This is a special announcement in place of our regular show.

Steve announces a change in our format and our production schedule. Our future programs will be presented in a longer format on roughly a monthly schedule. We expect to release the first in our new series of programs in December.

• Special Announcement on November 6, 2008 [MP3 format; length 6:32; 3,133,896 bytes]

Julianne Abendroth-Smith talks about the results of research into the effects on the body of hiking with trekking poles. She's a biomechanics professor at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon.

We hear from Jayah Faye Paley, an author and educator, and co-host of an educational DVD, POLES for Hiking, Trekking & Walking. Jayah's web site, Adventure Buddies, provides more information about her educational products and services. Jayah describes basic skills for using trekking poles.

Julianne Abendroth-Smith updates us on the very latest scientific results about the effectiveness of trekking poles and the effects of using them.

• Show number 162 [MP3 format; length 10:20; 2,483,385 bytes]

Steve talks to Julianne Abendroth-Smith of Willamette University in Salem Oregon. She's a biomechanics professor studying the physics of hiking, and how hiking with various poles and walking sticks affect the body.

Steve talks to Jayah Faye Paley, an author and educator, and co-host of an educational DVD, POLES for Hiking, Trekking & Walking. Jayah's web site, Adventure Buddies, provides more information about her educational products and services.

We'll hear more from Julianne Abrendroth-Smith and Jayah Faye Paley in part two. We'll find out Jayah's techniques for using poles, and we'll update you with the latest scientific research about those techniques.

• Show number 161 [MP3 format; length 9:55; 2,382,262 bytes]

Kurt explains how the mountain pine beetle is affecting the white bark pine trees, and man animals and people who depend on these trees. Why is this beetle a growing problem now?

We also hear from Dr. Jesse Logan, a recently retired U.S. Forest Service entomologist, Diana Tomback, a biology professor at the University of Colorado in Denver, and Louisa Willcox, a senior wildlife advocate for the Natural Resources Defense Council.

You can read more reporting by Kurt Repanshek at his National Parks Traveler web site.

• Show number 160 [MP3 format; length 9:51; 2,368,849 bytes]

Using primitive tools and natural materials, naturalist Norm Kidder explains how to choose a sheltered location, demonstrates how to cut wood with a rock, and describes how to build a basic lean-to structure.

The Primitive Ways website has many articles on primitive shelter construction. Another source of information on primitive skills is the Society of Primitive Technologies.

• Show number 159 [MP3 format; length 11:47; 2,831,519 bytes]

Steve talks to Backpack Gear Test founder and publisher Jerry Goller about the new relationship between Backpack Gear Test and the WildeBeat. Richard Lyon reviews the Ryders Eyewear Intersect sunglasses.

If you're interested in reviewing for Backpack Gear Test (BGT), read: How to become a tester. Manufacturers provide more gear than the volunteers at BGT can keep up with. By becoming a tester, you can help your fellow wilderness travelers find out what gear will work for them.

• Show number 158 [MP3 format; length 9:55; 2,384,833 bytes]

In part two of this wild places program, Assistant Producer Kate Taylor presents the pros and cons of using communication devices in the back-country, a topic that has sparked controversy among outdoor enthusiasts. (Here is part 1 of Keep Me Connected.)

Listeners respond to part one with their opinions and experiences using communication devices on wilderness trips. Derek Moore, SPOT LLC's manager of marketing and public relations, and Gregg Fauth, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park's wilderness manager, discuss the difference between a "challenge" and an emergency. Paul Magnanti and retired wilderness manager Laurel Boyers tell how they see a change in back-country use.

• Show number 157 [MP3 format; length 9:56; 2,387,560 bytes]

In part one of this wild places program, Assistant Producer Kate Taylor presents the pros and cons of using communication devices in the back-country, a topic that has sparked controversy among outdoor enthusiasts.

Blogger Paul Magnanti shares an essay he wrote about the issue, and Derek Moore from SPOT LLC comments on his company's device, the SPOT Satellite Messenger. Gregg Fauth and Laurel Boyers, both wilderness managers of national parks, tell how communication technology has changed the wilderness experience.

To read Paul's essay and about his outdoor experiences, titled The Changing Culture of Connectivity, visit his blogsite at PMags.com.

Next week, in part 2, we'll hear more from Gregg Fauth and Paul Magnanti, and find out what types of situations warrant the use of communication devices in the back-country.

• Show number 156 [MP3 format; length 9:57; 2,391,427 bytes]

Using primitive tools and natural materials, naturalist Sue Labiste demonstrates how to soap up, perform dental hygiene, and give yourself a manicure.

The Primitive Ways website has many articles on primitive health care and grooming. Another source of information on primitive skills is the Society of Primitive Technologies.

• Show number 155 [MP3 format; length 9:52; 2,371,564 bytes]

We hear J.D. and Emily in several situations where someone didn't consider this seventh principle of Leave No Trace. J.D. and Emily summit a peak, encounter a cyclist on the trail, and try to get some sleep in a campsite.

Emily and J.D., along with the other Leave No Trace traveling trainers, maintain the Traveling Trainers Blog.

The music from the party in the adjacent campsite is Why don't you tell me by the band One Day Remains, available from the PodSafe Music Network.

• Show number 154 [MP3 format; length 9:43; 2,336,246 bytes]