This atlas was an indespensable tool for our first time adventure cruising the San Juans. More convienient than a large, full sized chart. This is going to be an annual trip for us. (with this atlas.)

Greg Kanne

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!

This early book by Kozloff provides a helpful overview of the nearshore marine life of the Pacific Northwest. It is now quite dated though. It is not, however, as good as his more recent book, "Seashore Life of the Northern Pacific Coast : An Illustrated Guide to Northern California, Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia" Paperback (November 1983)

I recommend that you seek out the latter book if you are looking for a good field guide to the ecology of marine inverbrate and other nearshore organisms of the Pacific NW.

Good News! Everyone that has an interest in the history of what arguably is the most beautiful mountain range in the United States, the San Juan's in southwestern Colorado, will be delighted to know that the University Press of Colorado has issued an updated version of Duane Smith's 1982 masterpiece. The beauty of this book is that it combines impeccable scholarship from a preeminent Colorado historian with a reader friendly style that results in a wonderful book both for the general reader interested in the urban and mining history of the San Juan's and the more studious reader seeking the definitive history of the period. The San Juan's were, and may be again, one of the great mining regions of Colorado as well as the United States. One cannot discuss the history of the myriad towns in and around the San Juan's without knowing about the mining history, as they are so interrelated as to be one. This book records the development of the mountains from 1860 to World War I. The author stated his purpose in writing the book was to study the mines and people who worked in the mines and lived in the camps, some of which turned into present day towns that now depend on tourists rather than ore for their existence. It is truly an incredible story of the settlement of southwestern Colorado. It's all here. The story of the removal of the Ute Indians from their land so that the "gold fever" in the San Juan's could be treated; the opening of mines such as Camp Bird, Golden Fleece, Golden Chicken, Tomboy, Neglected, May Day and Yankee Girl as well as hundreds of others; the settlement of towns such as Ouray, Ophir, Telluride, Silverton, Durango, Animas City, Creede, Lake City, and Leadville and a host of others that are now little more than ghost towns. The story of the individual miners and their work and living conditions is worth the price of the book alone. In addition, you will meet Otto Mears, Horace Tabor, Dave Wood and a multitude of others that individually, and collectively, contributed to the heyday of the San Juan's as a mining region. In additional to a fact-filled book on virtually every facet of mining there are 99 photos and an index. This is the best book yet published on the mines and people that worked them in the San Juan Mountains from 1860-1914. Anyone remotely interested in the general history of Colorado or the specific history of the majestic San Juan's will find this book a delight. The University Press of Colorado is to be commended for making the book available in such a reader friendly format.

This is the story of the confrontation between the pre-Civil War United States and the leading power of the day, Great Britain. What momentous event almost caused these two nations to fight a war? The death of a pig. Known as "The Pig War" in Washington state, this almost war is little known in the rest of the states. One of the more interesting side issues of the Pig War is the fact that it was the last military assignment for George Pickett before he resigned his commission to join the Confederacy. Pickett would later become famous for leading the charge on the third day of the Battle of Gettysburg.

This book is a good introduction for beginners to the history of not only the Pig War, but also the history of the San Juan Islands (where the confrontation took place) and Washington state. For scholars, however, the book's style and lack of depth will be a distinct drawback.

Beware, although the descriptions of the actual hikes are average, the directions given to the trailheads are terrible!

I used this book to climb Mt. Handies, Redcloud, Sunshine, and Sneffels (all 14,000' peaks) and was utterly confused on how to find the trailheads! Located in the Alpine Loop that connects Ouray, Silverton, and Telluride, we spent many precious hours searching in four-wheel drive terrain for the trailheads. In the end, the trailhead was a simple location and could have been described in a much better way. The result was that we nearly ended up stuck in the mountains due to running out of gas! We only made it because of a kind stranger.

To Pixler's credit, the description of the actual hikes are good, although the distances seemed consistently off. I especially appreciated a few hints on shortcuts for the Redcloud hike, as it saved about a mile and a half of hiking!

There are definitely better books out there, but this will do if you can't find anything else.

As the other review states, this is the classic SW Colorado hiking guide.

