Hiking Naked

Griffin Bay Bookstore and the San Juan Island Library are delighted to present Lopezian Iris Graville and her memoir, Hiking Naked, on Wednesday, January 24, 7:00 pm at the Library. For those who have wrestled with making dramatic life changes, or are doing so now, be sure to spend the evening with Iris as she talks about her book, her reflections on life changing experiences, and her family’s adventures in Stehekin.

Knocked off her feet after twenty years in public health nursing, Iris Graville quit her job and convinced her husband and their thirteen-year-old twin son and daughter to move to Stehekin, a remote mountain village in Washington State’s North Cascades. They sought adventure; she yearned for the quiet and respite of this community of eighty-five residents accessible only by boat, float plane, or hiking.

Stehekin means “the way through,” and Hiking Naked chronicles Graville’s journey through questions about work and calling as well as how she coped with ordering groceries by mail, black bears outside her kitchen window, a forest fire that threatened the valley, and a flood that left her and her family stranded for three days. Ultimately, in the solitude bestowed by pines, firs, and mountain trails, she regained her spiritual footing and found her own “way through.”

About the Author

Iris Graville – Contributed photo

Iris Graville is the author of Hands at Work: Portraits and Profiles of People Who Work with Their Hands, recipient of numerous accolades including a Nautilus Gold Book Award, and Bounty: Lopez Island Farmers, Food, and Community. She also serves as publisher of SHARK REEF Literary Magazine. Iris lives and writes on Lopez Island, Washington.

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