Into the Carpathians: A Journey Through the Heart and History of East Central Europe (Part 2: The Western Mountains) [Black and White Edition]

Finalist, 2021 Next Generation Indie Book Awards: Travel and Regional Non-Fiction categories.

The journey continues in Part 2 of Into the Carpathians, an engaging and informative chronicle of a hiking and wildlife research expedition along the Carpathian and Sudety Mountains, from Romania to Germany, some 800 miles as the crow flies. Still on the trail of wolves, we now explore the enchanting mountain landscapes of Slovakia, Poland, and the Czech Republic, where encounters with wolves, bears, and lynx; lumberjacks, shepherds, and outlaws; poets, tyrants, and saints; nomads, nobles, and knights; sprites, spirits, and witches—and such ancient peoples as Celts, Quadi, and early Slavs, and such imposing historical figures as Marcus Aurelius of the Roman Empire, Svatopluk I of Great Moravia, Stephen I of the Kingdom of Hungary, Bolesław the Brave of the Kingdom of Poland, and Jan Sobieski of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth—provide broad insight into the natural, historical, and mythological forces that have shaped, and continue to shape, the nations, cultures, and psyches along the way. 72 illustrative black & white photographs also emblaze this memorable trek. (Our Kindle and Deluxe Color print editions present the photos in color; to view the latter, click on See all formats and editions above or search for ISBN 978-0578705705. The text is identical in all three editions, as revised and updated in 2025.)

In response to two recent 1-star reviews: This book—Part 2 of the Into the Carpathians series—is not intended to be about Romania because this beautiful country is explored in Part 1, as well as in the series prequel, Dreaming of Wolves ; nevertheless, Part 2 in fact includes many references to Romania. Also, with more than 170 pages of meticulously-researched cultural, political, and natural history, including 349 footnotes and an extensive bibliography, the book is much more than just basically a hiking blog.