One caveat: the difficulty ratings are for SW Colorado climbs *compared to each other*. I have run across many tourists on trails in the San Juans who tackled a "moderate" climb from the book only to find it extremely difficult.

I think the ratings are accurate, *if* you live in the area and hike regularly. If you're not used to altitude and not in good shape, take this into consideration.

Since I've moved to Durango, a ratty copy of the 2nd edition of this book from the public library has been my hiking bible. The 3rd edition is completely revised, chock full of great maps and is really THE reference for day hikes and backpacking trips in the Durango/Silverton area.

If you're visiting or living in Southern Colorado, you need this book.

Thanks Paul!

This book sounds wonderful--a pictoral view of ferry travel to and from San Juan Island. I was hoping for a coffee-table type book, something that would show out of town friends the beauty and charm of the San Juan Islands and ferry travel. I was very disappointed when the book arrived--it's small, has a low-budget look to it, and has captions that don't explain the photos. Furthermore, the captions themselves are irritating, painful attempts by the writer (the photographer's wife) to sound "artsy". Yuck.

I was also disappointed in the quality of the photos. The Washington State ferrys have some very unique features that would be perfect subjects for some detailed close-ups, with equally detailed explanations/captions, but none of these were included (aside from the cover photo, which was the best one in the book). I wouldn't recommend this book. Bottom line: Disappointing. Doesn't do the subject justice.

Illahee, Nisqually, Kaleetan.
Hyak, Hiyu, Elwha, Chelan.

These are the names of some of the ferries that take people to and between the Pacific Northwest's San Juan Islands. The words evoke an earlier tribal time that can almost be felt while riding on blue-gray salt water between glacier-flattened rocks and evergreen hills. Ferry passengers find themselves grounded to the earth in such a way that water, rock, trees, sky, sun, wind, and rain are no longer backdrops to life, but life itself. Nature dominates awareness, and people respond by visibly relaxing, smiling more, sleeping, meditating, reading, talking with friends, and anticipating adventures to come.

Island resident Robert Demar's beautiful black-and-white photographs capture the elusive, magical atmosphere surrounding these north Puget Sound "Nautical Highways". He pictures foot passengers, commuters from Seattle, cycling and motorcycling weekenders, trucks supplying the needs of island life, kids playing on deck, ferry crews tending to business, and curious and hungry seagulls. Aerial shots place the ferries and their graceful, contoured wakes into a larger but still other-worldly context.

Robin Atkins' impressionistic commentary provides a verbal tone poem that compliments the mood of Robert's artistry. Together, words and pictures recreate a Northwest ferry experience almost as much fun and restorative as the real thing.

I've been a resident of Puget Sound for 30 years and the San Juan Islands for the past 14 years. Looking at the photos of the ferries and island moments brings so many memories to mind. The people, the fog, the water, the gulls, the boats--as we call them--our transportation to the mainland. Robert has captured the images so well. And, Robin's comments, hykiu like, help support the photos. My mother, who can no longer travel from the East Coast, enjoyed the book very much. She always loved the ferry rides. Once you step onto our ferries and begin the trip into the islands, the busyness of the mainland is left behind.
Robert's photos help one to step into island life if only in our memories.

Unfortunately, this book promises a lot more than it delivers. For example, in its preface, it mentions several families of potters at Acoma named Lewis not related to Lucy Lewis, but they are not even mentioned. Even the section on the family of Lucy Lewis is barely 2 pages. The author for the most part barely skims the surface. I desperately wanted to like this book, but the more I read it, the more I saw was lacking. For one thing, it seriously needed a much better editor. It reads like a grade school student's social studies report, and it is filled with typos, the worst being that many of the photo captions are wrong because the photos were flipped and the captions were not corrected. A major disappointment for the price. Fortunately I bought it in paperback! It did have some good information, but it could have and should have had much more.

This book is an excellent resource if you are interested in collecting pottery from all peublos as well as a variety of families. Although not quite as in depth as Rick Dillingmham's Fourteen Families, she does mention many families that he does not.

AND IF YOU ARE EXPECTING "BIG THINGS", YOU'LL BE DISAPPOINTED. THIS IS A VERY SMALL BOOK, AND IF YOU HAVE EVER STOOD ATOP A MOUNTAIN IN THE SAN JUANS YOU WILL BE DISAPPOINTED. THE PICTURES ARE "SMALL". VERY SMALL!!

