This is an easy to read book about the Great Northern Railway. The book covers the history of the railroad in great looking black and white photos. But if you wan't a lot of information on the railroad, this is not the book for you. The pages are very spaciuos with generally one or two photos on each page and a total of about 15 pages of text. With that in mind I can really recommend the book. It's a great way to spark an interest about the Great Northern Railway.

Among other things, this has a nice section on the political history of Portland. It gives a nice synopsis of how we became the progressive mecca we are today. Anybody interested in local politics might be interested in this book.

A good book, I've just recently read it for a class I'm taking in religious anthropology at the University of Ottawa. The book gives a good account of the historical European aproach to cannibalism on the West Coast. It is primarily concerned with the findings of ethnographer Franz Boas and it seeks to refute some of the claims made by Arens and his theories on the man-eating myth. The book details the Hamatsa ceremony and talks about the stigma surrounding cannibalism. The book is not an ethnography, but is more of a critical review of other ethnographic and historical accounts. At the end of the book, McDowell writes of how the ideas of the Hamatsa ceremony can serve our Western culture.

I have the 5th Edition of this book, but, this can only be better I hope.

It is a very personal review of the states and what they have to offer and as opposed to other books that are just boring and incomprehensible listings of attractions and dining and lodging .
I actually went to some of the dining and hidden attraction recommendations from this book and it didn't fail me. All those places were certainly what the book said they would be or maybe more than that.

The only drawback i can see is that there wasnt any mention of good campgrounds that car-campers could easily refer to. But for that, you can look up "the best in tent camping".

Good Luck with your trips. I know mine was a great success.

Photos make this book more valuable than any list of hot springs. Cool Trails recommends this guide for hikers who want to relax in a hot spring at the end of a long hike. Many of the hot springs in the northwest are developed to some degree, and very few of the wild springs are far enough from a road to be considered "hikes." Still, most are located in areas rich in trail hiking opportunities. Covers AK, BC, AB, WA, MT, OR, ID, WY and some other areas of the US.

Each travel series (Insight, Frommer, Lonely Planet, etc.) has its own emphasis and style. The strength of the Insight guides is its overview of a particular region, in this case the Pacific Northwest area of the United States. You won't find extensive lists of hotels and restaurants in this book; instead, you'll be given a written and photographic tour through Washington and Oregon, from Seattle to Portland, from Mount St. Helens to Mount Hood, along the coast, into the mountains, and across the Columbia Basin. The guide supplies a short history of the area (short, but more comprehensive than most guides) as well as the "personalities" of contemporary cities. You'll find a section on the wine-making regions and one on the John Day Fossil Beds. National and state parks are covered as well. The color photographs, included on almost every page, shows the varied landscapes in with a true eye for aesthetics. An extremely small section at the back addresses much of what the bulk of the guide lacks: festivals, hotels and restaurants (no descriptions, just addresses and phone numbers),how to get there, major attractions, and other brief travel tips.

I recommend this book for travelers as a preparation for a trip to the Pacific Northwest or for those who have not yet decided if this region is for them. You'll need a more nuts-and-bolts guidebook to accompany it for more practical considerations such as detailed entries about lodging, maps, places to shop, and restaurants.

The story of Vancouver's voyage to the Pacific North West is one of much hardship, persistance and determination. John Naish tells the story of the voyage by cross referencing the journals and diaries of four of the key players in this expedition. Taken individualy the journals are a great read themselves but when used to collaborate or just to fill in blanks it results in a very pleasant read. It takes the reader into the world of 1791-1795 in such a way that we can forget, briefly, what we have today and imagine the world during the times of the French Revolution and the emergence of America as a nation.

I loved growing up a Patches Pal with JP Patches, Gertrude and the rest. This book if full of pictures and memories as well as great behind the scenes stories.
Like others who are quoted in the story, meeting JP Patches was a thrill in my life. Glancing through the book I started to read it and ended up reading it in one sitting; it was wonderful but could have been longer!!![.]
If you grew up in the Seattle area in the 50's - 70's you'll enjoy this book.
We love you JP Patches! (I rated this 4 rather than 5 stars as I wanted the book to be longer.)

Lewis and Clark get all the acclaim, but we should not forget that Mackenzie made it overland to the Pacific first. Mackenzie's account is every bit as fascinating, exciting, and at times harrowing as Lewis and Clark's. I most enjoyed the detailed descriptions of Canada's natives and Mackenzie's dealings with them. I was also fascinated by the daily hardships of the voyageurs who accompanied Mackenzie and made this long canoe trip possible. Like most old travel diaries, there are many lattitude/longitude details that become tiresome to the geographical novice. However, the excellent footnotes in this edition make the reader aware of the modern day towns and landmarks that Mackenzie passed. Many times the footnotes got me through some of the more dull passages in the book. I would heartily recommend this exciting account to anyone who enjoys early accounts of American and Canadian exploration and travel.

Relied on this book to plan an eight day kayaking/camping trip through the San Juans. While the book does not lay out extended trips (other than short overnighters), it was very simple to use a chart in conjunction with this book to plan our extremely successful trip. If you are going to paddle the San Juans on your own (i.e. not as part of an organized group), they buying and referring to this book is a must!