Enclosed are excerpts from the journals of Hayfever. A middle-aged Earth pony, Hayfever lived in Lareindo, one of the southernmost settlements of Equestria. Some time after Tirek’s attempted takeover of Equestria, Hayfever had a midlife crisis, possibly brought on by Equestria’s collective brush with death or enslavement through Tirek. Hayfever had lived in Lareindo all her life and abruptly realized that she’d never even been that far from Lareindo. This was not caused by discontent at home; by all accounts, including her own, her single life in Lareindo was one of contentment and stability, if characterized by a lack of significant happenings.

This lack of outside experience initiated intense feelings of wanderlust, and Hayfever decided that she’d travel, on her own and on foot, to the Crystal Empire. (She was well aware of how dangerous this would be, particularly given her own inexperience in travelling, but was not to be dissuaded by her friends or acquaintances.) This trip would last months and take her along a meandering road across Equestria, from border to border and almost coast to coast, from deserts to snowy plains to forests to cities to mountaintops. Along the way, she recorded her experiences in her journal, punctuated day-to-day with Hayfever’s attempts at various forms of poetry.

Upon her return home, Hayfever showed her journal entries to a few friends, who responded favorably. On their suggestion, she showed them to a few publishing groups. One of them accepted her offer, and her journal was released as The Winding Northward Road. Editing was minimal; at Hayfever’s request, even her own misspellings and crossed-out mistakes were included.

Hayfever still lives in Lareindo. She has not written another book, and although she still goes traveling from time to time, she claims her urge to wander has been largely sated. However, she still writes poetry in her spare time.