Welcome! I have BIG news for 2016.My bestselling guide "Hiking North Carolina" is just out in a new 3rd edition with all color maps and photos! It just won first place for book photography in the Society of American Travel Writers eastern chapter awards contest. The new book exceeds the 2nd edition with updated, expanded content, more trails and more state parks for the centennial year of the park system. It's a completely fresh look at a great trails state!Even BIGGER news--my highly anticipated "Grandfather Mountain: The History and Guide to an Appalachian Icon" is receiving great reviews and extensive media coverage. Best-seller Robert Morgan says, "Randy Johnson has captured the majesty of this national treasure in a work of art commensurate with the grandeur of the mountain itself." Former "Our State" editor Vicky Jarrett said the book reads "like a James Michener novel." This a lavishly illustrated, story-filled homage to what I argue is the Appalachians' most iconic summit.Check out my other books--they share the passion of my Lowell Thomas Award-winning articles for national magazines and newspapers. "Hiking the Blue Ridge Parkway" and "Best Easy Day Hikes Blue Ridge Parkway" are bestsellers. "Best Easy Day Hikes Great Smoky Mountains National Park" is one of few books bundled with a National Geographic/Trails Illustrated map (at a great price!).I don't just hike trails, I build them too. I launched the program that kept Grandfather Mountain's trails open in the 1970s, and helped create the trail network in place today on the mountain and Blue Ridge Parkway. As task force leader for the Mountains-to-Sea Trail across Grandfather--I invite you to join us (www.ncmst.org/).My passion for sharing the outdoors is why my books' trail descriptions explore an entire area, recommend a range of hikes, and include history, ecology, climate, and culture. I'm a map fanatic--you'll love my books' plentiful, accurate maps.Expect an upcoming revision of "Southern Snow: The Winter Guide to Dixie" (it's been called a "cult classic"). And please check out my Web site--www.randyjohnsonbooks.com--to read published articles, view trail videos, or join me at a presentation. My upcoming events are also listed at the bottom of this author's page.I hope you'll consider my guides. Here's wishing you the kind of hiking experiences that inspire me to write them! Please check my many author events below for 2016. I'd love to meet you.