I live within a hour or two of all these beautiful spots and am ashamed to have only visited a couple. We will use these gorgeous photos as a guidebook for the Spring, Summer and Fall to make certain we don't miss a one.

Why did I think I have to travel far for scenery of this caliber.?

While this is a book of wonderful travel photos that reveals the treasures in Upstaters' own backyards, it's more than that.
Doeffinger also provides an 8-page introduction to the geology that created these beauties and the history of their discovery and preservation, plus 4 pages of detailed photographic information--he works at Kodak, for whom he writes photography books. And there's a detailed map section showing all the locations and information on 10 publicly-accessible sites. These include hiking difficulty and time, directions (many of these falls are within State Parks and none say just "at the back of the parking lot"), with special highlights to look for.
I don't think it was meant to be anything beyond what it is: a handsome compilation of the somewhat homey pleasures that Upstate affords to day-trippers, family outings, and homesick ex-pats. It may be too poetic to be the scientific treatise Mordant1 was expecting, and apparantly not up to his photographic standards either, but he does offer some equally deep insights on modern music in his review of the latest Brittney Spears opus.

Splendid. The best of its kind. An exquisite ode to the subtle beauty of this region. This is a photographic essay of extraordinary depth, which whispers the gentle magic of upstate NY. Read it for the sheer love of nature and life, even if you are unfamiliar with this corner of the world.

most of the weed i.d. books i've seen are line drawings but this one (i assume by courtenay and zimmerman tho it doesn't say) is very good-nice clear pictures with easy quick info and many sub species are listed as well-sure wish i could buy this book to stock for my customers who are now growing wildflowers and have no clue which are flowers and which might as well be plucked from the area-

Everyone should have this book in their personal library. This is the best book I have ever seen on wild plant identification. I use it regularly to identify and know the difference between native wild plants and weeds making sure not to destroy the beneficial plants.

I have learned a lot about plant identification from this book and wish it was more available. Everyone I know would have a copy.

I do volunteer prairie restoration and this book is currently used by many people in the field. The people who use it a great deal say it is the best for plant ID. I have a list of 13 people who are looking for a copy of this book and it is highly recommended. Anyone know how to get 13 copies of this book or get the publisher to put it back in print?

P. Schulte Mokena IL

A hiking guide by the "elder statesman" Wind River mountain man. One of the highlights of this short book is the autobiographical sketch. Finis Mitchell has hiked the Wind Rivers since 1909, taken 105,345 pictures and has scaled 244 peaks. The book provides short descriptions of numerous hikes, gives directions to trailheads, and, for fishermen, describes the fish species that the lakes along the trails contain. Scattered throughout the book are poems and sayings by Mitchell. Only 144 pages long, the book lacks details found in other Wind River trail guides, but nonetheless is a gem.

Finis Mitchell is the real thing; a true nature lover who hiked the Wind River Range so many times, that he can actually give you landmark by landmark directions to hikes, fishing and scaling peaks. He has a no-nonsense wisdom paired with a poetic nature. The story of how he stocked many of the lakes with trout is fascinating. Very clear routes to Gannet and Dinwoody Pass.

Finis Mitchell (Author) is known as the ultimate authority on the Wind River Range (Wyoming). He began exploring the Wind Rivers as a teenager (1920s), later worked as a guide and outfitter there, planted most of the lakes with fish. Book is small (fits in backpack). Has maps (including USFS/USGS references), photos, very detailed written descriptions of trail systems in Wind Rivers. Marvelous detailed accounts of how he planted hundreds of lakes with Fish back in the 30s. Great detail on which trails are best for which purpose, etc. There are other, fancier, newer-style books on the Wind River Range, but only this book is written by a man who literally walked every single inch, scaled every peak, fished every lake in the entire range....the book is sort of a novelty item as well, in that it is actually printed in what looks like his original typewriter font...the maps are hand-drawn, but are actually more reliable in some ways that actual USGS maps of same area. FANTASTIC BOOK...A COLLECTORS ITEM..AND A VERY USEFUL TEXT AS WELL.

