TRAIL MIX BART SMITH By Thomas Hoke
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hili. Tasty? Spicy? Dangerous, perhaps? For professional photographer and hiker Bart Smith, the answer of all those questions is yes. The year was 1992, and Bart was walking the Pacific Crest Trail, a 2,650 mile trail spanning from the Washington-Canadian Border all the way down to the California-Mexico border (Pacific Crest Trail Association). He was just emerging out of Cajon Pass in Southern California, tired and exhausted. Stumbling onto a vacant campsite was a godsend for Bart, as he quickly set up camp atop a grassy knoll and went to get a drink of water. Upon his return, he was startled to see something run off into the forest, but he thought nothing of it. Bart settled down, and enjoyed a meal of dehydrated chili. With a full belly and a weary state of mind, and a pot of chili on the fire, Bart immediately fell into a deep sleep. Due to the perpetually sunny weather in Southern Cali-
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fornia, there was no need to pitch a tent, allowing him to sleep under the stars. Late into the night, at approximately 1:00 AM, a powerful chomp reigned down onto his left buttock, immediately jolting him awake as his body adrenalized to cope with the situation. Instinctively, he rolled over in his sleeping bag yelling, only to see a gargantuan bear towering over him. Startled by the loud noises, the bear took off into the woods. Stunned at the events that had just unfolded before him, Bart sat up and yelled, “Oh my god I just got bitten by a bear!” He then examined the area where he had been bitten. Inevitably, there were four distinct large bruises where the canines struck, but miraculously, he was alright. Life on the trail throws many wildcards Bart’s way, but he is willing to risk it all for his passion, documenting the national scenic and historic trails. He has dedicated his life to promoting these trails, pub-
lishing several books about them. Over the course of his lifetime, Bart has hiked over 25,000 miles throughout the United States as well as Europe, documenting each unique experience with his photography. While his photos do encompass the beautiful surrounding scenery, they also go above and beyond to really reach out to the viewer. Chad Hoke, Bart’s best friend growing up, commented that “what makes Bart unique is that he deeply understands and experiences a rich “picture” that includes history, smell, touch, and even the perceptions of others.” Being able to portray a wide array of emotions and history through his photographs is what sets Bart apart from other photographers. Originally, Bart was hiking the National Scenic Trails, which are give protection to a specific area or regions that encompass certain natural beauty or importance. Recently, however, Bart has begun to shift his focus
more towards the National Historic Trails, which are trails that serve to protect the historical value of a trail or surrounding area (National Trails System). Some of the paths have been eroded and have somewhat tapered off, and it’s Bart’s job to reconnect the trail with its history through photographs and books. By publicizing the trails, he hopes to bring back some aspects of the world that the introduction of the so called “Digital Age” has rendered obsolete. He also aspires to inspire people to go out and see these trails for themselves, because he believes that people don’t get out and see the world around them as much as they should. In order to complete this project, I had to get out and see the world a little more myself to go visit Bart on the Santa Fe trail. While this
was a wonderful experience, it had its share of difficulties. Life on the trail wasn’t ideal for a project of this scale, in terms of levels of interaction, which made for some interesting obstacles to overcome. The main hindrance was distance. Bart was walking across remote areas of the Southwest with very limited cell phone coverage, which made it difficult for me to interact with him to get the interviews necessary to complete the paper. The inability to get photos and face-to-face interaction with Bart was a puzzling at best. I decided it would be best if I were to fly out to to New Mexico and meet him there; however, planning that trip was an arduous process due to scheduling, transportation, and room and board In taking this trip, I got to experience first hand the sense of wonder that
Bart has had ever since he was a kid. Born in Madison, Wisconsin on June 7, 1957, but raised in the Seattle area, Bart Smith has always had a knack for the outdoors. As a kid, he expressed a strong passion for project-oriented hobbies, such as constructing model airplanes, building engines, and exploring nature. Having a father that was a world renowned pediatric researcher allowed Bart to develop his sense of wonder in different parts of the world. In 1965, his family moved to Switzerland for a year. There, he hiked throughout the Alps, further deepening his love for hiking. Bart and his family also hiked all over Germany, Hawaii, England, and the United States during their many vacations. Bart then moved back to Washington, where he continued
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his passions for hiking, as well as skiing. In high school, Bart was also an Eagle Scout, where he chose a project to blaze his own trail through the woods in his hometown. After High School, Bart attended Washington State University and obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Social Science, which he says helped him write his books. After attending Washington State, he worked a series of odd jobs until finding a career in construction, which he found enjoyable due to his love for project-orientated activities. However, his first major job as a professional photographer was being the audiovisual coordinator for the Tacoma General Hospital. Photographing the surgical procedures and organizing the photos really heightened his skills. After a year of service in 1999, Bart quit his job at the hospital; as a reward for his service, his coworkers at the hospital awarded him his first professional grade SLR
camera. These experiences granted Bart a love for exploration, hiking, and photography. This eventually molded into his dream job of documenting the nation’s National Scenic and Historic Trails through books. As his first professional venture, Bart hiked the Pacific Crest trail. He spent six years hiking and photographing the trail before pitching his book to a publisher. Since then, Bart has walked over 25,000 miles and has published 6 books, with many more planned for the future. Bart got his love of photography from his father, who ultimately brought him into the world of photography and art. Biannually their family would set up a “good old fashioned slideshow” and go through the photos. According to Bart, his father wasn’t trying to get perfect photos for the glory, but instead, he took photos because it was what he loved to do. When he passed away, he left
“ I dont want to come across like i don’t like people but i love solitude. I love being out by myself and out in the woods, and photography gives me a way to share my sense of wonder in the wilderness with the rest ofthe world. it also gives me a sense of purpose hoping that with each trail that i can get a book published and share the images and then other people can see it and then maybe that would inspire those people to go out and enjoy the trails as well.”
