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The Cruise of the Corwin: Journal of the Arctic Expedition of 1881
John Muir
Manufacturer: Mariner Books
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0618057013 |
Book Description
In the spring of 1881, the steamship Thomas Corwin began a daring voyage of 15,000 nautical miles into treacherous Arctic seas to search for captain G. W. De Long and his ship Jeannette, which had left San Francisco two years earlier to drift across the North Pole while trapped in ice. There had been no word from the Jeannette for months. The ship was never found, but John Muir's account of this expedition--which includes vivid descriptions of ice-choked seas, Arctic vegetation, awe-inspiring glaciers, and the native people--captures the magic and mystery of the farthest reaches of the American frontier. Founder of the Sierra Club and its president until his death, discoverer of Glacier Bay and father of the national park system, John Muir was a spirit so free that all he did to prepare for an expedition was to "throw some tea and bread into an old sack and jump over the back fence." In a world confronting the deterioration of the natural environment and an ever-quickening pace of life, the attraction of Muir's writings has never been greater.
Amazon.com
Whether you're planning an actual trip to the Olympic Mountains or searching for the vicarious thrills of a smart guidebook, Robert L. Wood's encyclopedic knowledge of this enchanting wilderness at the edge of the Pacific will inform and enthrall. This is not a quickie job: the author has hiked every one of the trails he details here (over a hundred) backwards and forwards, most of them more than once, and his enthusiasm is infectious. Before you know it you'll be an expert too--rattling off, for instance, peaks visible from Dodger Point (Rainier, Olympus, the Bailey Range), and the name for the "noisy chatter" along the Putvin Trail (Whitehorse Creek). Divided into two main sections--Leeward and Windward--this handy guide covers the bulk of national forest and parklands worth venturing into. Concise yet thorough, it includes all the necessities--elevation, mileage, maps, landmarks, vegetation, and possible wildlife sightings--in an easy-to-read format. A must for the would-be visitor and armchair adventurer both.
Customer Reviews:
Useless for me.......2007-09-10
As a day hiker going to the Olympics for the first time I found the book rather useless and much inferior to a day hiking book a friend brought (Day Hiking, Olympic Penisula). It is of little help in choosing which trail to do, it has poor to non-existent maps and does not give elevation change data. It is exhaustive on the mountain trails (including abandoned trails), but it does not include beach hikes, only mountain trails.
The best.......2007-06-11
This is the best and most informative trail guide to the Olympic Mountains. Bob Wood has hiked most of these trails himself and he has written book on the history of Olympic National Park. This book contains information you will not find anywhere else. Sadly Bob Wood has passed away and this book is getting a bit dated.
Not a "normal" guide book.......2006-09-21
If you like Falcon type guide books, you probably won't care for this book. Trail descriptions don't offer elevation gain, they don't tell you what the trail has to offer (great views, low traffic, bears, et cetera), descriptions are not well organized, and the book does not offer descriptions of how you might link say several trails together to provide a loop - in other guide books you might hike the Seven Lakes Basin Loop, while in this book you have to find each individual trail description and connect them for yourself. Really, this offers little more than what you can find from just using your topo - of course a topo offers more info than you find here. For me, it defeats the purpose of guide book - which I use to guide me toward the trail I want to take QUICKLY - what's the elevation gain, what does this trail offer, what time of year is best, trail tips, et cetera. This book somehow manages to avoid all of this and still be very dense with information and convey the information in a very disorganized fashion. In addition, when hiking the Seven Lakes Loop, my topo AND the park map both listed trail names differently than how this book listed them - possibly an error in the book and possibly just outdated information.
Get this book only after you have spent some time in the Olympics, gotten a good feel for things, and want a resource to complement your own personal exploration of this glorious region. This is not a book you get as an intro to the Olympics and MUST be used with a topo.
Many hikes, but missing key information.......2005-02-14
First, please note that I have purchased this book but have not yet truly used it (i.e., I haven't yet actually gone to the Olympics). My purpose in purchasing it was to try to get a sense for the hiking options in the area compared to other national park destinations.
I bought two Olympic hiking guides in addition to this one: "Day Hike! Olympic Peninsula" by S. Blair and "Hiking Olympic National Park" By E. Molvar.
