No Thanks, I Want to Walk

by Emily Taylor Smith

After completing a 3,000-kilometre hike of coastal Nova Scotia and making a number of dramatic changes in her life, Emily Taylor Smith is compelled to undertake another Maritime journey on foot, this time following the coastline of New Brunswick and the Gaspé all the way to Quebec City. She plans a solitary trip, searching for life lessons along the way and carrying everything she needs with her on her back. Emily severely underestimates the Fundy Footpath, struggles to communicate in French, nearly throws in the towel at the tip of Kouchibouguac Park, and survives a sleepless night in a collapsed tent on the windy Gaspé shore. What she doesn’t count on is the support which appears daily in the form of roadside messages, random gifts of ice cream, generous postmistresses and flag collectors, and help that comes from within. The challenging regimen of 45 kilometres a day for two months is transcended by a growing spiritual bond with the landscape that keeps her moving forward.

Genres: Nonfiction

286 pages, Paperback

Published February 25, 2021

About the author

Emily Taylor Smith grew up in Salisbury, New Brunswick, taking her first wooded hikes in the southeastern part of the province and learning about nature from her father, an avid writer, gardener and trapper. She developed a love of long distance coastal hiking as a young woman and has now walked the coastal roads of all three Maritime provinces: Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, as well as the Gaspé peninsula. She raised money for the Diabetes Association by walking 100 kilometres from Halifax to Truro in 2011. Emily moved to Nova Scotia to attend university at Acadia and performed on stage with the Atlantic Theatre Festival for four seasons. She wrote three short plays which were produced in Halifax. Later, she founded Local Tasting Tours, a culinary walking tour in the HRM, and wrote briefly for the Local Connections Halifax magazine. Her book Around the Province in 88 Days was published by Pottersfield Press in 2019. Emily lives in Dartmouth Nova Scotia with her husband Darren and their three pets, Woody, Weslie and Wilson.

Reviews

[Bim Trandt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyable tale of a 2400 km walk around New Brunswick and to Quebec City. told with humor and heartwarming insight. made me want to do something like that!

[Trevor Droesbeck · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this was like going on an adventure with an old friend. At once personal diary and spiritual pilgrimage, the reader feels lucky to be invited on the journey set out by the author.

[JF · Rating 2 out of 5]

She walks, she camps in a tent, she describes random art she sees, she walks some more. Occasional interactions with others are described