Look and Listen

Biography

William Kemsley Jr. is an outdoors enthusiast who has hiked, backpacked and mountaineered in every major mountain range in the US and Europe. He is founder and original editor of Backpacker magazine as well as magazines on cross-country skiing. He is a long time member of the Appalachian Mountain Club, Explorers' Club, National Parks & Conservation Association. It is said he is the founder of modern backpacking and leave-no-trace camping ethic.

Inspiration

I have no idea why I became a writer. It is just that from my first job I was always handed the writing assignments, with comments such as this, "Let Bill write it. He's good at that." Which took me to writing for corporations and especially writing speeches and stockholder communications for CEOs of top hundred NYSE companies. My number one recreational activiy was hiking into the woods. So, when in mid-life I had to make a change of career to avoid severe health problems I started a magazine for hiking and backpacking. I was particularly motivated in doing this because of the considerable abuse I saw occurring to the trails by the boomers who were starting to take to the trails during their college years. I wanted to do something to educate them to proper care of the backcountry.