2 comments about A Guide to New Jersey's Revolutionary War Trail for Families and History Buffs.

1. New Jersey has been called the great "Crossroads of the American Revolution" because of its important strategic location between New York and Philadelphia, a fact well recognized by George Washington when he based his military headquarters in Morristown. This significance is superbly portrayed in DiIonno's Guide by numerous and fascinating vignettes detailing the locations, some now forgotten, of the events that shaped our country's history. For American Revolution history buffs, especially those interested in New Jersey history, this book is a real page turner.

   As a kid growing up in New Jersey I had only been taught the basics of what happened here during the Revolution. I had heard the names and stories of famous places like Trenton, Princeton, or Morristown. But these were only the tip of the iceberg. After reading the guide I was surprised to discover that New Jersey is filled with countless places, events, and people connected to the Revolution that have somehow been forgotten by the history books.

   For example, does anyone today know about the Battle of Springfield from which the classic image of Patriots skirmishing with Redcoats comes from? Or about the infamous Baylor massacre? Or the retreat of the American Army through Bergen County that inspired Thomas Paine? And what about names like Erskine, Lord Stirling, and Reverend Caldwell? And lets not forget George Washington's Secret Weapon!

   These stories are here in this book and they make for a great read. After reading several pages I was inspired to seek out these places and view them firsthand. Exact locations are provided in the guide. In fact, I learned that several of them were right in my own backyard. Down the street from where I live are places once occupied by Washington, Lafayette, and Cornwallis.

   The book is also the perfect reference guide for a family or school fieldtrip. Seems to me like a great way to get kids interested in American History... or anyone else for that matter.

   So go buy a copy and "Give em the Watts boys!"




2. First off, I am not History Buff nor do I have kids, but this book is very cool anyway...
   
   When you think of the revolutionary war, you think of Virginia, Massachusetts and Philadelphia. But New Jersey is just as important and in many ways more important than those states, however because it is so corporate and developed, you would never know this.
   
   The author does a great job of telling the story of the "unsung hero" of the revolutionary war (NJ).
   
   Whereever you are in NJ, there is a good chance there is a piece of history not too far - in fact, I live in Franklin Park and work in Warren and there are many places covered in his book that I had no idea existed that are a stones throw from both my office and my home.
   For example there is a house that dates back to the early 1700's that is at the end of a road right across from the National Starch and Chemical world HQ's that is at the end of an industrial road. Seeing it is very surreal - this is the only second place in his book I have gone to see so far, but I plan on going to many more (and hopefully dragging my fiance as well).
   
   Overall anyone who is interested in american history and who lives in or around NJ, this book is no doubt a must have.

4 comments about Hiking Wisconsin (America's Best Day Hiking Series).

1. I am happy to own this guide. I particularly like to be able to review the different places where I can go hiking before I go, so I know I am making a wise choice. It has information for biking, boating, etc. It does not have information for cross-country skiing, however.

   One thing I really like is that it tells you about different stops along the trails, so you can use this to make sure you have not deviated from the trail.




2. This book was originally recommended to me by some hikers at an EMS. I've now been to a couple of places discussed in the book, and I've found that it gives a good sense of what's going on at the places described in the sense of what sorts of terrain, etc that you might encounter.

   But it seems to only mention a SMALL subset of the possible hikes in an area. For example at the Kettle Moraine park (Southern Unit) it failed to mention that most of the trails have longer and more difficult variations. And it didn't mention going up to the top of a hill, where you can see the entire park.

   Still, this is the best reference on hiking in Wisconsin in this format.




3. I purchased 11 books on hiking, camping, and touring in Wisc. Of these books that I purchased, this book is the best for hiking (4 of the 11 books were on hiking.)

   It is especially good if you:

   - don't know Wisc too well (I grew up in Wisc, so am very familiar with Wisc, but I never paid attention to the names of the incredibly wonderful places my folks took us to when I was a kid, which was a big mistake.)

   - want to go on the best hikes

   This book has the best hikes (when compared to the other hiking books I bought.)