Compared to those two books, this one certainly includes a larger number of hikes. To my mind, however, it misses two critical pieces of information. First, no guidance is provided as to the likely degree of difficulty, either in terms of elevation gain/loss or in terms of the author's opinion (e.g., moderate, strenuous, etc.). This makes it much harder to choose hikes that are likely to be within our comfort zone-- especially on days when the knees are feeling sore!
Second, I find the author's descriptions of the hikes to be very clinical and not that helpful in terms of helping me prioritize where to go. I want to know which hikes have outstanding mountain views, or delicious woodsy spots versus long slogs through forested areas with little to appreciate. There is no ranking or rating scheme for this, and it's a bit much to ask a reader to slog through detailed (and often somewhat clinical) descriptions of the 177 hikes mentioned to try to get a sense of that.
I think this book could be useful as a reference-- if one already has a pretty good idea of where to go. But it's not the best in terms of prioritizing how to spend your time. To that end, the "Day Hike!" book by Blair is better, although it includes only about 70 hikes.
Do yourself a favor..........2004-09-03
We used the book to research our hikes before we arrived in the area. It helped us plan our route, time and stopover points. It gave a number of clues to things we didn't want to see as well. Couple of things you should know when using the book though. Trail descriptions don't always start at a trailhead so you might have a longer trip to get there than you think. Significant information is contained in the introduction to each of the sections and without it you will be confused by some of the trail information. But the biggest clue is this...don't try to use this book without a detailed map of the area. You will have lots of trouble finding trailheads if you use only the book. For example, Hike 133 tells you to take a specific FS road. However, there are two major forks that are not marked and without a map you'll have the opportunity to spend 3 hours driving each option like we did, on some "interesting" logging roads. You can get the maps at local stores like the Merchantile in Lake Quinault. We are very happy that this book directed us to the South Fork Hoh Trail (Hike 162) which was outstanding. The trails from the visitor center are a disappointment after that great trail.
Book Description
This book describes a 585 mile network of maintained trails in a wilderness ecosystem that stretches from the beaches of the Pacific to the heart of the Olympic Mountains.
Customer Reviews:
hiking book.......2007-05-07
This book was great. It gave us detailed information to the trail heads. We liked how the book was seperated into sections of the peninsula. This helped us plan our trip. We hiked 10 of the hikes. We couldn't have done it without the book.
Disjointed, confusing, and incommodious. .......2007-03-08
This book is the proverbial "can't see the forest through the trees." Way too much minutia and nothing close to the big picture. Long dissertations describe every step of the way about trees and plants - and then some more on the trees - on long (30-40 miles) hikes, but with very poor descriptions about the magnificent outdoors in the great northwest. Couple that with a serious lack of good maps, along with dreadfully vague information on where/what - makes for an aggravating read. I have 30 years of experience as a bush pilot but trying to navigate through this book makes hiking preparation a laborious chore.
Slightly Misleading Information..........2006-07-18
Although I am a huge fan of Falcon guides, this edition definitely let me down. Unfortunately it doesn't differentiate between Olympic National Park and Olympic National Forest trails. This becomes a big deal when you spend a significant amount of time planning your trip only to arrive at the trailhead and find that you need an Olympic National Forest permit, because the trailhead parking falls in the national forest, not the national park, and you need to drive back 15 miles to get one. If you are prepared with a National Parks pass, not a National Forest pass, this is definitely frustrating. In fact, a significant number of trails in the book are in the national forest, not the national park. Because this is an older book (1995) it also doesn't include some of the nicer Falcon guide features found in the newer books like the trails being broken down into categories in the beginning based on the types of features the trail has (i.e. waterfalls versus alpine meadows). It also doesn't include any attempt at topo maps, which is a definite downside. I'm still a fan of the Falcon guides, but I think I'll stick to the ones that are more recently published from now on...
needs a rev, focused too much on backpacking.......2006-07-18
Decent overview but hard to comprehend if you've never been there. Poor maps, little on the visitor center and tourist areas. Great if you have a topo and have been there before. Not great if it's your first visit.