THE POETRY IS FOR SOMEONE THAT APPRECIATES THE POETRY OF THE COFFEE HOUSES IN TELLURIDE, AND WHILE I AM SURE THERE IS A GREAT MANY PEOPLE THAT WOULD APPRECIATE IT IF YOU ARE LONGING TO SEE SIGHTS OF THE MOUNTAINS OF COLORADO, AND WANTING A SENSE OF THE MOUNTAIN STREAM AS IT RIPPLES IT WAY TO THE VALLEY BELOW, OR TO BE REMINDED OF THE COOL MOUNTAIN BREEEZE AS IT CARESSES YOUR CHEEK THIS IS NOT GOING TO FILL THE BILL.

What a wonderful little gift size book to give or keep for yourself. Although a little pricey,(typical of first efforts/small publishers) it is beautifully designed and a nice volume to keep by your reading chair or on your desk. And yes (to previous reviewer), it is all around - very Telluride. Such a mixture of poetry and photography speaks to the reader of persons truly in love with their surroundings, as many who live in Telluride are. It is, nowadays, a place of priviledge. For those of us without the priviledge to be there, we are still priviledged in this book to have a peek at theirr surroundings unmarred by festival crowds and crooned to privately by one of it's local poets. This book was a recent 2001 Willa award finalist and I have heard tell of another book from these women in the works. A good pairing, each complimenting the other's specialty. I look forward to more beautiful books from them.

Mickey Newbury, famed singer, songwriter, and poet has said that one can make some mistakes with words when writing a book. The sheer vastness of the words will allow for some mistakes. Not so with song writing or poetry. With these you must be precise and every word must say what it means and mean what it says. Rosemerry Trommer has obviously listened to this advice. If You Listen is a collection of exquisite poetry and stunning photographs of an area of the United States unmatched in its beauty, both physical and aural. The San Juan Mountains of southern Colorado have had their share of advocates over the years but none to match that of Rosemerry Trommer and Eileen Benjamin. Where to start? well, first, the poetry is awesome. If you want to experience the sounds of the mountains from a master that carefully selects every word, then read "this mountain knows secrets" or "the trail more traveled" or, my favorite, "if you listen." But then there are tributes to the San Miguel River, Aspens, Wildflowers, and a host of other natural phenomeon's that all have distinct messages...if you listen. One interesting feature of this poetry is it actually sounds as good read aloud as to yourself. Thus, read some of this poetry to a friend and watch as they react to its clarity, charm, and simply wonderful message. Then, as a bonus, show them the photographs. Ah, the photographs. In a word, they are "magnificent." This should have been published as a coffee-table type book. The pictures of Priest Lake and the San Miguel River are as good as they get. I know this may be read with some skepticism but Benjamin's photographs are as good as Ansel Adams and others of his caliber. It is amazing this book is as reasonably priced as it is. If you buy only one poetry book this year, make it this one. You will be getting a book written by one of the premier poet's of the southwest along with unbelievable photographs by a first rank photographer, all wrapped up in a hard-bound package at an affordable price.

Remember, read these poems to a friend and watch them listen.

Mr. Yorgason may know his Mormon history but he sure blew it with the rest of this story. His credits claim that he has degrees in history but it's more than obvious that he didn't bother to use anything he learned about researching the subject before he put this one together! He's used one reference (and we all know which one it is)without bothering to authenticate any of the details and, unfortunately, he's so far off the money that he took much more than "literary license" with a story that was confusing enough already. Now he'll have even more people mixed up about what happened since some obviously can't separate fact and fiction. How would Civil War buffs like it if an author moved the date of the Gettysburg fight by a month!!

This is an excellent book and I liked the story line, but I found the author to be lacking in his ability to use simple descriptive words. This made it difficult to keep up with the story. I don't mind stretching my vocabulary some, but there were times these unusual words caused me to drift from the story. Like I said, I did like the story itself, except for the female lead character repeating her efforts to repent of her sins. It became a little boring there. But overall I give it 4 stars...A good book. I will buy book 3 when it come out.