   It's a great book for the first-time hiker or for a hiker that doesn't know the hikes in Wisc. I wish I had bought this book ten years ago when I first wanted to hike with friends in Wisc. Ten years ago, I purchased "Guide to Wisconsin Outdoors" and "Wisconsin Handbook", which weren't right for me at the time (even though both are excellent books) because they weren't for hikers, but more for folks that wanted to drive through an area and know what the cities have to offer in way of entertainment and amentities. Those two books, while absolutely perfect for folks who prefer to either drive through, do indoor activitity, and learn about an area's local amenities (which can be important information), they set me back several years on my goal to get up to speed on hiking in Wisc. I needed a hiking book.

   So, I finally found this book. I bought other books on hiking (4 of them), but I liked this the best. Now that I know more about the areas I went to as a kid, I now know that this book lists the best areas for hiking. All of the best hiking areas we went to as kids are in this book (except one, which is a not so well-known area that our family would go to - but none of the other hiking books I bought listed it either.)

   I want to mention the cons of the book, so you know what's missing and so you know what you may need to find elsewhere. When you travel to a faraway location, it's a good idea to know the local amenities of the area (restaurants, etc.). This book doesn't have that information. However, I would definitely not buy a book that tries to cover both hiking and amenities in one book because that's what I did ten years ago and that method failed me because I ended up not getting the hiking information I needed (other info got crowded out by the info on amenities) so I ended up not hiking in Wisc for several years as a result because I was stalled on it - I didn't have the info I needed and I didn't know how to get the information from faraway. I was in Washington at the time (majestic views but not as peacefully pastorial as beautiful Wisc), and back then, you couldn't find the books you needed online like you can now.

   So, I suggest buying Hiking Wisconsin and finding the hiking locations through it, and then figure out amenities through other sources (the other two books that I mentioned do a good job on amenities, though I wouldn't recommend them for hiking.) Also, triple AAA covers amenities for free (but a bit too briefly when compared to the two books I mentioned.)

   If you are an experienced hiker that has already gone on more than 75 different hikes in Wisc, most likely this book will be a repeat for you since it covers the top 100 hikes.

   I liked this book because it has the best hikes. It was important to me to find the beautiful locations my parents took us to when we were kids (my Dad knew some really good areas.) Those were great places and created great memories for me. So, I just didn't want to go to any place that simply had a so-so hike - I wanted it to be special and see something that moved me as much as the hikes moved me when I was a kid.

   So, if your goal is to find the best areas to hike, I'd buy this book.




4. Hiking Wisconsin was my first encounter with the "America's Best Day Hiking" series. After this experience, I hope I have more encounters with this series in the future.

   This book possesses all of the attributes of a well-written guide. There are 55 hiking destinations described here, and a couple of trails are described at each destination. The destinations are scattered throughout the state, but there is a noticably higher concentration in the south than in the north. Also, the last 9 hikes are grouped in a category entitled "urban," which for this author means Milwaukee and Green Bay.

   Each hike features a map (they appear to be computer-generated), difficulty ratings from 1 boot (easiest) to 4 boots (most difficult), directions to the trailhead, and an excellent, detailed description of the trail. There is also a summary table in the front of the book, so choosing a trail to hike is very easy.

   Trail lengths range from 0.7 miles to 14.5 miles with the average at only 2 or 3 miles. This is, in my opinion, the greatest drawback of this book. Too many of the hikes described here are short nature hikes. For experienced hikers (such as myself), 2 miles counts as a warm-up; we expect more out of a hike. I know that longer options are availible at many of these locations. Thus, the author frequently makes the unusual choice of describing two short trails over a longer, meatier, more interesting one. This is the only reason I cannot give the book 5 stars.

   The book itself is unusual because it measures 8.5x11 inches, quite large by hiking book standards. To compensate, the publisher has made the pages perforated so you can tear them out as opposed to take the entire book with you on a hike. I don't view this as a good alternative. If your desk looks like mine, the pages are better off in the book so that they don't get lost. This is not a major problem, but the design is unusual, and I thought it should be noted.

   In conclusion, despite the drawbacks mentioned above, this is still the best, most complete guide to Wisconsin hiking on the market. As such, I would recommend it for purchase to anyone interested in learning more about Wisconsin hiking.

5 comments about Alaska.

1. Alaska is a harsh environment with fantastic resources, and the stories of the people who chose to go to Alaska to harvest those riches make for a compelling, epic novel. The characters vary from the early hunters, to the Russian traders, to gold rushers, to the oil drillers, and on and on, but the theme is clear: Alaska punishes and rewards those who make their lives there.
   