When Islands Slam into Continents, Great Hiking is Born.......2005-10-08
Olympic is a beautiful park with diverse terrain, serious vertical gain, rain forests, waterfalls, northern pacific coast, glaciered peaks and miles and miles of trails for both day hikes and extensive backcountry excursions. The falcon guide does a good job organizing the park, providing acceptable overview references, including compelling photography (for black and white) and selecting a diversity of hike distances. There short hikes, moderate and long day hikes and multi-day excursions (though the emphasis is on the latter two). You sill need to print out a map from the national park service web site to orient yourself in the park as you flip through the pages (I often felt lost with just the couple of overview maps) but in general it is a really helpful guide.
Book Description
HIKING OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK, 2nd edition (Falcon)
A Guide to the National Park’s Greatest Hiking Adventures
Erik Molvar
This updated guide describes the author’s favorite routes among the 585 miles of maintained trails in a wilderness ecosystem that stretches from the beaches of the Pacific to the heart of the Olympic Mountains in Washington State. Hikes range from strenuous glacier crossings to short walks through the park’s temperate rain forest. Information includes best season, elevation gain, difficulty, and detailed directions to the trailhead as well as narratives about each hike’s highlights, beautiful photos, and accurate maps.
Veteran explorer Erik Molvar is an author and executive director of Biodiversity Conservation Alliance, an effective nonprofit conservation organization.
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Best Easy Day Hikes Olympic National Park, 2nd (Best Easy Day Hikes Series)
Erik Molvar
Manufacturer: Falcon
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0762741201 |
Book Description
BEST EASY DAY HIKES OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK, 2nd edition
Erik Molvar
An updated guide to the best short—under 5- mile—hikes in Washington’s Olympic National Park—perfect for families or people who don’t have a lot of time but still want to enjoy this spectacular park. Nearly thirty routes are described in detail with highlights of the hike, approximate hiking time, easy-to-follow directions to the trailhead , and a ranking of the hikes from easy to challenging.
Product Description
Backpacking in Mount Rainier North Cascades and Olympic National Parks
Book Description
In her latest book, Kristina Borjesson once again leaves pundits, media critics, and Monday-morning quarterbacks behind. Zeroing in on a stunning lineup of first-hand sources, she presents a unique and utterly fascinating record of self-examination by some of America's top working journalists.
Focusing on the post 9/11 crisis period, Borjesson has interviewed ABC's Ted Koppel, Hearst Newspaper's Helen Thomas, Paul Krugman of the New York Times, Barton Gellman and Walter Pincus of the Washington Post, Associated Press President/CEO Tom Curley, Harpers publisher John MacArthur, Peter Arnett, and many others. This collection of masterful interviews unveils a journalistic environment that rivals any long-running soap opera on television. Filled with astonishing personal stories, conflict, and drama, Feet to the Fire gives readers the rare opportunity to walk a mile in the shoes of this nation's most powerful journalists and news executives. Most of them have spent long stretches of their professional lives in what can only be described as pressure-cooker environments ranging from deadly war zones to high-rise corporate offices.
As a serious, first-hand account of contemporary mainstream journalism, the book has no equal. Mindful of the broader historical context and the value of comparing the coverage of recent conflicts to Vietnam War coverage, Borjesson has included long interviews with Vietnam-era reporters who are still working today, like Peter Arnett. Arnett won a Pulitzer Prize as an Associated Press reporter in Vietnam, was CNN's star war correspondent during the first Gulf War, and became a lightning rod while reporting on the second Gulf War.
As an oral account of the current era of crisis, as a deeper and far more insightful view of this nation's most accomplished messengers and the landscape in which they operate, Feet to the Fire is nothing short of a tour-de-force.
Interview subjects include: Ted Koppel, Helen Thomas, Tom Curley (President/CEO Associated Press), Peter Arnett, Paul Krugman (New York Times), Barton Gellman and Walter Pincus (Washington Post), Deborah Amos (NPR war correspondent), Jon Alpert (independent producer/cameraman), John MacArthur, Tom Yellin (executive producer for Peter Jennings), Chris Hedges, and James Bamford (National Security reporter).
Customer Reviews:
Very demanding, but read it nonetheless.......2006-09-21
Quite frankly, I don' think I've ever read a books as important as Feet to the Fire. At least not while trying to make sense of the contemporary conflict between the West (i.e. North America) and the Middle East with its numerous Muslim countries and inhabitants.
