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* I May Be Some Time, Ice and the British obsession with polar exploration (a very awkward read, culturally very distant from the US written word) Francis Spufford |
*** The Man Who Walked Through Time, a transit of the complete length of the Grand Canyon. A great adventure. Colin Fletcher |
*** Dances With Marmots, one person's description of their trek on the Pacific Crest Trail. The fact that the writer is a native of New Zealand gives the story a unique spin. George Spearing |
**** Into the Wild, In April 1992 a young man from a well-to-do family hitchhiked to Alaska and walked alone into the wilderness north of Mt. McKinley. His name was Christopher Johnson McCandless and he had given $25,000 in savings to charity, abandoned his car and most of this possessions, burned all the cash in his wallet and walked into the bush to live off the land and create a new life for himself. Jon Krakauer |
*** Incredible Fishing Stories, anything and everything about fishing records, etc. Shaun Morey
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*** They Shoot Canoes, Don't They?, McManus celebrates the hidden pleasures, unappreciated lore, and opportunities for disaster to be found in the recreations of camping, hunting and fishing. Patrick McManus |
*** Fishing Idaho, an angler's guide to Idaho fishing, the best spots and the not-so-great. |
*** Amazing But True Fishing Stories Bruce Nash & Allan Zullo, compiled by Ray Villwock |
**** Anatomy of a Fisherman, a more or less pictorial essay of fly fishing & the outdoors by the author of 'Anatomy of a Murder'. Robert Traver, real name, John Voelker |
**** No Picnic on Mount Kenya, In 1943, Felice Benuzzi and two Italian compatriots escaped from a British POW campin equatorial East Africa, with only one goal in mind, to climb Mt. Kenya. The story of the climb is adventure enough, but the real story is that after the climb, they snuck back into the prison camp. A fascinating read! Felice Benuzzi |
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*** The Hungry Ocean, an unlikely Swordboat Captain, a female, and her story fishing the Grand Banks of Newfoundland. Linda Greenlaw |
*** Lou Whittaker, Memoirs of a Mountain Guide, the life and times of Lou Whittaker, a 'been there, done that' kinda guy. Lou Whittaker, with Andrea Gabbard |
** Stories Behind Record Fish, only would appeal to a dedicated fisherperson. A lot of the biggest and best. Ho hum Louis Bignami |
**** A Blistered Kind of Love, an incredible story of a couple that married and for the honeymoon, hiked the Pacific Crest Trail. As they describe it, one couple's trial by trail. A fun read. Angela & Duffy Ballard |
**** Fishing Up North, stories of luck and loss in Alaskan waters. A good read of a dangerous avocation. Brad Matsen |
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**** Ranger Confidential, Living, Working and Dying in the National Parks. A great read that underscores the incredible stupidity and naivet of of the average park visitor. Park Rangers are put to the test on a daily basis. Andrea Lankford |
*** A Fine & Pleasant Misery, another Patrick McManus anthology of experiences in the outdoors. Patrick McManus |
**** Death, Daring & Disaster, search and rescue in the National Parks. An entire group of stories that, as in Ranger Confidential, underscores the incredible stupidity and naivete of of the average park visitor, and the perilous positions that they, through their lack of preparation or caution, put the National Park rescue service and/or rangers in. Charles Farabee, Jr. |
*** Killer Bears, What causes these fierce attacks? Can they be prevented? Eyewitnesses, investigators and survivors tell their stories. Mike Cramond |
*** Bears Are Where they Find You, a fun little booklet about the behavior and vagaries of the Grizzly. Asa Brooks |
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*** Mark of the Grizzly, true stories of recent bear attacks on humans, and the hard lessons learned. Scott McMillion |
