long come from the written word. Adventure books have the incendiary ability to shake us off the couch, away from our sedentary lives, and encourage us to try something new or practice what is already well-loved in wide open spaces. Reading stories about self-sufficiency, overcoming hardship, environmental activism, outdoor sports, and time spent in wild spaces awakens something inside of us all. If we play in the outdoors and are grateful for what our earth naturally provides, then we’re more likely to want to protect our planet for future generations.

The following books, published by Patagonia Books, will leave you changed, more informed, and inspired to go outside, recreate, learn new proficiencies, and then make moves to become environmental stewards.

‘Let My People Go Surfing: The Education of a Reluctant Businessman,’ By Yvon Chouinard (2006, $22)

Founder, inventor, adventurer and businessman, Yvon Chouinard, delves into the history of his company as well as how Patagonia operates. Design, production, distribution, marketing, management, and environmental practices are all covered in this photograph-heavy deep dive into cultural consumerism where clothing goes through a five-part cycle, encouraging buyers to reduce, repair, reuse, recycle, and reimagine their garments.

‘Still Sideways: Riding the Edge Again After Losing My Sight,’ By Devon Raney (2019, $27.95)

Author, Devon, has lost his central vision, leaving only his peripheral. Due to a genetic disorder brought on by a surfing head trauma, Devon lost 85% of his eye site. “My value system developed over time,” Devon writes. “Work, consistency, and overcoming fear were part of my everyday process.” Even after losing his ability to see, Devon continued to surf, skateboard, and snowboard, inspiring those around him, including his family.

‘The Voyage of the Cormorant,’ By Christian Beamish (2012, $24.95)

This is a memoir, full of illustrations, that you’re going to want to read to your children to inspire them to dream big (and unplug from their tech devices). Beamish, a surfer and former associate editor at The Surfer’s Journal, spent two years building an open wooden-hulled boat named Cormorant, followed by two more years learning how to sail. Not everything went as planned in this adventure story, sailing along the coast of California and Baja and surfing along the way, but lessons were learned, and life was lived. “How great it was to be anchored way down in Baja with the side of the boat tent rolled up to let the morning sun warm my body but keep my face and book in shadow, and to read good, sustaining words,” Beamish writes.

‘Closer to the Ground: An Outdoor Family’s Year on the Water, in the Woods and at the Table,’ By Dylan Tomine (2012, $17.95)

Tomine is a father first, writer, conservation advocate, recipe developer, and fisherman next. His book challenges readers to think deeper about the world and our place in it, focusing on a simpler way of living in tune with the environment’s seasons. With the Puget Sound as the backdrop, we get a behind-the-scenes look at what life is like for a family living off of the land, foraging and hunting for food, and enjoying a life well lived. “Across the Sound, I can see whitecaps building and a dark wall of rain closing in,” Tomine writes. “The storm is bearing down fast. As we make the turn into the calm waters of the harbor, I look at the kids leaping and laughing in the bow and wonder, Will something of this day become a part of their future selves?”

‘The Aloha Shirt: Spirit of the Islands,’ By Dale Hope (2016, $60)

A beautiful add for any coffee table, Hope’s book on the beloved history of the Hawaiian shirt is one you’ll want to spend time with, flipping through the pages full of photography and stunning illustrations. If you haven’t been to the Hawaiian islands, you’ll want to explore after seeing these images and learning about the spirit of aloha. And, if you have, you’ll want to make plans to return to the land of perpetual summer as soon as possible.

‘Swell: A Sailing Surfer’s Voyage of Awakening,’ By Captain Liz Clark (2018, $35)

If you’ve ever dreamed of a life aquatic, or if reading about one inspires you, then pick up Clark’s book on her adventures living out her passions on a sailboat and on a surfboard. The seed was planted when she sailed down Mexico’s Pacific coast for seven months with her family when she was nine years-old. Clark takes us through peaks and valleys on this big adventure, with a thread of environmental stewardship smartly sewn through, and then leaves us thinking about our own desires and life’s wants. “I’m ready for big skies, open horizons, and wild islands,” Clark writes. “It’s time to put some miles under the hull.”

‘Salmon: A Fish, the Earth, and the History of Their Common Fate,’ By Mark Kurlansky (2020, $30)

“For the salmon lives life hard, courageously faces countless dangers, sets it chin against all obstacles, and is relentless and unstoppable in its will to carry out its mission,” Kurlansky writes. Salmon spawn in the summer or fall, laying their eggs in a gravel nest at the bottom of a freshwater river. The eggs are fertilized and once the frys are mobile, they swim to the sea to grow bigger, fatter, and stronger for their arduous return to the river of their birth, fighting predators along the way. They swim upstream, against the current, and when home, they spawn and then die. Kurlansky writes about the species’ future, the environmental and human problems that threaten them, and how the survival of salmon is linked to the survival of our planet.

‘Training for the Uphill Athlete: A Manual for Mountain Runners and Ski Mountaineers,’ By Steve House, Scott Johnston, and Kilian Jornet (2019, $35)

This is an indispensable book for athletes and mountain adventurers who need pinpointed exercises and a deeper understanding of how to build fitness and stamina. Read athlete stories, highlighting the physiology and methodology of endurance, and build your strength and confidence. And, even if you’re not an athlete perse, you can still learn how to better prepare for time in the outdoors by structuring an effective training plan that will help you meet and exceed your goals.