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Classic Backpacking Books
The core issues of backpacking are shelter, food and health.
The long distance hikers have by far the most experience.
Their trips may seem extreme, but what they have to say is also
valid for the weekend backpack of a few miles in and out.
out of print
Colin Fletcher walked through California
from the Mexican border to the Oregon border in 1958 and
wrote The Thousand Mile
Summer. He continued writing the
following:
The
Man Who Walked Thru Time
out of print
The Winds of Mara - all
good reads, but mostly story telling.
He then came out with The
Complete Walker, with several versions
up to the latest one: The
Complete Walker IV (co authored by Chip
Rawlins). This newest book is not as much fun
to read, but a good reference, called by some "The
Hiker's Bible."
out of print
Ray and Jenny Jardine have
walked over 15,000 miles including the Pacific Crest
Trail from Mexico to Canada three times, the Appalachian
Trail and the Continental Divide Trail. As they refined
their techniques during these trips, Ray became
convinced of the importance of lowering the total weight
carried. He has written two books, based on their
experiences. The first one is
The Pacific Crest Trail Hiker's
Handbook, focused on what is needed to
complete the PCT, but also emphasizing universal
approaches for successful backpacking, including
ultralight gear.
The second one is
Beyond Backpacking - Ray
Jardine's Guide to Lightweight Hiking,
expanding the ideas in the first book.
If you are going to do the PCT, or other long
distance hiking, you must read
the Beyond Backpacking - above.
Fixing Your Feet
by John Vonhof. There are many ideas on preventing blisters & caring for your
feet, and they are all here. Not just for backpackers, but certainly a
one of a kind book that needs to be mentioned. His new edition will be out in June, and you can preorder it from Amazon:
Karen Berger is one of the select few who
have hiked the Triple Crown - Pacific Crest Trail, Appalachian Trail and
Continental Divide Trail. Also a talented and prolific author, read her
Hiking the Triple Crown to get an excellent overview of these three
trails, and what is involved in doing any or all of them.
Our Book - A Soon to be Classic for
Mid-Aged Backpackers
Susan Alcorn has been backpacking
many years in the Sierra Nevada, including completion of the
John Muir Trail in segments. She also walked the Spanish
segment of the Camino de Santiago
- a 450 pilgrimage trail across northern
Spain. We're
in the Mountains, Not Over the Hill,
Tales and Tips From Seasoned Women
Backpackers is based on her own experiences and her
interviews of three dozen women in their 40s to 70s who
are still backpacking. This is a distillation of both
stories and how to information – the why do it, the fears, the
keys to success, based on the experiences of these "seasoned"
women, and a good guide for anyone who has thought about
backpacking, more than something for your women's adventure
books reading list.
Any Pacific Crest Trail guide will include at least a section
on the JMT, as it is the longest part of the PCT with no intersecting road
access, but for backpacking books with more detail, look at:
The original guide is
Starr's Guide to the John Muir Trail and the High
Sierra Region, written by Walter Starr Jr. in 1933
and published by the Sierra Club. It is still available
in revised form. Nicknamed Peter, the author vanished
during a trip to the Minarets in 1933, his body was
found after an intense search, and his book was
published posthumously. See Missing in the Minarets
further down this list for a good story.
The Wilderness Press
publishes a number of excellent guides to this region
including, Elizabeth Wenk and Kathy Morey's Guide
to the John Muir Trail, photos, maps and route descriptions.
4th edition just out in 2007 now includes GPS waypoints.
Their
series for shorter trips is based on the USGS map
quadrangles and is pocket size. Each book includes the
map and the descriptions of routes within that map.
They also put out
Sierra South which covers the John Muir Trail area,
by Kathy Morey and Mike White, The 8th edition is an
excellent guide, organized by access highways, and
includes route elevation profiles
as well as Sierra
Northby Kathy Morey & Mike White,which covers the Sierra from Yosemite north.
Both of these are a good addition to your hiking
bookshelf.
Mount Whitney: Mountain Lore From The
Whitney Store by Thompson and Newbold. This is the
definitive reference for anyone climbing Whitney,
particularly from the east side. If you are going
to climb Whitney, read this book. It could save
your life.
A Hike for Mike by Jeff Alt. This journal of a couple's John Muir Trail walk is also a plea for depression awareness. Good armchair reading.