Throughout ten years of hiking the ALW, I have relied on this title for information about trails that I would otherwise not have found. (For that matter, tens of thousands of visitors a year could say the same thing.) --Denis Du Bois, webmaster, Base Camp (the Northwest Hiker's Site

i mean why do my friends keep stealing these spring and manning books from me cause their the best thats why these books are the bibles of hiking in washington state

This book is fantastic and has led me to a number of great hikes right outside my door. With the changing nature of the forest and continued harvesting, it is probably time for a new edition, a few of the trails don't exist quite like they once did.

Cloe wasn't always chunn, but she is still the best guide writer. Her knowledge of geology is especially helpful. Along with historical anecdotes, flora and fauna and well scripted trail detail, cloe's love of the maine woods shines through every page. Her book(s) are like our bible when we hike in Baxter Park and other Maine locales.

Tintin has set on another adventure in the country of Syldavia. This time Tintin, Captain Haddock, the Thompsons and Snowy fly to Syldavia to meet Professor Calculus on Lake Pollishoff, an artificial lake that has a curse on it. The trip is doomed from the start when Tintin & Co. barely survive a plane crash only to be saved by two Syldavian kids, Niko and Nushka. The crew meets Professor Calculus on the Villa Sproj on the lakeside but mysterious things happen when the group gets attacked by a frogman who is trying to steal an invention by Professor Calculus. Also in the story is Bianca Castifiore, her pianist Wagner and the ruthless Rastapopoulos. The color is a little dull compared to the other books and their is 44 pages instead of the normal 62 pages. I would only recommend this book to die-hard Tintin fans.

While talking about General Alcazar, the deposed president of the Republic of San Theodoros, Tintin and Captain Haddock literally run into him. This is more than mere coincidence, it is the beginning of another exciting adventure for our hero and his friends as it seems Alcazar is involved in buying armaments on the sly. However, Prince Abdullah has been sent by his father the Emir to stay with the good Captain to improve the young scamp's English. The Emir mentions that the situation is serious at home and when the headlines announce a coup d'etat in Khemed, Tintin decides to head there to find out if there is a connection between the rebel victory achieved by air power and the arms dealing he has discovered.

What makes "The Red Sea Sharks" one of the best Tintin adventures is that there are even more dastardly deeds being done by the bad guys this time around (involving "coke" smuggling). Hergé continues to explore the clash between Western and Near Eastern cultures as Captain Haddock has to wear a veil as a disguise and Snowy has a memorable encounter with a cheetah, while back home Professor Calculus and Nestor do their best to keep Prince Abdullah, ah, entertained. Hergé might have created an imaginative parallel world for Tintin's adventures, but they certainly echo serious real world concerns, and that is especially true of "The Red Sea Sharks." As an added pleasure, the good captain gets to vent time and time again at people who really deserve to be roundly cursed out, even by Haddock's peculiar collection of epithets.

This isn't one of the more exciting Three Investigators mysteries, but The Secret of Phantom Lake is still a great read for both young readers and adult 3I fans such as myself. There is not quite as much danger to the boys during the course of this investigation; they are accosted a few times and trapped in tight places once or twice, but the actions taken against them are clearly done just to slow them down rather than actually harm them. We hardly get a look inside the secret headquarters, my favorite childhood location, this time around because much of the action takes place around Phantom Lake just outside of Rocky Beach. This novel is your basic treasure hunt adventure; it all starts with an old sea chest, a false compartment in the chest, and mysterious journal entries from a dead man. If there is indeed a treasure, Jupiter knows he must work quickly because two suspicious and threatening men are also on the hunt for it. The supporting characters are not flushed out as well as I would have liked, and for this reason the surprise at the end failed to surprise me much at all. Still, I just love watching Jupiter's mind at work on solving a seemingly unsolvable mystery. This nineteenth book in the original series, written by prominent 3I author William Arden, does not contain the frenetic pace and throb of excitement that are to be found in the earlier novels of series creator Robert Arthur, but it's still a fun read sure to stimulate the mind in an attempt to figure everything out before Jupiter Jones does.