 *** Breaking the Rock, a detailed account of the most daring escape attempt from the 'Rock'.
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 **** Silence of the North, the incredible story of a woman's fight for survival in the wilderness. A wonderful read, I have done it twice now. This lady, who has seen it first hand, is NOT a wolf fancier. |
 *** Polar Dream, the solo expedition by a woman and her dog to the magnetic north pole. Why? 'Cause its there I guess. Only deciding to take the dog along at the last minute, the dog saved her rear 3 times the first day. Something about insistent and hungry polar bears. |
 **** Great Heart, In 1903 Leonidas Hubbard was commissioned by an outdoors magazine to explore Labrador by canoe. Joined by his best friend, Dillon Wallace, and a Scots-Cree guide, George Elson, Hubbard hoped to make a name for himself as an adventurer. But plagued by poor judgment and bad luck, his party turned back and Hubbard died of starvation just thirty miles from camp. Two years later, Hubbard's widow, Mina, and Wallace returned to Labrador, leading rival expeditions to complete the original trek and fix blame for the earlier failure. Their race made headlines from New York to Nova Scotia-and it makes fascinating reading today. |
**** Trout Madness, another great book by Robert Traver, the pseudonym for the individual that also wrote Anatomy of a Murder. A great book, a fun read, and a great way to relax for an evening or three. |
**** Good Evening Everybody, the first half of the life and times of Lowell Thomas, premier newscaster, innovative genius and world traveler. Hard to know where to put this one since so many of his adventures were involved in wartime reporting, political involvement, and just plain outdoor fun. A GREAT Read along with the second half, So Long Until Tomorrow. Lowell Thomas |
**** So Long Until Tomorrow, a continuation of the Lowell Thomas saga until near the end of his professional life, which probably only really ended after he departed this life. Lowell Thomas |
***** Out of this World, a continuation of the Lowell Thomas saga, a once-in-a-lifetime trip to a country that, at least at that time, allowed precious few outsiders within its borders. A country with no roads, only trails for transport. A wonderful story. Highly recommended. |
*** Danger Stalks the Land, Alaskan tales of death and survival. A number of individual survival stories, or not, that occurred in the far north. After a while in the read of this book, it kind of begins to seem like the same old, same old. Plus the writer is not the sharpest knife in the writing business either. |
*** Devil's Teeth, a study of sharks and shark attacks, with a good mix of anxiety, gore and reassuring shark science. |
**** Sunk Without a Sound, a dramatic reenactment of the disasterous Colorado River honeymoon voyage of Glen & Bessie Hyde. An ill-advised, and extremely risky trip that left the Hyde's barge/boat floating unattended and unoccupied. And with no sign of the two voyagers. |
* Tales of the Big Bend. Largely apocryphal tales of the Big Bend area of Texas, that introduces too much potential variation to include much actual history. Don't bother. |
**** Trout Magic. If you like stories of fishing, some gone right and others gone wrong, you'll like this book. Written by the writer of Anatomy of a Murder, Robert Traver, it is a delightful read. But only if you love fishing! Robert Traver, real name, John Voelker |
 *** The Best Adventure & Survival Stories, 2003. Self Explanatory. More survival vignettes, from the arctic to the jungle. Interesting examples of how people get themselves into trouble in the outdoors. Edited: Nate Hardcastle |
 ** The Wave. Life and times of adrenaline junkies, always on the search for new ways (waves) to cheat death. I suppose if you were a surfing freak, you'd think this book a kick. I am not, and I did not. Don't waste your time. |
 **** How I Got this Way! Classic McManus. A laugh a page. How I do like his writing style. |
** One Mountain, Thousand Summits. A seemingly endless search for the 'what happened' during the tragedy on K2 in August 2008. Went on long after I had completely lost interest. More about the search for 'truth' than it was about what actually happened. |
 * Case Files of the Tracker. A somewhat interesting book, but delving waaay too far into the supernatural for me. And not enough stories to make it truly interesting. Lots of stuff that is only believeable with a great stretch of the imagination. Tom Brown, Jr. |
 *** Panic Rising. Tales of courage & survival in the great outdoors. |
**** Almost Somewhere. An interesting story of a gal who has never backpacked before, sets out with her companions to hike the John Muir Trail. It, unlike the quintessential outdoor epic, is a story of intimacy, community and compassion. Great read. |
 *** Walking the Amazon. An idiot's journey for a questionable purpose, 'because nobody's done it!' But, interesting for the incredible number of challenges faced by this individual and his companion. A fairly good read. |
 *** Eiger Dreams. Adventures of men vs. mountains. Interesting stories. |
 **** The Cruelest Miles. A breathtaking story of the men who trasported the serum across the Alaskan wilderness by dog sled in 1925 in order to stop the deadly diptheria epidemic. Man against the elements in the truest sense. What eventually inspired the Iditarod dog race. |
**** From the Jaws of Death. Many different stories of man against nature, placed in trying situations and the varioius privations of those situations. Covers Snow & Ice, the Oceans and the Wild Country. |
 *** All the Men in the Sea. One of the greatest rescues in history. In 1995 a group of men are trying to finish an undersea pipeline and facing hurricane Roxanne. Roxanne wins, and takes out the working barge/station. What pursues then is the rescue. Gripping. |
 **** Listening for Coyote. One man fulfills a dream, and wanders across the state of Oregon on a route that takes him across 4 mountain ranges, and 18 designated wilderness areas. 