Walking Natural Pathways

WALKING NATURAL PATHWAYS is eclectic, each section its own ecosystem. Doherty pays special attention to the natural world, celebrating it with diverse and stylistic poems. It was the wettest spring on recordAnd the spring storm alpine rain was melting snow,With the churning muddy watersEven the biggest dam was on the verge.

When long-time outdoorsman, songwriter, and poet Mark Doherty decided he needed a stable profession for his day job in the 1990's, he began his career as a high school teacher. But Doherty never really left the outdoors and his music behind; he just incorporated them into his creative approach to teaching high school English and writing. After earning his BA in English and Writing from his home state of Colorado at Western State University, Doherty spent ten years working as a musician, backcountry guide, and freelance writer in Southern Utah. Later he earned a teaching degree from Westminster College in Salt Lake City and now teaches International Baccalaureate Senior English as well as 11th grade core English in Midvale, Utah, a suburb of Salt Lake City located at the foot of the Wasatch Mountain Range. He earned his Master's Degree in Writing Nonfiction from Southern New Hampshire University in November of 2016.