3 comments about Alaska-Yukon handbook (Moon Handbooks Alaska Yukon).

1. This book has been truely invaluable in preparing for a trip. It is not written in the normal dry style of many travel planners, but with wit and humor. As I read through the tidbits on the communities the author's dry humor and research come through. He is not afraid to tell you where the tourist traps are and when those self-same traps are worth a look because of the tacky items in them. The commentaries are honest and straight forward. Well worth the read if you are planning a trip to Alaska.



2. I'm the original author of this book, having researched and written the 1st edition in 1983. After that, I got very involved in writing about the South Pacific islands and had to bow out, so I'm happy to see the way Deke and Don have developed the book through five subsequent editions. Last summer my wife and I returned to the area and tried following my old edition. It was striking how little had changed and we enjoyed our trip immensely. We pitched our tent on some of the same sites I'd used nearly two decades earlier! I suggest you use the far superior new edition of Alaska-Yukon - it's a wonderful part of the world, and you're in for a real adventure.



3. This book was very useful in my trip around south central Alaska. The content was up to date and specific and his reviews of the restaurants/lodging held true. As radio connections were sporadic, we took turns in reading the guide out loud as we traveled from one place to another. Not only was it very informative, but also Don's humor was a pleasant addition. Use other books for research, but bring this one along.

No comments about Astoria, and Captain Bonneville's adventures (Washington Irving's works).

No comments about Ten years in Oregon: Travels and adventures of Doctor E. White and lady, west of the Rocky Mountains, with incidents of two sea voyages via Sandwich Islands around Cape Horn.

No comments about In the Oregon country;: Out-doors in Oregon, Washington, and California, together with some legendary lore, and glimpses of the modern West in the making, ... & hist. Trans-Mississippi West: ser. C]).

No comments about Astoria ; Moorish chronicles [chronicle of Fernando the Saint] (Works / Washington Irving).

No comments about Natural Wonders of Oregon: A Guide to Parks, Preserves, and Wild Places (Natural Wonders Series).

No comments about Hidden Pacific Northwest: The Adventurer's Guide (Hidden Pacific Northwest).

5 comments about Moon Handbooks: Silicon Valley (1st Ed.).

1. Great information on the Silicon Valley. Would make a great welcome gift for employees who are new to the area.



2. Finally, a great book on the history and exciting places of Silicon Valley. Despite being born and raised in the area, I wasn't familiar with all the places Cheek highlighted. This book is not only informative, but fun and easy to read. If you like to explore and you either live in the Bay Area or will be visiting, this is a "must have" book. Believe me, you'll be glad you bought it.



3. My eyes were drawn to the unusually attractive cover of this book, for it has a perfect color photograph of the world famous Winchester Mystery House, a mansion with hundreds of rooms. That was built by the heir to the Winchester gun fortune, Sarah Winchester. By legend, a fortune teller told her to keep the building process going as a way to atone for all the Indians killed by Winchester firearms, and that as long as she did that she wouldn't die. In the past I couldn't suggest much more to Silicon Valley visitors than a visit to the Winchester Mystery House, or perhaps the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum, which houses the largest collection of Egyptian artifacts west of the Mississippi. I simply thought of the San Jose area as being mostly a cultureless wasteland in suburbia, but things have certainly changed there. I was raised in the Bay Area, and over the years the occasional errand takes me through, but I had no idea that there were so many interesting things to see there. In part this is attributable to the accelerated urban development brought on by the computer industry, and in part it's because I didn't bother to monitor progress in the greater San Jose area, but that's also because no one had previously published a guide book filled with so much of its local history. Now that I have Martin Cheek's book, I look forward to my next visit for any reason. There's an article called William Shockley - Brilliant Weirdo (The author was de-emphasizing his subject's unpopular opinions about race) on page 19, and it explains how Shockley won the Nobel prize for being the co-inventor of the transistor, the cornerstone of the high tech industry. Speaking of controversial people, another interesting person is mentioned in an article on page 191: "The Holy City Of Hilltop Hustler "Father Riker." Denounced as an eccentric cult leader by some, Riker is also fondly remembered as the most colorful character in the history of San Carlos. From 1918 until about 1941 his Utopian community was active on a mountainous summit to the west of the downtown area. Riker's large signs advertised the greatness of the white race, and his original commercial buildings provided a great variety of roadside attractions for those traveling between San Jose and the seaside community of Santa Cruz. The old highway still cuts through the mountains, but Riker's businesses greatly declined when his stop was bypassed by a much more modern and faster highway. All that remains of Holy City today are a few private buildings: Riker's house, garage, a storage shed, and the timeless background of beautiful hills that his visitors liked to use as the background for their photos. Across the street from Riker's house, where the commercial buildings once stood, the owner of a modern glass shop (Which uses the name Holy City Glass Shop) keeps original copies of Riker's old newspapers posted up on his bulletin board. After getting introduced to that site through Mr. Cheek's book, I found out that there was a book in print by Betty Lewis titled Holy City - Riker's Roadside Attraction. I'll let you know how good that is after Amazon sends it.



4. As a frequent visitor to the Silicon Valley area, I find difficulty with the fact that there are still no books directed towards business travelers. This area is NOT a tourist spot, so I found this book, while historically interesting, not particularly helpful for my requirements. Practical advice like, "good luck finding a room during the week" was not included.



5. Silicon Valley is the subject of daily news, and is the home of so many marvelous inventions. Yet to the naked eye, the area is incredibly unremarkable. Martin Cheek has transformed my view of the area (I live here) and put interest in the otherwise uninteresting. For instance, I found out I live less than a mile away from a comedy club that housed the first pong (video game) location. It's still not much to look at. . . but hey!

   I would recommend this book, not to the tourist (do people really visit Silicon Valley on tour?) but to the local. It will help you put the history in perspective, and it will make you a better tour guide. The reading is a bit tedious (more like a history book), but side stories about the more colorful characters make it all worth while.

No comments about The Rough Guide to Pacific Northwest 2: Washington, Oregon, British Columbia, Alberta, Yukon (Rough Guide Travel Guides).

No comments about Oregon--bright land of promise.