1300 miles and an exercise in outdoor contrasts. A good read. |
 ** A Walk in the Woods. A book that for me underscores one more time why I, as a rabid hiker, would never have any interest in hiking the Appalachian Trail. A little too much civilization and not enough outdoors, wilderness and adventure. Too much eating in restaurants, social encounters and overnighting in motels. Not my cup of tea in any way when it comes to hiking. Forget it. |
 **** In A Sunburned Country. A thorough examination of the country of Australia but the author. Covering a number of years, he ventures to all the various parts of Aus. and reports on what he finds. You will come away from this book with a much greater understanding about the 'Land Down Under'. |
 *** The North Pole: A Narrative History. An interesting description of the various expeditions that have attempted to explore this intimidating region. Interesting, but long, read. |
**** Indian Creek Chronicles. An interesting account of an individual in his college years, that takes on a solo winter alone in the Idaho wilderness to monitor a group of salmon eggs planted by the dept of fish & game to insure that they got through the winter without freezing. This is a long transformation of a college youth on his way to be a accomplished outdoorsman. Peter Fromm |
 *** Walking the Bible. A quasi-spiritual quest to walk the lands of the five books of moses. An interesting quest, with a lot of great and interesting insights. Bruce Feiler |
 **** Flight of Passage. The most improbable of quests, by the most unlikely of individuals. Two teenagers, one 17 and one 15, rebuild a piper cub airplane, and fly from New Jersey to San Luis Obispo... and back. Taught by their father to fly, and allow by thier parents to take on this trip, these boys have an adventure of a lifetime and a plethora of flying experiences. Rinker Buck |
 *** A Million Steps. This individual took on the hike of the Camino de Santiago which covers 500 miles across most of the top of Spain. Going from St. Jean Pied-de-Port in France to Santiago de Compostela on the extreme West side of Spain. A little too social a journey for me, but an interesting hike. Koontz |
 *** Four Against the Arctic. In 1743 a Russian ship bound for Arctic walrus hunting grounds was blown off course and trapped in the ice off the coast of Svalbard. Four of its sailors went ashore with only two day's supplies to look for an abandoned hut. They returned to the ship to find it gone, apparently crushed and sunk by the ice. Thus began an odessy of 6 years of survival with no tools except homemade, and no food other than what they could kill. Eventually they killed and ate approximately 250 reindeer for food. An incredible tale and an incredible tale of survival. David Roberts |
 ** The Heart of the World. A long, difficult read by an individual with an obsession to find an elusive waterfall in the heart of Tibet. His adventures along the way in the most gruesome of hiking conditions are what this book is about. Only read this if you are desirious of being bored to death with endless repartee about Budsism and its practices. Ian Baker. |
** The Wave. The subtitle, 'in pursuit of the rogues, freaks & giants of the ocean' is incredibly misleading, and the 'why' of how I came to read this boring epistle. What it is really about is that small segment of our society that is in a seemingly endless pursuit of the perfect wave, the biggest wave & the most dangerous wave. Work of any kind seems to be a lost concept. Unless you are ga-ga for surfing, or have a gun pointed at your head, forget this one! Susan Casey. |
 *** The Last River. Four fools, at least that is how some would describe them, determine to do what no man has ever done before. Run the Tsangpo River in Tibet. Even the fact that the Tsangpo is running at three times its normal volume, does not seem to deter them, once settled on this certain path to destruction. The good news, if there is any, is that only one of them dies. Somewhat of a repeat of the Yangsze river run of some years before. Unsuccessful, and deadly. Some might even say, STUPID! Todd Balf |
 *** Hey! Ranger 2. While most of the books of this genre I have read deal with the more gruesome and deadly of the 'ranger' experiences, this one decides to take a look at the lighter side, and the funny experiences to a long term ranger and his friends. A fun read. Jim Burnett |
 *** How to Die in the Outdoors. A sobering look at all the critters in the outdoors who can happily bring an end to your current existence. And they are NOT all the size of a grizzly bear. Interesting to see all the creatures that can mean you harm. Buck Tilton, M.S. |
 *** Till Fish Us Do Part. A not particularly exciting book about one lady's experiences having married an obsessed fisherman. She finally has to join the fun(?) herself. Either that or spend a lot of lonely time at home. |
 * Desert Rims to Mountains High. A singularly boring epistle of one man's exploits climbing mountain after mountain. At some point they begin to sound depressingly similar, and on top of that, this book is written in a especially egocentric style. Do I gotta tell ya that I didn't like it? At ALL! |
