Appalachia Journal
A tradition of inspired writing since 1876
Published continuously since 1876, Appalachia is America’s longest-running journal of mountaineering and conservation. The journal comes out twice a year, on June 15 (Summer/Fall) and December 15 (Winter/Spring).
Current issue
Appalachia Summer/Fall Issue: Hitting “Reset” in Wild Lands
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In This Issue of Appalachia
Role Reversal in the Mountains: New Perspectives, New Circumstances
AT Redemption: A father at a crossroads takes his kids hiking . . . 244 miles. · BEN MONTGOMERY
Waiting on a Ledge: Time to think, 120 feet off the ground. · SARAH RUTH BATES
Fuji-ko: On Japan’s Mountain Day, Americans experience Fuji faith. · DIANNE FALLON
Closing the Circle: Fatherhood rekindles in Franconia Notch. · CHRISTOPHER JOHNSON
Crawford Path Turns 200: A Photo Essay. Volunteers help restore parts of the oldest trail in the United States. · PAULA CHAMPAGNE AND JOE KLEMENTOVICH
If I Ever Lose My Way: A writer shares what has made Crawford Path a touchstone for her. · BETHANY TAYLOR
Friendship: A pessimist ponders her optimist trail partner. · ELISSA ELY
Could He Ascend Farther?: What will Alex Honnold reach for after his free solo of El Capitan? · SARAH RUTH BATES
Searching for Arnica: A yellow-flowered plant goes missing. · BOB ZAINO
Not Here, Not Now: The epic of Dan McGinness. · MIKE CHERIM
A Wrong Turn: Lost in the dark, step by step. · BENJAMIN ALVA POLLEY
Flying with Icarus: A Sunday afternoon church hike takes an unexpected course. · DOUGLASS TESCHNER
Night Visions: A 15-year-old walks 31.5 miles around the Pemi Loop, alone. · ALEXANDRA HERR
In Every Issue
Poems
By leading poets such as Robin Chapman, Wally Swist, and John SmelcerAccidents
Analysis of incidents from the White Mountains of New Hampshire and occasionally elsewhereAlpina
A review of international mountaineering expeditions in the greater rangesNews and Notes
Updates and newsworthy stories on mountaineering and conservation in the Northeast and beyondBooks of Note
Reviews of books, maps, and other mediaAbout Appalachia
Published continuously since 1876, Appalachia is America’s longest-running journal of mountaineering and conservation. Each issue delivers inspired writing on mountain exploration, ecology, and conservation; news about international mountaineering expeditions; analysis of northeastern mountaineering accidents; poems by leading poets such as Robin Chapman, Wally Swist, and Mary Oliver; and much more.
The journal appears twice a year, on June 15 (Summer/Fall) and December 15 (Winter/Spring).
You can follow Appalachia on Twitter at @AppalachiaJourn.
About Appalachia‘s Editor
Christine Woodside, a writer and editor based in the lower Connecticut River Valley, has served as editor-in-chief of Appalachia since 2006. She writes about backcountry adventure, environmental change and how people cope with it, and American history. Chris welcomes letters and feedback from readers, and can be reached at christine.woodside@gmail.com. Learn more about Chris at chriswoodside.com.
Committee on Appalachia
Editor-in-Chief/Chair
Alpina Editor
Jeffery Parrette
Poetry Editor
Parkman Howe
Book Review Editor
Steve Fagin
News and Notes Editor
Sally Manikian
Accidents Editor
Sandy Stott
Photography Editor
Skip Weisenburger
Contributing Editors
Catherine Buni, Jeff Fair, Robert Manning, Michael Wejchert
At-Large
Gene Daniell, Robert Goeke, Rebecca Oreskes, Heather Stephenson, Lucille Stott
AMC Books
Production Manager
Abigail Coyle
Designer
Eric Edstam
Copyeditor
Robin Gold
Typesetter
Brandy Polay
Proofreader
Kenneth Krause
Indexer
Ezra Freeman
Submission Guidelines
Appalachia welcomes narrative, historical, and science essays on the following topics: mountain, wilderness, and backcountry adventure; technical climbing; canoeing and kayaking; nature and climate change; and land ethics. We work far ahead and publish twice a year. We consider it our mission to encourage and work with new writers, as well as seasoned ones. The editor-in-chief solicits most lead feature stories several months ahead.
Deadlines
Story proposals should reach the editor-in-chief eight months ahead of publication: April 1 for December publication, October 1 for June publication.
Manuscripts sent on speculation may arrive as late as seven months ahead of publication: May 1 for December publication, November 1 for June publication.
Letters to the editor, suggestions for obituaries in our “In Memoriam” section, and short items for our “News and Notes” section may arrive five months ahead: July 1 for December publication, January 1 for June publication.
Format
Our philosophy is that articles should be as long as they should be. Most articles run between 1,000 and 3,000 words. Some measure as short at 500 words, and our longest are 5,000. Please double-space your document, use Times New Roman 12-point font, and send submissions electronically, if possible.
Artwork
Photographs or drawings accompany most of our articles and are usually provided by the authors. We also publish a limited number of standalone photos that evoke the mountains, and we welcome high-quality freelance submissions.
Poetry
Original poems about the above topics are also welcome. Shorter poems are preferred. Only eight poems are published per issue, which makes this the most competitive section of the journal; on average, one in 50 submissions is accepted. Send poems to the attention of Parkman Howe via the editor-in-chief.
Editing
All work is subject to editing. We make every effort to work cooperatively with authors in the early stages of production and to explain editing decisions. Deadlines usually make last-minute communication with authors impossible.
Submissions
E-mail story ideas, speculative material, and poems to Christine Woodside, editor-in-chief, at christine.woodside@gmail.com. You can also send her postal mail c/o the Appalachian Mountain Club, 10 City Square, Boston, MA 02129. Mailed material can be returned upon request if you include a postage-paid envelope.
Payment
We have a very limited budget and cannot pay for most unsolicited material. Authors receive two contributor copies.
Online
Authors retain the rights to their work, although Appalachia reserves the right to publish stories or excerpts online indefinitely.