2 comments about Off the Map: A Journey Through the Amazonian Wild.

1. I must admit that the cover photo caught my attention at the local library and I'm sure glad I found this hidden gem! John Harrison has the audacity to attempt an upstream traverse of a remote Amazon tributary...yes, upstream, against and around raging rapids, fallen trees, swift currents and for me, the horror of horrors...multiple hornet and wasp nests! Then he plans on hauling his canoe and all the gear 15 kilometers over a small mountain range to a river that makes it's way to the northern coast of South America. On an old Indian trail across these mountains that may not even still exist. And not by himself or with another seasoned, masochistic Amazon adventurer like himself, but with his wife! Need I say more? This book is a must read for anyone who enjoys REAL adventure stories where there is no quick rescue should things go wrong. So order it today (or go to your local library) and start reading because you won't be disappointed!



2. People who are interested in reading about the Amazon rain forest or French Guyana should in fact read another book called "Antecume", a true biography written by the Andre Cognat, who dared to venture alone on a small canoe on the Oyapock River (at the border of Brazil and French Guyana), got lost and injured, and was miraculously rescued by Amerindians (the "Wayanas", a tribe with whom he still lives among today), many years before Mr. and Mrs. Harrison and at a time when much of Guyana was still unexploired.
   
   I have my doubts as to whether the events narrated by the Harrisons have indeed truly happened or not, or at least the way they are depicted in this book. It is my impression that the authors' exploits have been quite exaggerated. I visited Guyana several times and I have not heard of the Harrisons. In fact, Guyana is no longer such a risky place in the wilderness to venture into! It has been quite modernized since colonial times and 'the bagne" over the past decades; especially after the rocket launching site was build near Kourou. There is now easy access to healthcare facilities, and transportation and telecommunication equipments are quite modern and widely available. In fact, the most remote areas located at the East and South of the Guyanese territory are stricly delimited and called "zone interdite": in other words, it is even illegal to enter them without the authorization of the local government.

2 comments about Riding Across Patagonia (Equestrian Travel Classics).

1. The Victorian era produced not only fainthearted boudoir queens with lace hankies, but also some of the most amazing and hard-bitten women travelers who ever lived. This is in many ways a companion volume to Julius Beerbohm's WANDERINGS IN PATAGONIA. Where Beerbohm was a rank amateur who had a knack for encountering bad luck, Lady Florence Dixie was like the up-to-date Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. She organized a large hunting party, threw money around for horses, supplies, and guides, and even engaged "Mr. B" to join the party.
   
   At first, Lady Florence comes across as a rich, thoughtless horsefaced boor. To more easily catch guanacos and ostriches (actually, Darwin's rheas), she and her party think nothing of starting brush fires and using beaters to drive the game into their guns' ranges. Starting at Punta Arenas, Chile (then called Sandy Point by the British), she and her party ride along the Magellan Channel and cut inland, heading ultimately towards the eastern escarpment of the Andes, probably southwest of El Calafate. (Unfortunately, there is no map in the book to indicate their progress.)
   
   Once she kills a small ostrich: "The flesh of the young ostrich is not very palatable, so we left the bird, taking only its legs, which make very nice handles for umbrellas and whips." Of Patagonian foxes: "I resolved to make a collection of their skins, and carry them back to England to be made up into rugs and other useful articles."
   
   Amid the stark beauty of the mountains, Lady Florence suffers a change of heart. She shoots a gigantic buck which puts up such a fight for life that she relents finally killing him. Even the guanacos have an astounding amount of fight in them: "Examining him, we found the bullet had entered his side, and passing through the lungs and lights, had lodged near the spine; and yet, thus severely wounded, he had gone quite ten miles at a cracking pace!"
   
   It is a sadder and more likeable Lady Florence who turns around and heads back to Punta Arenas. At this point, they encounter their own run of bad luck. They run out of food, the pack horse that has all their remaining biscuits runs off, all their horses suddenly disappear and have to be tracked down, and finally they appear back in civilization bedraggled and somewhat chastened.
   
