Tom Garrison – A Modern-Day Explorer
– By James McFadden –
Tom Garrison & his wife Deb are what I would call ‘Modern Day Explorers’ who are bringing Hiking Southern Utah into the palms of your hands the only way truly possible: one hike at a time.
One only needs to visit their home to understand just how much Tom & Deb love the outdoors and the opportunity to explore. You see, their backyard is, in and of itself, a hike. Complete with trailhead plaques, expedition markers, and places to rest along the way where they grow grapes and strawberries and harvest pomegranate each year.
Over the last few years, I have had the pleasure of reading and experiencing some of Tom’s 125 documented expeditions, including his hikes throughout southern Nevada, which are all just a stone’s throw away from us here in southern Utah.
To showcase his hikes, he has been publishing them both online and in print for well over 13 years now, with his first official publication hitting Amazon bookshelves back in 2015.
Tom’s consistent style of documenting each hike helps the reader quickly determine the most important details that should be considered before embarking on each expedition. Making them a perfect guide for all skill levels when it comes to setting out to explore.
Each guide, currently there are five (5), gives the reader a substantial introduction to each hike which includes hiking tips for the desert, trailhead map locators, and details covering hiking etiquette, collecting on private lands, hiking equipment, the terrain one might expect to encounter, and how to stay safe while experiencing what nature has created for us to enjoy; including other important resources available to help the reader plan ahead.
Each publication also comes with a ‘Quick Guide’ covering trail-head access, average time to hike, hike distance, and difficulty ratings. So those with little ones can quickly determine which hikes might require more preparation or those that are a little more family-friendly than others.
Tom’s latest guide, Hiking Southern Utah Volume Four, was just recently published a few short months ago on Amazon.com and you can find his full collection for southern Utah at www.amazon.com/dp/B08ZDDTV9C.
I highly recommend you add these incredible works to your collection, especially if you are new to hiking or an avid explorer looking to visit southern Utah sometime soon. Each hike is filled with pictures and insights that will certainly add to your experience.
Thank you, Tom, for your many years of dedication and for making the art of hiking southern Utah that much more enjoyable for those of us who are following you in your footsteps.
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