In this thorough 627 pages long book, Kristina Borjesson interviews the key players in the North American journalism and media scene. And she does so using straight-forward and honest questions. Except the current war against Iraq, which dominates the greater part of the book, other things such as the Bush administration, news reporting in the aftermath of 9/11, censorship in the media, and much, MUCH more. She's never afraid to ask both controversial and troubling questions, in other words those very questions that many people have been thinking about but never given an answer to. And luckily for us, the interviewees are willing to answer.
Of the book's more than 600 pages, most contains paragraph after paragraph of useful information. It goes without saying that a complete summary of a book with a scale as massive as this one can never be accomplished in a short book review, but one thing is certain: in case you do manage to read the entire thing you'll get a new and sometimes very troubling look at the state of world politics and warfare. Forget the impersonal images you've seen in the news and never mind the stale reporting coming out of most newspapers: here you'll hear from the people who've actually been there, who've been in the heat of gruesome battle; the people who'll tell you just how tragic this reality really is.
I could spend the rest of the night talking about all the big names and all the important stories found in the book, but then this review would probably never come to an end. Instead, I must emphasize the importance of Borjesson's work.
Because that's really what's so great about this book. Both Americans and Europeans (and, of course, the people in the Middle East) will learn things from reading it, but they will learn DIFFERENT things. Americans will learn how much of what they're being told by their own media often is just incorrect, but not only that, they'll also come closer to an understanding as to why people all over the world tend to hate them as much as they really do. It's a tough thing to learn, but reality is seldom beautiful, and it won't get a whole lot better with ignorance.
It's well-known that a great deal of the European population (along with the rest of the world) look at Americans as a whole as arrogant, fanatically patriotic, and extremely close-minded (even though all of us who've visited that country know this is not the case with every single American), and Feet of the Fire will help explain why these twisted images have become so prevalent.
You won't finish this book in an afternoon while relaxing under the sun at your local beach. It's a very demanding book that you'll have to devote a lot of hours to, but please, don't let this scare you from buying it and reading it. It's much too important to miss.
A Rare Look at the Media.......2006-08-15
As a broadcast journalist I read this book to understand how my colleagues could have been so laxed in reporting and investigating the issues, post 9/11, that led to war with Iraq. I came away not only with a greater understanding of those issues, but with insights both sobering and frightening about the profession I work in. This book is not just for journalists, but for anyone who believes in freedom of the press and for people who care to understand how things really get (or do not get) reported.
A must read for anyone puzzled by reporting in the USA.......2006-08-12
Author Borjesson strings together fascinating interviews. The words of David Martin(CBS) and Ted Koppel(ABC) go a long way to explain how most big media FAILED us in the march to war in Iraq.
Conversely, John MacArthur of Harpers, Chris Hedges at the NY Times, Juan Cole and James Bamford (among many) give insightful perspectives on US reporting.
Bamford is especially worthy of praise. His brutal honesty on the topic of Israeli misdeeds will irk some, but Bamford's words and his terrific piece of CURRENT reporting on efforts to start a war with Iran shows us that all is not yet lost when it comes to reporting what the public NEEDS to know.
A solid, informative, behind the scenes look at journalism .......2006-08-09
In the interests of full disclosure, I worked as an editorial consultant on Feet to the Fire. Having said this, I can't begin to emphasize enough, how solidly reported, how thoroughly researched and how much care was taken with each and every interview in this book. I believe the book achieves an incisive and eye opening look at how the events of 9/11 affected 21 of the most renowned national security and war correspondents in the US. One of the things I like about the book is how you can pick it up, read any chapter, in any order, and you will be immediately drawn in to that individual journalists' mind set and point of view. In these days when greater transparency is a baseline requirement in journalism, Feet to the Fire really provides an important service and allows the American people to get inside the heads of the people who bring us the information without which the American democracy would not function.
Very unbalanced.......2006-08-06
This book has a bunch of interviews, so I would normally expect it to be okay. But it isn't. There are twenty-one chapters, and we see interviews with people such as Peter Arnett, Chris Hedges, Juan Cole, and many others.
Still, I'd like to focus on the interview with James Bamford, and the praise given for him. Bamford gets 48 pages, and that's not good. And I don't see any reasonable people balancing what he says in this book.