   A real page-turner, RIDING ACROSS PATAGONIA is one of those strange books that show the writer's change of heart for the better. At one point, she even becomes disgusted with the concept of "man the destroyer."



2. Lady Florence is something of an enigma - in some respects, very much a woman of her time, with all the prejudices and highhandedness you might expect of a Victorian aristocrat. However, she is clearly very unusual too as she sails off to a wild and largely unexplored Patagonia, with an all male party and lives primarily off the land for several weeks. Food is acquired mainly by hunting, and clearly proficiency gained whilst foxhunting with the gentry in the English Shires stands her in good stead. Many guanacos, ostrich, puma, deer and game birds are felled with gusto and without sentiment - she's never happy unless a couple of firearms are within easy reach so she can pop off another. It was all a bit bloody for me. But there were some fantastic stories, including galloping head on into a bush fire (God only knows how the horses survived) and a hair-raising and near-catastrophic race down the side of a mountain in a horse and wagon steered by an overenthusiastic local. I was moved to read the book having just returned from trekking the Torres del Paine circuit, but Lady Florence's Patagonian experience and mine were rather different. I 'roughed' it in a down sleeping bag, (she made do with damp guanaco furs). A thermarest protected me from stony ground (Lady Florence lay directly on the earth). At the end of the day I usually enjoyed a hearty hostel meal (her ladyship had to set to work stripping down an ostrich and roasting up a gristly wing on an open fire). Patagonia is certainly far less of a wilderness now - whilst I thought I was quite courageous trekking the John Garner pass, clearly this would have been like a walk in the park to the Dixie party . It's a fascinating insight into some aspects of the Victorian age, though it is a bit repetitive, especially as far as the hunting goes. Lady Dixie doesn't give much away about herself or her party (in this sense she maintains the decorum of a Victoria lady); but if you are thinking of travelling to Patagonia, or have already been, I am sure you will appreciate your Goretex all the more having read this.

1 comments about Mountain Bike America: Washington, D.C./ Baltimore, 3rd: An Atlas of Washington D.C. and Baltimore's Greatest Off-Road Bicycle Rides.

1. This Book has developed with each Edition, and it very well has met its Peak!. It is Must Have for anyone interested in staying sane in this Urban Jungle! I ride fairly regularly and I have not been able to ride a fraction of the trails in this book! Get this Book! And Get out and Ride!

5 comments about Lonely Planet Ecuador and the Galapagos (4th ed).

1. This guidebook only gets better and better with each new edition. I recommend this highly for anyone interested in getting off the beaten track and enjoying the wonders that Ecuador and Ecuadorians have to offer.



2. This is the third edition that I have owned. I know that I can trust it to be the best, especially on a less than 5 star budget. Great background and vital information for everyone.



3. My wife and I have lived in Ibarra, Ecuador for a year now. We have used this book extensively in locating a place to live and touring throughout the country. Though the newest edition is now almost two years old, the prices quoted are still very reliable due to the devaluation of the Sucre.

   The information provided is very thorough and accurate and is a MUST for anyone traveling to Eucador.




4. Well researched, but rests on its laurels. Many descriptions in this 1997 publication are unchanged from the previous edition, which I believe was 1992. If you publish twice a decade, at least update the research you did 5 years ago.



5. An excelent guide for people wanting to see Ecuador better than the average tourist, it has wonderfully explained items precious for off the beat explorers. A new edition is needed though due to the devaluation of the Sucre (prices are as lower as a third of what the book says)

No comments about Cherokee Heritage Trails Guidebook.

No comments about Stedman's Surinam: Life in an Eighteenth-Century Slave Society. An Abridged, Modernized Edition of Narrative of a Five Years Expedition against the Revolted Negroes of Surinam.

5 comments about L!VE Travel Guide to Quito, Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands.