See
www.hikeformike.com for more about their campaign
and hike.
The Last Season by Eric Blehm -
This non-fiction mystery on the disappearance of a
back-country ranger in Sequoia-Kings Canyon NP gives an
insight into the daily lives of those with the unique
experience of living and working in a National Park.
Missing in the
Minarets - The Search for Walter A. Starr, Jr.
by William Alsup. This is the story of the disappearance
and search for Peter Starr, author of Starr's Guide
above. Good reading and a good mystery, it gives a
glimpse into a different era in the Sierras.
Laurence Gonzales's Deep Survival: Who Lives, Who Dies and Why.
This should be mandatory reading for anyone doing moderate
risk activities, let alone thru-hikers, backpackers,
mountain climbers, etc. It certainly made me rethink the
things we do when backpacking. It makes fascinating
reading, but to summarize what I got out of it: Be sure
that what you are thinking of as many years of
experience, is not really many years of being very
lucky.
And a DVD
Bob Kenan was a backcountry ranger in
Sequoia-Kings Canyon National Park for 30 years. He has
put together a DVD of his experiences, including
interviews with other backcountry rangers, and some 50
interviews with backpackers and PCT thru-hikers. I
haven't seen it, but sounds good. Order from his site at
http://www.messagefromthemountains.net
Laws Field Guide to the Sierra
Nevada by John Muir Laws was published this year
by one of my favorite publishers, Heydey Books in
Berkeley, CA, in conjunction with the Cal Academy of
Science.
Sierra Birds: A Hikers Guide also by John Muir Laws, and praised by Amazon
reviewers, though I have not seen it.
Sierra Nevada Wildflowers
by Elizabeth Horn. Descriptions and color photos of many
of the wild flowers you will see on the JMT.
Fixing Your Feet
- Jon Vonhof is the last word on foot care. He treats
feet on ultra marathons and will give you more than you
ever wanted to know on treating blisters and foot
problems.
Gifts from the Mountain, Simple
Truths for Life's Complexities by Eileen
McDargh. Watercolors and wisdom drawn from
backpacking inspiration. Not just JMT. Hard to classify, but I highly
recommend it.
Classic Hikes of the World by Peter Potterfield - . A gorgeous book full of
tempting hikes if the JMT experience has infected you.
One of the featured hikes is the JMT.
Off topic, but if you fish the JMT,
check this out: Field Guide to Freshwater Fishes of
California by Samuel McGinnis, illustrated by Doris
Alcorn - my ex. The illustrations are world class - a
life's work.
Last Child in the Woods: Saving
Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder by
Richard Louv. Not on JMT, but a strong case for getting
children out into the wilderness.
Classic Pacific Crest Trail Books
Classic Books for the PCT:
Ray Jardine's Beyond Backpacking is a must for anyone thinking about doing the PCT. The origin of the ultralight
philosophy
Ben Go's Pacific Crest Trail Data Book- distances, features, water sources, facilities on the PCT,
elevation profiles and resupply stations - Ben is Benedict for author
lookup purposes.This book is intended to be used with the two
below. A must. Use the current edition.
.
Jeff Schaffer, Thomas Winnett and others:
The Pacific Crest Trail:
Southern California A must read, cut out appropriate
sections, carry 1st one and rest go in the resupply boxes. A
must.
Jeff Schaffer: The Pacific Crest Trail:
Northern California A must read, cut out appropriate
sections, carry 1st one and rest go in the resupply boxes. - this is a new book - March
2003. A must.
Jeff Schaffer, Andy Selters
The Pacific Crest Trail: Oregon & Washington New
edition as of 2000 - reviews are only on earlier editions but
are good - a detailed highway to highway guidebook. A must
Yogi's PCT Handbook.
She has hiked the PCT at least 3 times and has put together a
very good 2 part handbook, the large pages
to be read ahead of time and small pages to be carried with
you. Further detail on water points, resupply, etc. You have
to order it from her - see her website
www.pcthandbook.com
Highly recommended.
Leslie Croot's Pacific Crest Trail Town
GuideThe guide to the 80+ towns and resupply points along the PCT
- getting somewhat dated.