   Going on a trip to Alaska? You'll enjoy it much more with an understanding of the history of the Great Land, and there's no better way to absorb history than through great storytelling like Michener's.



2. An absolutely amazing "read" that has kept me up too many late nights. Very well written with excellent historical research and such wonderful character development that it is hard to remember that it is fiction. I will be sorry when it is finished (only a few more evenings.)



3. "Alaska" is a well-researched, well-told, 900-page story of the exploration and settlement of our nation's 49th state, with a characteristically Michener-like blend of fact with fiction, breathing life into an otherwise-dry train of historical events: geologic beginnings with "clashing terranes" a billion years ago, the first human settlers who wandered eastward from Eurasia 14,000 years ago when glaciation raised the polar ice caps and exposed a land bridge connecting present-day Alaska and Siberia, Vitus Bering's exploratory voyages sponsored by Peter the Great in the 1700s, Russia's controversial $7.2 million sale of Alaska to the U.S. in 1867, the Yukon and Nome gold rushes of the late 1890s, the establishment of salmon canneries in Alaska's southeast by profiteering Seattle-based companies in the early 1900s, the government-supported "seeding" of Matanuska Valley through relocation of starving settlers from Minnesota during the Depression years, the entanglement of the Aleutian Islands in battles against the Japanese during World War II, Alaska's political fight for statehood in 1958, and the impact of the discovery of Prudhoe Bay oil on the lives of North Slope native Alaskans through the 1980s (book published in 1988). True to form, Michener weaves together ostensibly disparate events into a captivating, colorful parade of multi-generational characters, often so endearing that you'll want to cheer and cry alongside these memorable pioneers in their courageous and spirited struggle to eke out a living from, understand and exploit Alaska's harsh and wild, expansive and endlessly enticing, resource-rich and rewarding frontier.
   
   Superlatives aside, compared to Michener's "Hawaii" (published in 1959), I find "Alaska" to carry a weaker, less hopeful message. "Hawaii" establishes a powerful, encouraging theme of how cultural diversity--despite our being inevitably encumbered by parochial beliefs, social prejudice and economic avarice--has the very real potential to "bear new fruit." On the other hand, "Alaska" unfortunately fails to lift humanity higher. In their unbounded greed for otter and seal skins, early Russian merchants turn native men into their slaves, while abusing and raping native women. With few exceptions, American whalers are ethically no better, devastating entire native villages through exploitative sale of rum and guns. During the gold rush, lawless settlers from the mainland U.S. selfishly bend mining rules in their own favor, stripping away claims from Norwegians, Siberians, Eskimos and others who got there first. Seattle businessmen extract tons of salmon from Alaskan waters, offering neither employment nor compensation to the native people. Even when oil taxes bring wealth to native Eskimos and Indians, the intricacies of the Settlement Act allow lawyers and accountants from the "lower 48" to line their own pocketbooks by charging exorbitant rates for professional services, effectively pilfering assets from the native people. Ultimately, it seems that, although natives now have their snowmobiles and opportunities that college education offers, they remain lost between the "native" and "modern" worlds, unable to derive adequate fulfillment from either and, too often, sadly resorting to alcoholism and suicide to escape from their emotionally devastating dilemma.
   
   In the last section of the novel, the debate between the two lawyers, Jeb Keeler and Poley Markham, while mountain goat hunting, reveals Michener's sentiment: Jeb speaks out for helping Alaskan natives retain their ownership of land and maintain a subsistence lifestyle, while Poley is eager to "pick them off" for his own personal profit when natives on the verge of bankruptcy become forced to liquidate their corporate assets to pay off accumulated debt. When an unexpected submarine earthquake unleashes a massive tsunami, Poley succeeds in scrambling up the mountainside, while Jeb is consumed by the swiftly retreating waters and washed out to sea, issuing a final cry: "Go it, Poley. You win!" Interpretation: in with the new and exploitative, out with the old and traditional--whether we like it or not. In the 30 years between the publication of "Hawaii" and "Alaska," did Michener's youthful optimism darken into a more pessimistic realism, or is the ending of "Alaska" just not as carefully composed? The optimist in me suggests that Michener rushed into delivering a half-baked ending to "Alaska," when he could have (and should have!) put more effort into reaching a more profound conclusion. From Michener, the masterful writer of historical fiction, I would expect a message with more far-reaching impact, particularly after all the years of research and drafting that certainly went into the novel's production.



