I just came across a new twist in hiking journals: A "fill in the blank" style from Nomad Adventure Journals.

Fill in the blank?

Yeah, you heard me.

Nomad claims "the journal is a fantastic accessory for any serious hiker or backpacker."

Yeah. If you've had a lobotomy.

Jeez, how lazy can you be!

Soon we'll have no motor skills at all. Our brains will atrophy. It's the demise of the species I tell you!

I can see it now...

Billy Bob's Trail Journal

Date: Dunno.

Today we hiked to Mt. Numb-as-a-hake.

The trail was very muddy.

It was a 3 mile hike.

We are headed for Can't Think Lake.

My pack weighs a lot.

Our GPS coordinates are huh?.

The weather is lousy.

Yikes!

Better idea: Grab a pen from the desk drawer. But a 69 cent spiral notebook from Hannaford. Go out and hike. And then--brace yourself--think some pithy, original thoughts and write them down.

Voila, a real trail journal. Easy. Even if you're less than a literary giant, but have the desire to get outside, observe the world around you and how it makes you feel, and write it down.

Leave the fill-in-the-blanks stuff for the crossword.

And speaking of journals, check out the online journals of hikers and their treks on trails long and short, near and far at Trail Journals. It's tremendous reading and will easily get you jazzed to do some big walks.