Relevant to PCT Hikers, but not
guidebooks
Laurence Gonzales's Deep Survival: Who Lives, Who Dies
and Why. This should be mandatory reading for anyone
doing moderate risk activities, let alone thru-hikers,
backpackers, mountain climbers, etc. It certainly made me
rethink the things we do when backpacking. It makes
fascinating reading, but to summarize what I got out of it: Be
sure that what you are thinking of as many years of
experience, is not really many years of being very lucky.
Karen Burger and Daniel Smith's
The Pacific Crest Trail: A Hiker's
Companion- route descriptions, day hikes, short backpacks, plant & animal
info, history. Don't know that I would carry this - maybe read first
and cut out what I wanted.
Jon Vonhof Fixing Your
Feet is the last word on foot care. He treats feet on
ultra marathons and will give you more than you ever wanted to
know on treating blisters and foot problems.
Sierra Nevada
Wildflowers by Elizabeth Horn. Descriptions and color
photos of many of the wild flowers you will see in the
Sierras.
Personal Accounts
Barbara Egbert - Zero Days: The Real-Life Adventure of
Captain Bligh, Nellie Bly and 10-year- old Scrambler on the
Pacific Crest Trail - We met Scrambler and her family
at the kickoff, and enjoyed reading this tale
of her adventure by her journalist mother.
Since Matt's talk, Angela &
Duffy Ballard wrote A Blistered Kind of Love. This an
entertaining adventure read, not a how to, though it gives you
a good feel for what is needed. Read it before you go,
particularly if you are a couple.
Another one Matt
Geis mentioned is Soul Sweat & Survival on the Pacific
Crest Trailby Bob Holtel. This is someone who did a solo run
over the PCT in the course of three summers.
George Spearing: Dances
With Marmots, A Pacific Crest Trail Adventure -
available in paperback or download. A lot of people have
enjoyed this. Check out all the reviews in Amazon.
Pacific Coast Trailway
was compiled by Clinton C Clark in 1945. This classic was
recently scanned by Daniel Craig Giffen and is available for
online viewing at
pcttrailway.pctplanner.com
Go here to see all the Amazon
Pacific Crest Trail Books
Not directly PCT Related but of
interest to PCT Hikers
Gifts from the
Mountain, Simple Truths for Life's Complexities by
Eileen McDargh. Watercolors and wisdom drawn from
backpacking inspiration. Not just PCT. Hard to classify, but I highly
recommend it.
Peter Potterfield - Classic Hikes of the
World. A gorgeous book full of tempting hikes if the
PCT experience has infected you. Does not include the PCT but
has the JMT.
Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our
Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder by Richard Louv.
Not on JMT, but a strong case for getting children out into
the wilderness.
There are two well known ones that need to be
mentioned, even though they both are a mixture of trail experiences
common to all pilgrims, and some other experiences that include
visits with spirits of pilgrims past. They both make interesting
related reading, but for those new to the Camino, be aware that
these are in no way practical guides.
Our new book: Camino Chronicle: Walking to Santiago by Susan
Alcorn. For more info go to our Camino
Chronicle page, or go directly to our
web order page to buy it.
For the day by day walking, you must take the Confraternity of St.
James guide in the following list. I recommend that you also take
the Davies and Cole guide (or the John Brierley Camino Francés
guide) and the 35 pages from the Lonely Planet Walking Guide. If you
want to understand the historical significance of the areas you walk
through. I suggest that you buy Gitlitz and Davidson before you go,
and take some parts of it with you.
Walker's/Cyclist's Guides
Camino Francés to Finisterre
The Lonely
Planet Walking Guide to Spain has a good section on the
Camino - rip out all but the Camino pages. Note: for our
2001 walk we used the 2nd edition, published in July 99.
Nancy Frey and Jose Placer did the Camino part. A 3rd
edition is now out with the same authors - as far as I can see,
mostly cosmetic changes, maps are a little easier to read,
mileages changed slightly, now takes 30 days instead of 28.
There is a summary list of all the refugios at the beginning.
The refugio info will get more and more out of date as we move
beyond 2003. The Camino section authors have a well regarded
walking tours company
www.onfootinspain.com
that offers Camino tours of various lengths.
publishes
Pilgrim Guides To Spain 1. The Camino Francés - a small purple book (was yellow) that is your
indispensable guide to the next refugio. A must have. There
is a new one issued for each year. Get the current one if you
can, as refugios are added and closed from year to year. This by the way,
will have to be ordered from England. We got ours
from the website www.csj.org.uk
. If you don't get it in a week, call to make sure they got your
web order. Also, for bicyclists in their Practical
Pilgrim Notes section you can find The Cycling Pilgrim on the
Camino Francés.