Bamford has written outrageously afactual and illogical nonsense about the USS Liberty. So it is no surprise that when in this book, Bamford is asked whether Israel is a touchy subject, he says that it is enormously so. And he complains that "you can't talk about Israel in the press without somebody going crazy." Of course, given what he says about Israel, I'm not surprised. And Bamford himself seems to be one of those who are going crazy.
When Bamford gets asked if the reason for all the sensitivity about Israel is that Israel is protecting our interests, he replies "What interests? They're the cause of all the problems."
That comment is, of course garbage. It is like someone with a fever calling a thermometer the cause of all the problems. Israel is a small nation that is under attack. It's not the cause of all the problems in the Middle East. And since it is not a cause of major problems there, pressuring Israel or destroying Israel will not solve anything.
A book that can be so misleading about this topic is tough to trust on anything. I don't recommend it.
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- Yellowfly's Mystery
- Across the Steel River - a must read!
- amazing
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Across the Steel River
Ted Stenhouse
Manufacturer: Kids Can Press, Ltd.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 1550748912 |
Book Description
It's 1952 in a small prairie town, and bigotry is a way of life. Will and Arthur have been friends forever, but folks figure it won't last. Whites and Indians always outgrow their friendships - or so they say. And now the boys have made a grisly discovery that threatens to unravel the very fabric of their friendship. A local Indian and World War II hero has been beaten and left for dead near the railway tracks. While the police conclude that a train caused Yellowfly's injuries, Will and Arthur know better. To find answers, they'll have to pursue the case on their own. In their search for justice, the boys discover that true brotherhood sometimes calls for sacrifice. And that courage, like cowardice, can take many forms.
Customer Reviews:
Yellowfly's Mystery.......2004-03-10
Yellowfly's Mystery
Will and Arthur are walking down the railroad tracks when they see a body. They think it's a dog at first, but then they see it's a body. When they get closer they see it's Yellowfly, the Indian war hero. He is all beaten up and injured badly. They call the authorities and they take him to the Hospital. It's in the 1950's and in Grayson, Canada. Arthur is Indian and Will is white. Will try's to find out who beat up Yellowfly. It's a very painful mystery, but he thinks he can solve it.
This is a really good book. It was very exciting mystery about how a boy named Will is trying to solve a very hard mystery. He finds gopher tails and he dumps manure on his two suspects. He fights all three of who he thinks beat up Yellowfly. This book should be in all school libraries and in all of the public libraries, because it is good and is entertaining. This book would make you feel good after you finished it.
Across the Steel River - a must read!.......2003-04-15
"Across the Steel River" is an accurate portrayal of life in a small prairie town. Although the story is fiction, the descriptions of the landscape, the town and the people, are very convincing. It was easy to picture it all in my mind. The story, set in the 1950's, is about two boys, unaffected by the rampant racism surrounding them, who embark on an adventure together as best friends. The book has a nice flow to it, is easy to read and has some wonderfully poignant moments. I found that once I started reading, I didn't want to put it down and yes, I actually got tears in my eyes at one particularly touching passage. It is a thoughtful, insightful tale that had me questioning my own morals and prejudices. Don't be fooled by my sentimental review though - it is still high adventure that leads you down unexpected paths to a thrilling conclusion. This is not just a book for young adults - it can be enjoyed by any age.
amazing.......2002-06-04
this book showed how life can be for both a native and a white boy in the praries. I really enjoyed how the author came into lives of the main characheters. This book showed how destructive people can be just because of the coulor of your skin. I just say no wonder people have grudges against white pepole. I am sorry for the bad writing but I do not want to drone away about a book. This book showed me emmence joy and sadness but it was overall a great read.
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- The Divine Origin of the Craft of the Herbalist
- The Encyclopedia of Mammals (Facts on File Natural Science Library)
- The Fishes of Illinois
- The Four-Cornered Falcon: Essays on the Interior West and the Natural Scene (Creating the North American Landscape)
- The Glory Field
- The Heart of the World: A Journey to Tibet's Lost Paradise
- The Illustrated Wise Words and Country Ways
- The Master Mind of Mars and A Fighting Man of Mars
- The Power of Animals: An Ethnography
- The Psychological Birth of the Human Infant: Symbiosis and Individuation
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