[pct-l] Wilderness Press Guides going out of print - Note from Jeff Schaffer

[AsABat]

I remember a long conversation with Jeff about ten years ago.  Someone was planning on gps-ing the trail and Jeff mentioned the retirement royalty plan. It just room a while.

Jeff also said he found places where the trail on the topography on the map and the gps location differed. He also found where the compass bearing of the trail on the ground when plotted on the map would show the trail crossing a ridge down into the wrong canyon so he drew the trail to fit the contour lines and not the compass (or gps). I remember one of my early hikes finding a section corner monument a quarter mile from where the map showed it.

So I just ordered a set of the WP guidebooks to put away untorn into sections to add to my antique PCT book.collection.

I hiked my last section with Halfmiles maps but did still read the guidebook before heading out. I will miss he commentary (well maybe not the geology rubble!). 


AsABat 

-----Original message-----
From: Rob Langsdorf <mctrob at yahoo.com>
To: PCT-L <pct-l at backcountry.net>, SectionsYahooGroup PCT <pctsection at yahoogroups.com>, 	PCTsectionNW at yahoogroups.com,  pct2006 at yahoogroups.com, 	PCT2007 at yahoogroups.com,  PCT2008 at yahoogroups.com,  pct2010 at yahoogroups.com,  	So_California_Backpackers at yahoogroups.com
Sent: Wed, Nov 3, 2010 22:30:04 GMT+00:00
Subject: [pct-l] Wilderness Press Guides going out of print - Note from Jeff	Schaffer

Hi All,
    I recently sent a number of updates to Jeff Schaffer, who use to publish the 
Wilderness Press PCT guides. He wrote back to say that Wilderness Press is out 
of business and that he has retired (See his letter below). So if you have a 
Wilderness Press Guide to the PCT or other volumes, hold on to them. They aren’t 
printing any more.

    They were a great set of guide books for the last 35 or so years.

    Jeff gave me permission to post his letter on various PCT discussion lists,

                                 Rob

========

Rob:
 
You have put a lot of effort into the letter you wrote me. Unfortunately, 
Wilderness Press is defunct, it's doors shut down at the end of July. Keen 
Publications bought the company a couple of years ago, but I suspect that when 
they sell the books in their warehouse, that's it. The bottom line is that the 
three volumes have about 1500 map overlays, and that is far too many to scan and 
still make a profit. Actually, I doubt if the series ever made a profit. It was 
sooooo expensive to produce. However, it did attract buyers to WP. 

 
So the volumes languish. They won't be revised. But that is okay (hard for me, 
since I thought I would retire on book royalties - very naive on my part). The 
future is in GPS units that will have the trail plus all the features in an app 
for the unit. This is already being done for some trails. Only a matter of time 
before it's done for the PCT. As I see it, guidebooks are history. Guidebook 
companies can't compete against free apps. My Tahoe Sierra book was one of the 
first to go. (Too many maps, too many scans.) Some 5-10 years ago, I was doing 
revisions for it and met an older hiker who had a portable GPS unit on his back, 
plus a camera and video recorder. He found out who I was and interviewed me. 
Then I asked what's he doing this for. It was a hobby, mapping trails and 
features and putting them on the internet for free. I said that you are putting 
me out of business. So true. No hard feelings. This is progress. Saves a lot of 
trees. 

 
Well, I'm 67, semi-retired, and the only backpacking I do is when I absolutely 
have to go in to the Sierra for geological research. I did a 35-miler and 
52-miler this summer. Very difficult with two bad knees, a damaged vertebral 
column, and two blown shoulders (I'm still a climber and have taken countless 
falls and probably over a hundred injuries, most minor; some, not minor). Still, 
would attempt to keep the books in print if I knew that I would actually see 
some royalties to pay for my expenses. Not likely.
 
There is a 2 volume anthology by PCT hikers, to be published by The Mountaineers 
next year. You can read my short contribution (all are short!!!), which was 
requested by the two editors. At the end, I say the guides have to die. They 
need to go out of print. They are too dated and there is no way Keen can make 
any money producing updated editions.
 
So, if you've got guidebook copies, hang on to them. May be worth some money 
years from now. The bookbuyer at our college bookstore told me that she expects 
there will be no more textbooks in about 5 years (there goes the bookstore); all 
texts will be electronic. There goes here job. But we both plan to retire in 3 
years. Again, the more books that are electronic, the more trees we save. I'm 
all for trees, but we probably have too many on our property. Have to trim some 
back and cut some down every year or two. (We probably have the greenest 
property in Browns Valley.)
 
Keep on hiking and enjoying nature.
 
Jeff Schaffer,
 
Mountaineering naturalist



      
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