Davies and
Cole - Walking the Camino de Santiago is an excellent
guide that first came out in 2003. It weighs 7 oz., describes the route,
some of the history, plus some of the flora and fauna. It reads
easily, has some sketch maps and elevation profiles of the
route. The current Jan 2006
edition is about half the weight of the original, and the maps
are even better. If you want to give the authors a little more
money, go to their website
www.pilipalapress.com
John
Brierley - A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino Francés:
From St. Jean Pied de Port to Santiago de Compostela. This
10 oz guide is full color with 33 excellent maps and trail
profiles along with route descriptions. Each map represents a
typical day. Good beginner info, self help info for the
spiritual journey. Get this if you don't get Davies and Cole, or
get both and decide yourself. The Amazon link is to the new 2006 edition
- lighter than the original and updated. We cut out appropriate
sections from Davies and Cole and this guide on a recent 2006
trip, as well as carried the confraternity guide. In practice we
mostly used the Brierley guide because of the color maps, and
its accommodations were even more accurate than the 2005
confraternity guide. For recent updates to the guide, check
http://www.caminoguides.com/latest.html
Alison Raju wrote
The Way of St James Le Puy to Santiago A Walkers Guide.
This 2001 guide starts at Le Puy en Velay in France and gives detailed
route info all the way to Santiago, including some photos and
maps. Weighs about a pound. The author updated this and broke it into two books.
Alison Raju - The Way of St. James: Pyrenees - Santiago - Finisterre. We don't have this 2004 guide, but assume it is similar to the Le Puy to the Pyrenees guide. Good, but for this section I still recommend either Davies and Cole or John Brierley.
John
Brierley - A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino Fisterra.
The same format of fine maps, photos and route descriptions as
in his Camino Francés guide if you want to go on to Finisterre.
For recent updates check
http://www.caminoguides.com/latest.html
Milan Bravo Lozano - A Practical Guide for Pilgrims:
The Road to Santiago - This heavy 1999 guide is published in
Spain in Spanish and English and includes a popular set of maps.
Some people leave the book and take the maps. I saw a copy
recently - large, stiff pages, I didn't measure, but would guess
6 in wide, 11 in tall - must have weighed a couple of pounds.
Jaffa Raza - The Village to Village Guide to The Camino Santiago. I haven't had a chance to read this yet - the 2006 2nd edition, in paperback. It is a detailed guidebook, highly recommended by the Catholic Times, and currently the most expensive guidebook at about $37.
Davies and Cole -
Camino de Santiago Map. This little 4 x 8.5 in booklet
weighs 3 ounces, and is an excellent choice if you want the
comfort of maps with more amount of detail than the simple
sketch maps in the guidebooks. It breaks the route from St. Jean
to Santiago & Finisterre into 40 maps, and includes maps for the
6 cathedral cities along the route.
John Higginson - The
Way Of St James: A Cyclist's Guide : from Le Puy en Velay to
Santiago de Compostela. This little pocket sized Cicerone
Guide looks useful, with daily stages listed. For each day, a
simple line map, an elevation profile, photos and town
descriptions. For accommodations, I suggest also carrying the
Miam Miam Dodo for the French part, and Confraternity of St.
James guide for the Spanish part. My version is 1999, but the
one in Amazon is 2005.
Confraternity of St. James:
in their Practical Pilgrim Notes section you can find The
Cycling Pilgrim on the Camino Francés.
Le Puy Route and France Guides
Alison Raju - The Way of St. James (Chemin de Saint-Jacques de Compostelle): Le Puy to the Pyrenees - We just used this excellent 2004 guide - the most detailed English language guide available for this section. Weighs 8 oz. Also take the GR 65 topo-guides and Miam Miam Dodo guides
- in French but still useful if you don't read French.
Miam Miam Dodo guides - they are in French but essential even if you
don't read French. You can get the Miam Miam Dodo from Amazon
France. Be sure to get the current one, they frequently have
older ones as well. I ordered mine from Amazon France using
Google Translate to translate each page, since I don't speak or
read French. Also, be sure you get one for the correct route.