4. it's a wonderful book that I have read before and have always wanted to own!!!



5. First, let me announce my bias: I was born and raised in Alaska.
   
   When I saw this novel on the bookshelves when it first came out, I promised myself I'd read it even tho I had never read anything by Michener. Well, some 20 years later, I finally read it. And -- boy! -- do I wish I hadn't waited so long. It's a long book (close to 1,000 pages) and I was so engrossed that I almost lost sight of the real world for the duration.
   
   Of course, being from Alaska helps. I could orient myself geographically with little trouble. I had the broad outlines of the history already. And the historical names were almost all familiar to me if not the details of their lives.
   
   But what Michener did which I most appreciate about his novel is painlessly impart the details of history by interweaving it so tightly with his colorful fiction that it was hard for me during the reading to separate the two. Yet I'm sure I know what is historical and what isn't. It's a contradiction, I know. And a compliment to this man's storytelling skill.
   
   I let out a satisfied "whew!" when I closed the book a final time and returned to reality. Then I suffered withdrawal symptoms for days, maybe weeks. I found myself gazing wistfully at some of his other large works in the bookstores. Did you know there's no Michenerholics Anonymous? I've just begun reading THE SOURCE. I couldn't help myself.

2 comments about Roadtripping USA 2nd Edition: The Complete Coast-to-Coast Guide to America (Roadtripping USA).

1. If you want to make every mile count, take this guide on your next trip around the USA. It explores America's classic routes (Route 66, the Lewis and Clark Historic Trail) and off the freeway routes. Travel down these blue highways to find some things you won't find on speedy, but mind-numbing interstates.
   This book includes tips, maps, sights and leads you to great offbeat places to eat. Forget the fast food and find the real America with this heavy-duty guide.



2. Having travelled all over the USA by automobile, I was disappointed at the paucity of information and the highly selective coverage in this book. I had hoped to obtain an update, and more comprehensive coverage of all 50 states. I found it too selective with major ommissions by state (e.g. Kentucky has no entries at all) and smaller to mid-size communities such as Champaign, Illinois, or the beautiful Rock River valley of NW Illinois are conspicuous by their absence.
   
   Most disturbing is this. I live in the Greater Houston, TX, area, and read the authors' motel recommendation on US-59. Not only is that motel and immediate area known for being a place of constant drug raids, but also it is a major area of known street prostitution and that motel seems to house them. I hardly consider that "family friendly".

5 comments about Walking the Blue Ridge: A Guide to the Trails of the Blue Ridge Parkway, Third Edition.

1. The Blue Ridge Parkway, almost 450 miles long, connects Shennandoah National Park in Virginia with Great Smoky Mountains National Park astride the North Carolina - Tennessee border. In between it traverses some of the most beautiful mountain areas in North Carolina and Virginia. Although it provides splendid views from the road itself and from its many roadside overlooks, it is much more than a scenic drive. It is a ribbon of land administered by the National Park Service, at several places broadening into wider mini-parks. All of those parks as well as various other spots along the parkway's route have hiking trails that give visitors a closer look at the many natural wonders there. This book, as a comprehensive guide to those trails, is the one most indispensable guide to getting beyond your car and the overlooks in this remarkable National Park Service land. All of its official trails are rated in this book as to difficulty, from very easy to quite strenuous. Thus there are ample hikes for whatever level of wilderness adventure you're up for. Each hike is described in details, with points of interest described in the order you'll encounter them, with mileages to each from the trailhead. Some hikes described herein also get beyond the parkway's own lands, into National Forest lands that border the parkway in many places, as well as occasional adjacent commercial attractions such as Grandfather Mountain. Any visit to the Blue Ridge Parkway should be quite rewarding, and this book is one of the best resources for making it even more so, showing that you'll never be very far from places to park and take a walk for a more intimate view. And you definitely should sample at least some of the shorter and easier walks, if not the longer or more challenging ones, depending on what you're up to. This parkway is a natural treasure well-worth exploring, and this book may well be the quickest way to learn that there is so much more there than meets a casual eye.



2. for a day trip, a weekend trip, or a long vacation. We have hiked and camped in several of the places mentioned. I have lived in NC all of my life and did not realize there was such enriching trails and escapades off the parkway. I wish I had known about this book while attending WCU! Take it with you, it is very worthwhile.



