Parham became a guidebook author in 1992 when the first guide in his six-volume Off The Beaten Track mountain bike trail guide series was published. He is known for drawing the clear and easy-to-read maps that make his books so user-friendly, a technique he developed when writing his first one. In Waterfall Hikes of North Georgia, he also produced the more than 200 waterfall photographs.

As a hiker, Parham’s experience extends far beyond the Southeast. He has backpacked across New Hampshire’s Presidential Range, through Washington’s Olympic National Park, and in Grand Canyon National Park, Patagonia’s Torres Del Paine National Park, five national parks in New Zealand, and Snowdonia National Park in Wales.

Other guidebooks by Jim Parham include: Road Bike North Georgia; Road Bike the Smokies; Natural Adventures in North Georgia; Natural Adventures in the Mountains of Western North Carolina; and the Off the Beaten Track mountain bike trail guide series, which covers 2000 miles of trails in north Georgia, western North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, and east Tennessee.

Parham lives with his wife and son in Swain County, North Carolina, where Nantahala National Forest meets Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

For more information or to arrange an interview with Jim Parham, contact Mary Ellen Hammond at 828-488-6601 or maryellenhammond@milestonepress.com.