There is one for the Arles route as well as the Le Puy route.
.
Alison Raju wrote
The Way of St James Le Puy to Santiago A Walkers Guide.
This 2001 guide starts at Le Puy en Velay in France and gives detailed
route info all the way to Santiago, including some photos and
maps. Weighs about a pound. The author updated this and broke it into two books.
Florence Chatzigianis
wrote 26 Gorgeous Hikes on the Western Côte d'Azur. This
is an area very near the start of the Arles route, so if you are
planning to spend additional time in the area, you may find this
book useful.
John Brierley - A
Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino Portugués. In the same style
as his other guides, this is an excellent guide for the Portugal
route from Porto Santiago de Compostella. Also check for recent
updates at
http://www.caminoguides.com/latest.html
Davies and Cole - Walking in Portugal
I haven't seen this book either, but I assume it is in the
same style as their excellent book on Walking the Camino de
Santiago mentioned earlier. It was published in 2000, so be
sure to check the authors' update page for current updates:
http://www.pilipalapress.com/portugal/updates.html
Davies and Cole - Walking the Via de la
Plata: The Camino de Santiago from Sevilla to Santiago de
Compostela. I haven't seen this book, but based on Amazon
reviews, it is in the same style as their excellent book on
Walking the Camino de Santiago mentioned earlier. It was
published in 2004, so also check the authors' update page for
current updates:
http://www.pilipalapress.com/plata/updates.html
Alison Raju - Via de la Plata: The Way
of St James: Seville/Granada to Santiago. This route is
about 1000km, typically starting in Seville. This guide is the
only one including the section from Granada. I have ordered it,
but haven't read it yet. I assume is in the same style as her
other guides, terse, pocket size, very helpful, with a dose of
history.
Gitlitz and
Davidson's The Pilgrimage Road to Santiago has more than
most people want to know about everything along the path. It
also weighs almost one and a half pounds. We edited it with
scissors and cut the weight by half, and discarded pages after
we went thru a section. When we got home, we bought a new copy.
William Bonville - A
Traveler's Highway to Heaven: Exploring the History & Culture of
Northern Spain on El Camino de Santiago - I haven't read
this yet, but has been mentioned on Yahoo groups as a competitor
to Gitlitz and Davidson. Others have pointed out its many
inaccuracies re current pilgrimage customs, but it may be better
on historical detail.
Edwin Mullins - The
Pilgrimage to Santiago. Architecture and history with
authority. This reissue of the 1974 classic follows architecture
on the pilgrim path from Paris to Santiago. Part of the time by car,
part on foot, he follows the Christian architecture from church
to church, carving to carving, as the techniques move south.
Slow reading, but he captures your interest. Worth reading both
before and after your pilgrimage.
William Melczer - The Pilgrim's Guide The
first English translation of the original 12th century guidebook
to the Camino. This 345 page book is heavily documented with
notes, introduction, thumbnail descriptions of saints and
place names. The actual Codex Book 5 translation is 50 pages.
Excellent after Camino read for history, or a before read if you
have a good memory for facts.
Louise Collis - Memoirs of a Medieval Woman. Margery Kempe was a woman of the middle ages who aspired to sainthood. As part of this, she went on pilgrimage to Jerusalem, to Rome and to Santiago de Compostella. She could neither read nor write, but got others to write her story for her. There is very little about the trip to Santiago; it was practically a trivial trip compared to the others, but it is a fascinating glimpse into the experience of being on pilgrimage in those times.
Walter Starkie - The Road to Santiago:
Pilgrims of St. James. Published in 1957, is a combination
guide, history and personal account of his Camino de Santiago
pilgrimages. This is a classic reference used as the Camino
began to revive in the 1970s and 80s. Out of print and now very
expensive.
Nancy Frey - Pilgrim Stories.The
author walked the Camino, worked in the refugios, and
interviewed many pilgrims about their experience. It gives a
good feel for the nature of the experience.
Nancy Frey and Jose Placer have a well regarded
walking tours company
www.onfootinspain.com that offers Camino tours of various
lengths.