3. The Blue Ridge Parkway, almost 450 miles long, connects Shennandoah National Park in Virginia with Great Smoky Mountains National Park astride the North Carolina - Tennessee border. In between it traverses some of the most beautiful mountain areas in North Carolina and Virginia. Although it provides splendid views from the road itself and from its many roadside overlooks, it is much more than a scenic drive. It is a ribbon of land administered by the National Park Service, at several places broadening into wider mini-parks. All of those parks as well as various other spots along the parkway's route have hiking trails that give visitors a closer look at the many natural wonders there. This book, as a comprehensive guide to those trails, is the one most indispensable guide to getting beyond your car and the overlooks in this remarkable National Park Service land. All of its official trails are rated in this book as to difficulty, from very easy to quite strenuous. Thus there are ample hikes for whatever level of wilderness adventure you're up for. Each hike is described in details, with points of interest described in the order you'll encounter them, with mileages to each from the trailhead. Some hikes described herein also get beyond the parkway's own lands, into National Forest lands that border the parkway in many places, as well as occasional adjacent commercial attractions such as Grandfather Mountain. Any visit to the Blue Ridge Parkway should be quite rewarding, and this book is one of the best resources for making it even more so, showing that you'll never be very far from places to park and take a walk for a more intimate view. And you definitely should sample at least some of the shorter and easier walks, if not the longer or more challenging ones, depending on what you're up to. This parkway is a natural treasure well-worth exploring, and this book may well be the quickest way to learn that there is so much more there than meets a casual eye.



4. Designed as a "drive awhile - stop awhile" recreational road, the Blue Ridge Parkway is the most visited unit in the National Park Service. It has 17 million visitors a year as compared to 10 million a year for the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. But the Parkway is more than a beautiful drive; it is also a good base from which to hike. Adkins describes all the ways that we can get out of the car as we explore the Parkway. From a leg-stretcher to a view of Glassmine Falls Trail to the eighteen miles of the Shut-In Trail, Adkins gives a contextual introduction to the hike as well as step-by-step directions. He rates each hike from an easy leg-stretcher to strenuous.

   My only objection to the rating is that the author considers too many hikes as strenuous. For example, Adkins labels the Snooks Nose Trail, eight miles round trip and described as "not well-maintained and hard to locate" as strenuous. The two-and-a-half mile round trip hike up to Mt. Pisgah, on a clear, well-marked trail, is also rated as "strenuous". Hikers will have to decide what strenuous means to them. Ratings aside, the book is necessary to anyone looking for a variety of hikes in the area. The appendices are also a wealth of information. He lists every feature on the Parkway along with its mileage, all the inns and campgrounds as well as a roadside bloom calendar




5. My wife and I have just come home from a 3 week trip along the entire parkway. We started the trip with Hiking the Blue Ridge Parkway, but ended up buying Walking the Blue Ridge at one of the visitor centers. While Hiking was ok, we found Walking the Blue Ridge to be the better of the two. It was very easy to use, easy to find information, and full of wonderful tidbits. The way the mileage data was set up in a vertical way made it very easy to use while we were hiking the trails, simple to always know where we were. In the Hiking book we had to wade through a lot paragraphs just to match up the descriptions with where we actually were on the trail. Also, it was obvious that the author of Walking the Blue Ridge had actually walked every one of the trails he was writing about. It was also nice knowing that it gave descriptions of every one of the trails along the parkway, even if it was just a short pathway; the other book neglected some that we found to be truly delightful. In addition, its smaller weight and size made it much easier to carry while on the hikes.
   All in all, we were happy to have found Walking the Blue Ridge and will be using it often.

4 comments about Rediscovery of North America.

1. Extremely good prose. A poignant testimony to the loss of the Earth's resources in the face of historical and current development. Highly recommend adding this to your book collection if you have any affinity to the natural world.



2. Time is a precious commodity, and it is hard to find time to do all that must be done. But, the short time that is needed to read this book will be well worth spending.



3. As eloquent as it is insightful. Barry Lopez moves us to see and question. A true gift from writer to reader.



4. When I was taking my Native American History class I discovered that there were two types of history. The first type dealt with Native Americans in a negative way the common steriotypes Native Americans were protrayed as dirty durnken and savage even in the modern average world.
   
   The secound type is the opposite end of the spectrum Native Americans loved the land and were at peace with it. Than the big bad europians came along and killed them. But even in the modern day they carry on stoicly in the face of insermountable odds.
   