*** Where Rivers Change Direction. Basically a memoir of a youth spent growing up on the oldest dude ranch in Wyoming, a remote spread on the Shoshone NF in Wyoming. Lots of hardships, and many rewards. An interesting look into the country life. |
**** Into Thin Air. A documenting of the 1996 Everest disaster by a first class writer who actually made the climb that year. An intense and worthwhile read. Jon Krakauer |
 *** Sawtooth Tales. A book detailing the history of the Sawtooths, White Clouds and Ketchum areas. Dick d'Easum. |
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**** More Iditarod Classics. Tales of the Iditarod Sled races and the lives of those who most frequently run it. Exciting and informative about this most grueling of adventures. |
 ** Stepping Westward. An exploration of the Pacific Northwest, a land settled by the author's ancestors. Sallie Tisdale. |
 *** High Crimes, the fater of Everest in an age of Greed. Thieves, con men, prostitutes and blackmailers, men who would do anything for a quick buck. Everything that has become wrong with climbing the worlds major peaks. Michael Kodas. |
 ** Journal of a Trapper. Stories of what it was like to live a trapping and transient lifestyle in the mid 1800's. Osborne Russell. |
*** Bear Attacks, their causes and avoidance. A comprehensive analysis by one of the premier voices in this arena. However, the bottom line? Maybe if you do the right stuff you can avoid an attack... or not. |
*** Death in Grand Canyon. An interesting compendium of all the ways to die in this particular location of the outdoors. In Grand Canyon it is usually folks that are neophytes period, or are absolutely clueless about what it is like to hike in this area, which is particularly demanding of technique. Little water and lots of heat has finished off a lot of folks just looking for a little recreation. |
* Haunted Hikes. The subtitle promises much, delivers almost nothing. The hikes described are so perfunctory that this book would be completely useless as a guide, and the 'spine tingling' is actually mind numbing. All the ghosts, curses, etc., are mostly local legends and carry little weight to an actual hiker. If you haven't bought it yet, DON'T!! |
** You Don't Want to Die In Africa. A sort of guide cum storybook of the author's adventures while traveling the world. Some good how-to information. Rosemarie Grabski |
**** Left for Dead. The story of Beck Weathers who during an Everest climb, collapsed, and was ignored by his climb-mates, presumably because he was beyond help, which was far from the truth. An examination of the climbing mentality, the power of macho potential over the concern for life, and the power of the human spirit. The man is alive because he took the matters of his rescue into his own hands and survived as a result. Beck Weathers |
**** Magnetic North. A tale of a trek across Canada from the Pacific to the Atlantic by foot, dogsled & canoe. Why? Only God knows. It is an endurance test beginning to end. Without the help of many along the way, it would never have been completed. David Halsey with Diana Landau |
*** Sex, Death & Fly Fishing. A long compendium, I believe, of this writer's columns over the years. It is a fun read if your love the outdoors and fishing. If you don't, not so much. John Gierach is a good and humorous writer and as such this is an easy and enjoyable read. |
*** Grizzly Country. This book begins with the postulate that if we just seek out the grizzly, shake hands, put your arm around, and offer him/it a beer, we can all be friends! He then spends the rest of the book describing aggressive behavior by this apex predator that invalidates his original premise. The last chapter(s) do describe some behaviors and ways to deal with them that do have some value to the outdoorsman. One must keep in mind the so-called Grizzly Man, Timothy Treadwell, who spent 13 years intermingling with the Brown Bears on Kodiak island, dragged his girlfriend up into the middle of this nutcase experiment, and she got eaten along with Senor Treadwell as the cost of trusting this who apparently thought like our current author. |
**** Cat Attacks. A primer on both cougar attacks and what you need to do to put them off (It isn't the same as bears or wolves). This book illuminates a number of areas where we have been intentionally kept in the dark, and leaves you much wiser if you enter the woods for recreation, especially if you go alone. Jo Deurbrouck & Dean Miller |
**** The Last Season. The story of Greg Morgensen, a backcounty ranger for 28 seasons in Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks, a ranger's ranger, who disappeared on his last season's patrol, and his outcome was only discovered 5 years later with the discovery of some of his bones in a creek. A riveting read. |
*** Crossing Divides. A couples story of cancer, hope and hiking Montana's Continental Divide. An engaging story of one woman's story of a fight with cancer, and her will to heal as well as continue her life, as well as the man who supported her. A story of hope and victory. |