James Michener - Iberia: Spanish Travels and
Reflections A personal favorite that I have read several
times. Easier reading than Cees Nooteboom, but a similar love of
Spain. The last chapter is about the pilgrimage to Santiago, and
worth reading even though he drove. Written during the Franco
era and sheds light on that time.
Kathy Gower - Her doctoral dissertation
on how pilgrims incorporate their pilgrim experience into their
daily lives is good reading. You can find it in the Yahoo Group Santiagobis files section.
V1
Georgiana Goddard King - The Way of St.
James. Published in 1920, This three volume set has recently
been scanned by the University of Toronto. and you can view it
in various ways in:
http://www.archive.org/details/wayofsaintjames01kinguoft .
Change the 01 to 02 & 03 for subsequent volumes. I recommend the
Flip Book choice for viewing it. Do take the time to view some
of this book, particularly after you have completed some of the
Camino. Some text samples:
"Possibly it will be said that this little book is neither one
thing nor the other as it offers archaeology without jargon,
travel without flippancy... The original intention of this book
was to examine the claims for the sources of Spanish
architecture in the Gothic and Romanesque period." Sounds dry,
but she strayed from her intentions and her descriptions of her
travels captivated me. On page 260 she is in Pamplona, talking
about the nightly promenade: "For an hour and a half every
evening the nobility of Navarre walked in beauty there, in
rustling and murmuring of silk, and voices, and dark leafage;
warm puffs of perfume through a night wind blowing out of dark
and mountains..." - not your usual travel narrative.
This three volume set has been reprinted by Pilgrims Progress
and is available on Amazon.
Background history on early Spain, but
not just Camino
Maria Rosa Menocal - The Ornament of
the World: How Muslims, Jews and Christians Created a Culture of
Tolerance in Medieval Spain. An optimistic view of early
Spain. For a different voice, also read Moorish Spain.
Richard Fletcher - Moorish Spain.
The culture and history of Moorish Spain, if you want more depth
than a guidebook. I haven't read this, but reviewers describe as
provocative, a storyteller, sharp insights.
Susan Alcorn'sCamino
Chronicle: Walking to Santiago - Our book. I'm biased but
think it's good. Susan has woven her journal entries with essays
that enrich the book with glimpses of contemporary culture,
historical insights and legends from ancient times, and emails
as we were shaken by the happenings of 9/11.
Sue Kenney - Sue Kenney's My Camino. This book on her Camino experience
can be found on Amazon as well as her
website.
Sue's description is: "It's a true story
about the spiritual journey of a woman confronting her deepest
fear". I finished reading it and would add that it's a fine adventure tale and a worthy
addition to the modern pilgrim accounts of the Camino.
Particularly for those of you who are thinking about pilgrimage
in the off season months, this will give you a flavor for that
different experience.
Sue Kenney - Confessions
Of A Pilgrim. Sue Kenney's first camino was in the winter of
2001. Several years later, in the midst of writing her My
Camino book, she felt drawn to walk the Camino again, on a
different route. This book is a result of that walk. You will
hear something about the creation of the first book, but mostly
the intensely personal account of her journey, and the search
for the recipient of the Eagle Feather.
Elyn Aviva - Following the Milky Way - A
Pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago - 2nd edition. This is a
combination of day by day trail journal and historical guide
based on Elyn's 1982 pilgrimage - a more primitive and demanding
experience than faced by current pilgrims. An introduction to
the 2nd edition covers the elapsed 20 years and discusses some
of the pre Christian Camino legends. Good reading and place by
place historical information. For me, more of a read before or
after rather than carry with you book.
Conrad Rudolph - Pilgrimage To The End Of The World. This has a disconcertingly accurate capture of the feelings and experiences of the long distance Camino walker. He started from Le Puy and walked 1000 miles to Santiago. This is a small book, 1st chapter on the early pilgrimage, 2nd his stories, impressions, feelings, 3rd b&w photos with lots of text. 4th is the how to part. Chapters 2 & 3 really brought back memories.
Lee Hoinacki - El Camino - in 1993 at the age of 65, this
author set out on the Camino with little preparation. This
is his story. A day by day account, a lot of detail and a lot of
thoughts. His body may have been giving him pain, but didn't
stop him from commenting freely on a variety of subjects. He
initially trained to be a priest and this training shows through
- a more faith based pilgrimage than other accounts.