   The truth is somewhere in between the two extremes and it is not hard to figure out into which of the two catogories this book falls. It pretends to be a serious historical approach but really is just prograganda. What happened to Native Americans was awful but people hhave been getting loads of crap dumped on them since the begining of time. Just because one group has been through a lot doesn't make them any better or noble than any of the rest of us.
   
   Overall-I have a problem with the price 72 pages for 9 dollars?? Come on. I also think the book fails both as a historical work and as call to arms(its never quite sure which it is)
   
   Get this book if this is your thing but do your research first.

5 comments about Window Seat: Reading the Landscape from the Air.

1. Window Seat was stolen from a series of books entitled Window Seat published in Singapore in 2002. Everything: from the idea, the content, the design, the colouring and even down to the blurb on the back cover: was ripped off wholesale from the original Window Seat series, published in Singapore two years prior to the publication of this book. Gregory Dicum is a [...] and a thief.



2. I'm not going to touch on the aerial/satellite issue, as that's already been covered. It is a clever idea for a book, educational and fun, and when flying over major land formations like the Grand Canyon, it is useful. Since our snacks, movies, free drinks, etc have been taken away, looking out the window is just about the best entertainment left on a plane, and this book helps take advantage of that.



3. I used to fly alot on commercial flights and bought this to explore further my interest in geography from an aerial perspective. I was instantly disappointed as the photographs, with two exceptions, were high resolution images taken from satellites! That said, I realize that to show the highlights the author draws us towards, the crisp, detailed images he supplied are helpful as learning guides to acquaint our eyes with what to look for by way of patterns and the like. And, the author does mention his use of these orbital images on pages 13-14.
   
   To understand why he took that approach, review the snapshot of the New York/Newark area on page 10. I've seen that view a number of times after leaving LaGuardia, heading south. Contrast that with the exquisite orbital image including the same area on pages 18-19. No comparison! Yet, the view on page 10 is what more of us would tend to see when we have a clear day, good sun angle, with clean, unscratched windows.
   
   Mr. Dicum probably meant for this to be a quick reference, quick start guide for armchair travelers to whet their appetities. For those wanting to see general landscape views and especially clouds as seen at 30,000 feet, look up the book of the same title by Julieanne Kost. Keep in mind this latter work supplies little geographical interpretation. But, it is the real thing!
   
   There is a dearth of works up to the claim of featuring aerial perspectives representative of the oblique views a passenger of commercial flights flying at 30,000 feet would see. The ones worth their salt, such as America from 500 Feet (Fortney & Fortney) and High Above the Canadian Rockies (Heinl) are outstanding, yet they capture tight, low altitude views more along the lines of that seen from a helicopter flight or a private plane. It may be that more people prefer close up shots rather than a spectacular wide angle view yielding slight detail.
   
   I'm surprised that previous reviewers, privy to the experience of peering out from aerial perspectives and disappointed at the substance of this work by Dicum, didn't share with amazon shoppers the best, readily available resource for assisting in identifying many landforms and objects as seen from aerial perspectives. Go to your local commuter airport (which the small, private planes utilize) and purchase the respective sectional aeronautical charts for the geographical areas you'll be flying over. The 1:500,000 scale is excellent for assisting you in deciphering where you are. There are 37 of these that cover the lower 48 states. These show power line swaths, tall structures of note like smokestacks, and airport runway configurations, the latter a real help in pinpointing where you are at a given moment. Caveat: be somewhat discreet in your airborne use of these lest some overimaginiative passengers draw sinister motives to your benign interest in the landforms below.



4. The book was interesting and full of cool photos...but it is poorly packaged and marketed. I picked up the book expecting it to be about air travel, planes, flight paths, etc, and what you see through the window on a flight from LAX to JFK, for example. Instead it is really just a geographical study of the country with photos from much higher in the air than a commercial aircraft ever goes - the photos are satellite. So while the content makes for an interesting read and does provide some context for what you see out the window of an airplane, the book is inappropriately titled.



5. Window Seat is the ideal companion to anyone who flies - or even armchair fliers who like to look at the world..It is also a great little geography book of North America since it is divided into roughly geographical sections that contain a wealth of information about the earth below.Flying will never be the same for me! Also, the book makes a neat little present.