The Secret of Phantom Lake is a very interesting book. You'll never guess "Who Done it" until the end of the story. This is a must read book!

This book is for anyone who has wondered at the origins of a Petosky Stone or counted the layers in a cut of sedimentary rock. Holman wraps the most interesting aspects of geology, geography, paleontology, and anthropology into a single comprehensive picture of ancient Michigan, readily understood by anyone with interest. Coral reefs, 30 million years of tree growth with no animal intervention, and giant land tortoises all share a common history in Michigan. Holman takes you back, way back, and then just like the sedimentary rocks of the Great Lakes Basin, builds layers of interesting and entertaining information as you journey forward in time. Read this book, and I guarantee that the next time you climb Castle Rock or hear the call of a loon, you will be filled with just a bit more awe.

Pleistocene megafauna lived in my home state until appproximately 8,000 years ago. I am currently working on a possible trade book in the area. Holman's book has proven invaluable as a research text and resource material. It is well organized, well written, and entertaining.
While Paleozoic life in Michigan is not high on my list of interests, I believe anyone so inclined would apply my assessment to that topic as well. A must read for the paleontology buff.

I have read all of Thesman's books but this one so far left me thinking for days. This story will never put you to sleep because there is so much suspense in it. You want to get to the end as soon as possible because you want to know the climax but as soon as you reach the end you wish it shouldn't have ended. It has an emotional yet heartbreaking ending but I really liked it.

I thought that this was an excellent book. Jean Thesman never makes the romantic relationships in her books the main point, but they are always such a big part and this is no exception. Jocelyn has so many problems in life and we see how sometimes she creates them for herself, but Baily always sticks with her and it's heartwarming yet heartbreaking how the whole situation unfolds.

A Personal Dilemma

This book that l have read is very good and is true. I recommend this book to people because this story has happened to some of the people that l know. My name is Elizabeth Claustro, I'm 17 years old and l live in Harbor City, CA. To tell you the true this book never made me stop reading because you keep reading and surprising things come up. It's like when l want to get to the end as soon as possible you want to know what's going to happen. When l got to the end of the story l wish it shouldnÕt have ended because it's so heart breaking.

There is a rape in this story and complications. Summerspell is the name of the cabin in the woods. Jocelyn spent the best summers of her life there. When Jocelyn runs away a school classmate Baily follows her to a crumbling old cabin. He goes to protect her because, he dont wont anything to happen to her. Jocelyn runs away because her brother-in -law. Gerald has sexually harassing her. When sheÕs in danger she goes to the cabin to spend the weekend alone until her grandparents came. When she returns to the cabin. Where she spent happy summers with her grandparents. She could be safe. Baily's left her in the cabin when spider had arrive because he had something to hide. Jocelyn live with her grandparents and she had any more problems and she was all alone after that. You should try to get this book because it's very intesting and good.

the gifts and the defects of age have always fascinated me, and this gripping story of rebuilding and building a house, a life, a relationship and a loving restingplace, at a mature age, in the little-written-about society of contemporary Hungary, in a village little changed since medieval times, was a page-turner for me. It's one of those books which make you like people more - all the people in it, even the most tardy and inefficient workman. It is infused with the plucky, anxious, wonderfully open-to-happiness personality of its heroine, the writer, and has a strong, silent hero in her husband. A pro-life book, in every sense

THIS OLD HOUSE BY THE LAKE had me laughing and crying! It is a real and personal story of trial and triumph. And at its most important level, it is a story of love -- the kind of love for which we all hope! In an earlier age, the author's husband might have found a place in Carlyle's Heroes and Hero-Worship! An enriching experience in reading.

This book is highly entertaining, and gives an insight about the sensitive soul of the author. Her intelligent perception of events, and her elegant style , humor and wit, make this book top reading material. It is refreshing to read a book, without sex or crime, as she proves, that this is not necessary to keep the reader spellbound.