- Bart Smith
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Bart his camera, a German King Exakta, which is what ultimately engrossed him into the world of photography. Former roommate Linda Kobara stated that throughout the duration of their stay together, “Bart was always out hiking and using his father’s camera, and would always bring back these lovely photos that we all enjoyed”. Bart had been interested in photography before, but this was the first time that he fully enjoyed trying to get artistic photos of the places he loved to hike, as well as the surrounding wildlife. Bart tries to photograph as much wildlife as possible, even though the animals aren’t always cooperative. During one of his hikes on the National Scenic Trails, he came across a black bear in the distance, which exhibited a sense of curiosity as well as precariousness. The bear was close enough to get a photo; with his expertise and camera equipment, he was able to get
a magnificent photo, which eventually made it into one of his books. While the process to choose photos worthy to be in the book may be formidable, the process of getting a book published is even more so. When Bart first walked the Pacific Crest Trail, he spent almost six years preparing by photographing, hiking, and searching for publishers until he finally submitted his first proposal. He recalls writing and sending the first proposal into a publisher based out of Colorado. Having never written a publishing proposal before, he was extremely nervous. After two days filled with angst and nervousness, the publisher approved his book on the Pacific Crest Trail. At this point in his life, he was still doing construction work and was hiking part time, which made the publisher’s approval all the more special. It turns out that Bart was incredibly fortunate on his timing. The publishing company he contacted was looking to do a book on the Pacific Crest Trail, and even though he was a rookie, they still approved Bart’s book. Bowker reports that over a million books (1,052,803) were published in 2009, and only one third of them were through professional publishing companies. The rest were self-published (Piersanti). These days you have to be either a sensational photographer and author or extremely lucky to get a book published through a publishing company; Bart proved to be both of those things. While he may have caught a lucky break his first time around, Bart has since then sent countless proposals and is now completely comfortable sending them. According to Publisher’s Weekly, in 2012, unit book sales dropped approximately 9 percent, making it harder to make a living being an author. (Milliot) However, a stable income and a 401(k) were never Bart’s intentions when he started these projects.
• 965 Miles Starting from Missouri and ending in New Mexico. • Between 1821 and 1880, the Santa Fe Trail was primarily a commercial highway connecting Missouri and Santa Fe, New Mexico
SANTA FE TRAIL
CURRENT ADVENTURES Although he makes some money off of his books, his wife is the main emotional and financial supporter of his endeavors. His profits mainly consist of priceless experiences and memories, along with the unrivaled gratification of publishing a book. Since his first time experimenting with an artistic approach to photography, Bart has learned to delve into the world of photography, sometimes getting so engulfed in his work that he loses sight of everything else for a few moments. The way he loses himself in his photography can be represented through golf, where you succumb to the zen of the moment and your mind and soul become one with your actions, allowing you forget all aches and troubles of the outside world. The value of these kinds of moments far surpasses any monetary profit from an average desk job. Bart said, “That’s so often the case with artists and people fol-
lowing their dreams: money’s not the point. Money never has really been the point even when I was doing construction work because I also enjoyed doing that. I worked really hard not getting that much money, and money has never really been a motivating factor, which leaves room for more important motivators in my life”. Bart aspires to continue hiking and making books in the future, with over 20 ideas for forthcoming adventures, including the Lewis and Clark Trail, the Ala Kahakai Trail, and the California Trail. He plans to maintain his progress of connecting the National Historic Trails with their historic roots, but between his ventures, he has planned relaxing afternoons at home with his family.
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