3 comments about Wisconsin's Outdoor Treasures: A Guide to 150 Natural Destinations (Trails Books Guide) (Trails Books Guide).

1. This book summarizes natural places in Wisconsin - I have found it most helpful with campsites. I am a beginning camper and it was great to see - at a glance - what resources and activities were available at the different campgrounds. I especially like that its chapters are based on sections of the state, making it easy to find a close location for a quick day trip or a destination farther away to take a longer vacation. It even includes contact information for the places listed, so you can call ahead to find out about special activities. Great book!!



2. In Wisconsin's Outdoor Treasures, Tim Brewer showcases practical and informative field guide information for 150 of Wisconsin's most interesting and unique natural destinations ranging from the Mississippi River bluffs and backwaters to the forests of the great Northwoods, to the glacial hills and valleys hallmarking Wisconsin geology and topography. Wisconsin Outdoor Treasures offers the Wisconsin visitor, tourist, as well as born and bred native resident a wealth of places to hike, canoe, kayak, bike, backpack, camp out, enjoy the wildlife, and more. Here are scenic drives, cross-country ski and snowshoe suggestions, as well as the resource information for enjoy the simple solitude of waterfalls, lakes, scenic bluffs, and deep forests. From National and State parks and forests, to county parks, private natural preserves, wild and scenic rivers, and Wisconsin wildlife refuges, Wisconsin's Outdoor Treasures is a comprehensive, authoritative, occasionally inspiring compendium of places to go and things to do in the Badger State, spring, summer, fall or winter.



3. This guide is a necessity if you travel in Wisconsin. Our family has rediscovered old childhood haunts and discovered some of Wisconsin's natural treasures that were otherwise unknown to us. This book shares in-depth information vital to state park campers, such as electric sites, beach, nature programs, etc. You can really plan a tailor-made state park vacation based on the information in this book!

5 comments about Hatteras Blues: A Story from the Edge of America.

1. This is a very well researched book about the history of charter fishing off Hatteras Island. The author combines archive research with annecdotes collected from his repeated trips to the island. The reader also has a feeling of sadness as the author's wife slowly succumbs to MS while he is doing his research.
   
   Well worth the time to read.



2. I have been visiting the North Carolina outer banks since 1970. I did not think anyone had as much love or reverence of this special place as I, but I was wrong. Tom Carlson in Hatteras Blues has established himself as a true devotee of these narrow islands off the Carolina coast. He captures the lure of isolated and wind-worn beaches and ever-changing off shore waters where fishermen (and women) from the smallest North Carolina towns to the largest international cities have searched for prize bill fish, bull drum, cobia and a host of other species for several decades. The reader is absorbed in the story of the Fosters and others who fought the harshness of life on the outer banks to create a thriving charter fishing industry that today is being challenged by corporations and those uncaring of the outerbanks special culture. Carlson is a waterman by birth and a "Banker" by choice. Hatteras Blues is a heartfelt story of great loss, love, spirit, transformation and hope set in one of the most magical places on planet Earth. Rates with Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea for bringing to life the conflicts, the turmoil and the serenity of what it means to be a part of the sea and the coast. Highly recommended.



3. Great book. I love to hear the stories of the people in this book, of course the fishing is always good. The weather and the constant movement of the cape was and is totally intriguing.



4. HATTERAS BLUES: A STORY FROM THE EDGE OF AMERICA is part biography and part regional history: it uses the experiences of one long-time fisherman on North Carolina's outer banks to reveal the issues of a fading industry and the development of Hatteras Village in the heart of Hurricane Alley. Tom Carlson's involvement with his subject leads him to the heart of a family and a town's struggles and faith in a warm first-person survey which at times reads with the quiet drama of fiction.
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch



5. A compelling storyline full of facinating bits and pieces about North Carolina's coastal heritage. It's a must read for NC fishermen.

2 comments about North Dakota Atlas & Gazetteer.

1. We have come to rely on the Gazetteer series for general navigation when an Internet connection is not available. My husband purchased the New York version for a business trip and found it to provide exactly the information he needed.



2. I wanted to get this atlas, especially to help us find places to go camping and hiking.. It's not always easy to find campgrounds or primitive campsites (since they're not always located in clearly identified campgrounds), so having these detailed maps is very useful for that. We recently used the atlas when we camped in the Catskill Mountains region, and I was glad we had these maps to help us out.