Leave Only Footprints: My Acadia-to-zion Journey Through Every National Park

From CBS Sunday Morning correspondent Conor Knighton, a behind-the-scenery look at his year traveling to each of America's National Parks, discovering the most beautiful places and most interesting people our country has to offer

When Conor Knighton set off to explore America's "best idea," he worried the whole thing could end up being his worst idea. A broken engagement and a broken heart had left him longing for a change of scenery, but the plan he'd cooked up in response had gone a bit overboard in that department: Over the course of a single year, Knighton would visit every national park in the country, from Acadia to Zion.

In Leave Only Footprints, Knighton shares informative and entertaining dispatches from what turned out to be the road trip of a lifetime. Whether he's waking up early for a naked scrub in a historic bathhouse in Arkansas or staying up late to stargaze along our loneliest highway in Nevada, Knighton weaves together the type of stories you're not likely to find in any guidebook. Through his unique lens, America the Beautiful becomes America the Captivating, the Hilarious, and the Inspiring. Along the way, he identifies the threads that tie these wildly different places together--and that tie us to nature--and reveals how his trip ended up changing his views on everything from God and love to politics and technology.

Filled with fascinating tidbits about our parks' past and reflections on their fragile future, this book is both a celebration of and a passionate case for the natural wonders that all Americans share.

Conor Knighton is an Emmy-winning correspondent for CBS Sunday Morning, America’s #1 Sunday morning news program. This year, he is out ＂Island Hopping＂ for CBS News, telling a series of stories set on islands across the world, from Manhattan to Madagascar. He has hosted shows for AMC, Bio Channel, and TBS, and his commentary has been featured in TV Guide and on CNN, HLN, MTV, E!, and Oxygen. He has been to all of America’s national parks and what feels like 40 percent of its Hampton Inns.