This is the story of John Muir's adventurous life, from his wild and playful boyhood in Scotland to his legendary exploits in America, where he became an inventor, a global explorer, and the first modern environmentalist--and even made friends with a president! His heart was always in the outdoors and he aimed to experience all he could. He swung through a windstorm at the top of a tall tree, climbed too many mountains to count, and rode an avalanche...

John Muir wrote many wonderful books about his travels, but one story -- about his long walk from San Francisco to Yosemite -- is one book he did not author himself. In April 1868, a very young John Muir stepped off a boat in San Francisco and inquired about the quickest way out of town. "But where do you want to go?" was the response, to which Muir replied, "Anywhere that is wild." Using Muir's personal correspondence and published articles, Peter...