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Guide Picks: Woodcraft and Camping by Nessmuk

Every once in a while, you come across a book that sticks with you—not just for a season, but for years. The kind you come back to in the off-season, or flip through on a rainy day, or keep tucked away with your gear like it belongs there. That’s the idea behind this new series we’re starting on the blog—Guide Picks—where each of us shares a book that’s meant something to us out here in the Adirondacks. The ones that shaped how we think about the woods, the water, and the way we move through both.

For me, it’s Woodcraft and Camping by George Washington Sears—better known by his pen name, Nessmuk. If you spend enough time around Adirondack history or old outdoor writing, his name comes up sooner or later. But reading his work firsthand is something else entirely. There’s a simplicity to it, a kind of quiet confidence in the way he talks about traveling light, living comfortably in the woods, and paying attention to the small details that make time outdoors not just manageable, but enjoyable.

What’s always stood out to me is how modern his ideas still feel. Long before ultralight gear was a trend, Nessmuk was writing about trimming down what you carry, choosing gear carefully, and focusing on efficiency and comfort rather than excess. His approach wasn’t about roughing it for the sake of it—it was about moving through the woods in a way that felt natural. You see a lot of that philosophy reflected today, whether people realize where it came from or not.

There’s a personal side to it for me too. Years back, I was flipping through a lean-to logbook and came across an entry from a distant relative of Nessmuk’s, who was retracing one of his classic long-distance canoe routes through the Adirondacks. It was one of those moments that makes the whole place feel a little smaller, a little more connected. Like the same paths, the same waters, and the same ideas are still being followed, just by different people at different times.

And that legacy is still right there in front of you if you know where to look. One of Nessmuk’s lightweight canoes—so ahead of its time it almost feels out of place even today—is on display at the Adirondack Experience, The Museum on Blue Mountain Lake. Standing in front of it, you get a real sense of just how much thought he put into moving efficiently through the wilderness, and how much of that thinking still carries weight today.

If you haven’t read Woodcraft and Camping, it’s well worth your time. Not because it’s a step-by-step manual you need to follow, but because it gives you a way of thinking about the outdoors that’s hard to shake once you pick it up. It’s the kind of book that doesn’t just tell you how to go into the woods—it reminds you why you wanted to in the first place.