David Thompson was an explorer and cartographer of great magnitude. These personal journals document his explorations in the Canadian Rockies and northwestern U.S. from 1800-1811. His responsibilities were to discover and map new trade routes for the North West Company across the mountains and eventually to the Columbia River Basin. The journals depict the many hardships he and his men endured while on several exploratory trips: the impenetrable mountain snows; surviving severe winters of -30 F; the trials and tribulations of building trading posts, canoes, sleds; the demeanor of local Indian tribes; lack of food; etc. As Dr. Belyea says in her introduction, "David Thompson's Columbia journals require of the reader a perseverence that is well rewarded..the journals are dry and difficult..and the reader must work hard to create his or her own pattern of understanding". It is a worthy book from an exceptional man. The seven reproductions of maps by Arrowsmith, Thompson, etc. are quite poor in quality and I would therefore suggest an atlas for those unfamiliar with the geography of the area so as to follow his whereabouts.

If you're interested in this sort of thing as I am this book could be of great value however the price is unreal. I have a CD that does much the same for the entire country at a third the price of one state however this book is MUCH more accurate and shows county boundaries that only occured for as little as three days. The CD is also easier to use. That said I'll likely ask for the book as one of those Christmas presents I wouldn't buy for myself.

I have found this book very useful on 3 cruises through the San Juans and Vancouver Island. Information on each marina includes: area map, harbor layout, address, phone #, VHF channel, Marina services, photographs and a general discussion of the marina and surrounding area.

I am new to sailing on the Columbia River and this book has helped me expand my horizons. I sail out of Portland and the atlas helps me to easily identify destinations and routes. The feature that makes this atlas so helpful is the high definition and low scale charts that are pieced together all the way up the Greater Columbia drainage. Its a good guide for keeping you afloat and active on the rivers.

This book had me engrossed from the beginning. The photos and maps tell a story that is a must see for the local historian.

This book gives the reader a nice glimpse of what life is like in this remote coastal area, and also of the sense of community that is difficult to grasp if you're only passing through. And, seaplanes are just fun to read about - this book talks about many different ones for a real learning experience.

If you're moving to the D.C. area, this is a wonderful guide to have around in the weeks up to and during your move. It focuses a little too much on D.C. proper, and not quite enough on the Northern Virginia or suburban Maryland areas. There are some minor errors scattered here and there that could have been easily checked and corrected. And not wrong, but irksome: on the beigish-yellow portions of map 13, the Yellow Metrorail line is all but invisible. Smart thinking, Fodor's.

But the sheer amount of useful information in this book is staggering. The maps are clear, the neighborhood descriptions put me right in the middle of the bustling crowds, and the places and activities listed could keep me busy for a good five years without repeating anything.

If and when I move to D.C., this book is going to be creased and cracked and dog-eared in mere days. I'd also recommend it for people who are just traveling to the city for a few days.

Thank you Mr. Anglin for a comprehensive review of an area often visited and seldom appreciated. Central Washington is shrub-steppe and lacks the beauty and lustre of the more spectacular pine forests of the Cascades or the Puget Sound with its rugged pioneers. However, major waterways. springs and bunch grass concentrations helped direct traffic in and around the arid wilderness of the Columbia Basin. Anglin has been thorough in his research and methodical in his presentation of the various phases of transit. His level of detail has made me reach for the gazeteer or road map many times to envision a herd of 2000 cattle fording some stream or fighting off some Yakama warrior party. My only complaint was the rather small number of maps compared to the wealth of narrative.

This geologic history was originally a section in the "British Columbia: A Natural History" volume by the same authors. The chronology of events (docking of island terranes) that have assembled the current province is a fascinating story. Good job also on the role of Ice Age glaciers in sculpting the spectacular face of B.C. we enjoy today. This is a general presentation that helps make sense of a hugely complicated geologic history. But don't buy the book for specific roadside explanations of local geologic features, a la the "Roadside Geology" series. Such a geologic trip guide (were it available) would make the ideal companion for the Cannings' book on our next trip north!

This is a classic for anyone interested in the history of logging in the Pacific Northwest. Together with Andrews other companion book, "This Was Sawmilling" the reader will gain a great understanding how trees were harvest, transported to mills and converted into the resources which built this Country. There's hundreds of wonderful photos from the woods along with many contraptions which loggers created to make their tasks either easier or more likely, more productive. Can you imagine a raft 1000 feet long and 30 feet wide and deep made out of logs laced together with huge chains? These structures containing millions of board feet of trees would be created in the far Northwest and floated down the coast to San Diego, CA and further. There's photos in the book. There's a great photo of a logger standing on the top of a tree hundreds of feet in the air just after he has completed preparation for high-lead logging. The book is separated into geographic regions from British Columbia and each of the States of the Northwest. It has numerous poems written about loggers. (Please don't call them lumber-jacks. I never heard a man who works in the woods called a lumber-jack all my years going up in Oregon. Yet a recent TV show about the worlds most dangerous jobs constantly referred to them a lumber-jacks.) Distraction of this classic includes the lack of a table of contents, index, and the disconnect between the photos and the stories. Which is to be expected. Andrews rarely had photos of the people in the stories and vice versa. Why this short-comings. Superior Publishing printed many of these books by folks who simply wanted to document the hard work of others. Regardless whether it was logging, railroading, or shipping they were willing to publish the books. Thank goodness they did or we'd never have had these classics. If you have an interest in the history of logging this book will be a great addition to your collection.