A Walk in the Woods

I've been reading this book off and on for the last two weeks. It's the story of a man's experiences hiking the Appalachian Trail. The first half of the book was great, and I appreciated Bryson's humor as he and his companion prepare for and adjust to life on the trail. The story line bogs down about half way into the book where he discusses more of the history and geology of the Appalachians and wilderness in general, which is interesting, but not exactly compelling. Near the end of the book the author jumps back into strict storytelling, but by then I felt he had lost some of the original freshness. However, I still enjoyed the reading and learned a great deal about that part of the country. Does it create a desire in me to do a long-distance hike? Not really...but having been backpacking myself many times, I certainly could relate to many of his experiences.