KFVS12 TV Interview from 21 January 2026

 KFVS12 TV Interview from 21 January 2026. 

https://www.kfvs12.com/2026/01/21/afternoon-book-club-real-appalachian-trail-bc/

Event now set for February First, 2pm at Confluence Books due to bad weather prediction.

Real Appalachian Trail, BC, Book Reading and Signing in Carbondale, IL

The Real Appalachian Trail, BC, Book Reading and Signing in Carbondale, IL

Sunday 25 January 2026 at 2 pm at

Confluence Books

Confluence Books

705 W Main St. Ste 100

Carbondale, IL 62901

USA

In 1975 a young enthusiastic hiker completed his dream to hike the Appalachian Trail.  He was the 282nd hiker to complete the 2,048 mile trail.  Fifty years later he brings the reader the story of his trip, along with the 100 year history of the world famous AT.  Archived photographs and maps illustrate the challenges early hikers faced in those days before cell phones and computers. 

His book, The Real Appalachian Trail, BC supports the Appalachian Trail Museum and will be available to purchase.

Can't wait?  Pick up your copy from Real Appalachian Trail BC*, The by Robert S Bristow | Confluence Books

or here The Real Appalachian Trail BC*

Come to Confluence Books

Some local press.

RIP Bob Weir

 Bob Weir, Guitarist and Founding Member of the Grateful Dead, Dies at 78. (1947-2026.

This shot was taken during my first Dead Concert.  I also developed the film!

Listen to this show here.

Incoming tourism to the States continues to drop

 

As expected:

October 2025 Total International Travel Volume to and from the United States

In October 2025, international visitor arrivals to the United States totaled 5,846,506, a decrease of 5.7 percent compared to October 2024 Data recently released by the National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO) show that in October 2025: International Arrivals to the United States Total non-U.S. resident international visitor volume to the United States of 5,846,506 decreased 5.7% compared to October 2024 and represents 87.4% of the pre-COVID total visitor volume reported for October 2019. Overseas visitor volume to the United States of 3,055,342 decreased 3.1% from October 2024. The largest number of international visitor arrivals was from Mexico (1,569,052), Canada (1,222,112), the United Kingdom (426,538), Germany (192,236), and South Korea (172,459). Combined, these top 5 source markets accounted for 61.3% of total international arrivals. The top 5 overseas tourism arrivals for October were the United Kingdom (371,093), Germany (163,294), South Korea (155,147), France (147,404), and Brazil (145,331). The top 5 overseas business arrivals for October were the United Kingdom (54,093), India (42,741), Japan (31,339), Germany (28,237), and China (19,398). The top 5 overseas student arrivals for October were China (7,466), India (5,577), South Korea (2,052), Brazil (1,355), and the United Kingdom (1,352).

SERR 2026 CFP

 Forwarded CFP

SERR 2026 - Call for Presentations! We invite your participation in the 48th Annual Southeastern Recreation Research (SERR) Conference, scheduled for March 29-31, 2026 at Lake Guntersville State Park in north Alabama.  Graduate and undergraduate students, faculty, agency planners, land managers, and researchers are all encouraged to attend the conference and submit a proposal for an oral or poster presentation. Presentation Proposals Abstracts (consisting of a completed form* and a 500-word abstract) for oral and poster presentations at the 2026 SERR Conference are now being sought.  Presentations should be of an empirical, conceptual, or theoretical nature related to recreation or the environment, and one or more of the following topics: Education Programs and Services Human Behavior Economics Policy Planning and Management Health Methodological Approaches Diversity, Access & Participation Technology Sustainability Environmental Justice Ecosystem Services Climate Adaptation Travel & Tourism Authors are encouraged to give presentations focusing on completed empirical research, as well as conceptual papers on innovative models or theories, perspectives, or methods. Presentations detailing innovative recreation programs or other applied practices within the field are also encouraged. Submissions should include a component addressing policy, planning, or management implications. As always, graduate student research will be an important part of the conference. Graduate student attendance and submissions are strongly encouraged! Oral presentations will be given in a conference room setting. Audiovisual support will be available in the form of a laptop (with a USB port) and a projection unit. Each oral presenter will be given 15 minutes for presenting their work and 5 minutes for discussion. Authors presenting planned or uncompleted research may be asked to make their presentations in the form of a poster. Abstract Submission Please submit your proposal using this link: https://auburn.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_39IXY7a0yo485Rs Abstract Deadline - January 9th, 2026 *For your submission, be prepared to provide the following information: Presentation title, Author(s) name(s), position title(s), and affiliation Your (or the corresponding author’s) email address. Your preferred session type: oral presentation or poster presentation Your general topic area (see first bulleted list above) Your presentation abstract: Limited to 500 words. Your abstract should be sufficiently detailed to permit judgment of the paper's quality. Abstracts of empirical papers should include a problem statement, methods (including analysis), results, and address policy, planning, or management implications. Abstracts of conceptual and theoretical papers should include a problem statement and discussion with a system of organization like that of the empirical papers. A list of references is not required. Selection Selection of abstracts for presentation will be based upon review by two peers of the SERR community. Authors with accepted abstracts are expected to present their papers at the conference. In case of multiple authorships, at least one author must be present. Abstracts submitted are expected to meet professional standards. Deadline All proposals must be submitted by Friday, January 9, 2026. Authors will receive notification of acceptance or rejection by January 30, 2026. A list of presenters with session titles will be available on the SERR Conference website (http://serrconference.org) by the end of February 2026. Student Scholarships We will be offering a limited number of student scholarships for undergraduate and/or graduate students to attend this year's SERR conference. The scholarship amounts will vary but will only cover a portion of the costs of attending the conference (registration, travel, etc.). Interested students need to email a one‐page letter (as an attached MS Word or PDF file) to the conference co‐chairs (see below) describing how they believe their academic and professional interests will be enhanced by their attendance. ____________________________ More information, along with the abstract submission link, can be found on our website, www.serrconference.org. Registration and lodging information will be posted soon. We look forward to seeing you in Alabama! The SERR Planning Committee

Winter Hiking Pics

 Massachusetts

and Appalachian Trail

New Hampshire

Mt Moosilauke

More New Hampshire

This is Mt Washington

Mt Garfield

Brrr, head up to Grand Canyon Glacier, northwest of Skagway, Alaska

Former home in Westfield Massachusetts

Westfield Dogbark

Miscellaneous Trails in Connecticut

California and Desolation Wilderness

Iceland and Solheimajokull Glacier

Remember, no bugs in the winter!

Overseas Visitation to the United States Down 3.5 percent Year Over Year in November 2025

 Why come to America?  We are not welcoming, that is for sure.

Data recently released by the National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO) show that in November 2025:

U.S.-international air traffic passenger enplanements1 totaled:

19.9 million in November 2025, down 0.2 percent compared to November 2024, with enplanements reaching 107.1 percent of pre-pandemic November 2019 volume. 

Originating Non-Stop Air Travel in November 2025

Non-U.S. citizen air passenger arrivals to the United States from foreign countries totaled:

4.2 million in November 2025, down 5.2 percent compared to November 2024.

This represents 87.4 percent of pre-pandemic November 2019 volume.