1. I traveled with this book recently and LOVED it. The information is the most accurate I have found - partly due to the way they gather information. You can submit reviews and new information to their Web site, they review it and use it to publish up-to-date information in their books. Also, their guidebooks are published MUCH more regularly than other guidebooks.
   
   this book is especially good if you are going to the Galapagos -- it is the ONLY book that reviews ALL the cruise ships and has maps of each of the visitor sites on the islands.
   
   I highly recommend this book - and their Web site: www.livetravelguides.com.



2. This book is an excellent resource for planning a trip to Ecuador and it is particularly helpful for Quito and the Galapagos. I think this book must be the best for selecting a Galapagos boat. There are so many boats to choose from and it is really helpful to have the information all in one place - it was so confusing trying to choose a boat because I found it hard to understand the difference between all the different classes of boat, but it is all explained clearly in the book. The information on hotels and restaurants in Quito seems to be very thorough too. I found some great places to eat by using this book.



3. What can I say... a good book simple as that and more than glad to have it in my collection of travel books. I was surprised by the accuracy of the content, address, phone and e-mail (if mail) information (I am one of the nerds that really checks... arggg). What can I say... going to Ecuador and/or the Galapagos (been there, done that) bring this book with you. It's handy if you are in a need of a guide (book). It's light to bring yet contains lot's of useful information for one of these day you don't know but need a hint from your `guide'..
   
   For the mentioned price I think it's a winner...
   
   Ries



4. Came across this book in June before my business trip to Ecuador and found it more helpful than Moon or Lonely Planet has ever been. While not the most professionally looking (pages inside are creme colord and the images are grainy) the information in the book is outstanding-- its a mix of popular tourist places and off-the beaten path things to see and do. It is also all up-to -date information (esp. the prices and location),which is good for Ecuador since places go under and new shops and restaurants open up all the time.
   
   It probably has the best section of Quito than any other guide. It also has a ton on the Galapagos. Its is written for all types of travelers and is not snobbish,(like guidesbooks Ive used in the past are) It has a little of backpacking, a little of luxury and a little of a mid- economic range activites and restaurants. Two thumbs up.



5. Book has good general info on the country and covers very well the Quito and Galapagos regions. If you are even considering a trip out to the Galaps you might well get this book. It is exhaustive in info on possible ship tours. Downside- if you want to travel to the coast or any further south than Latacunga, this book has absolutely NO info. It's as if the southern part of the country doesn't exist.

4 comments about Travellers' Wildlife Guides Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands (Travellers' Wildlife Guides).

1. I have just returned from those Enchanted Isles and found Beletsky's guide omnipresent, dog-eared and tightly clutched in the sea-salted hands of many a visitor. I am surprised that the Sea Lions and Blue Footed Boobies did not have their own copies!

   This guide is a truly indispensible accessory for those fortunate enough to have visited those Islands of wonder and enchantment. It is also a great whetter of one's appetite! Other books have their strengths, but when push comes to shove, or in this case just going around..., one wants a thorough compliment to one's naturalist (to make all those notations when one gets back home, of course) and also a look into what is to come. Accurate and beautifully illustrated.




2. A layman needs a good guide when on tour of a new territory, whether that be a museum, a literary genre, or a country's heritage. In David Pearson's and Les Beletsky's 485 page ECUADOR and its GALAPAGOS ISLANDS, they present a book that is as good a guide as a layman could hope for, not just for exploring Ecuador or its Galapagos Islands, but for getting to know much of the fauna of Amazonian Latin America. The text is professionally written, yet down to earth and not infrequently humorous. The famous entomologist J. Henri Fabre once wrote, "Others again have reproached me with my style, which has not the solemnity, nay, better, the dryness of the schools. They fear lest a page that is read without fatigue should not always be the expression of the truth. Were I to take their word for it, we are profound only on condition of being obscure." This approach to scientific writing - being informative without being pedantic - allows writers like Pearson and Beletsky to fill the reader's heart with wonder while still often bringing a smile to his/her face.

   With Ecuador being one of the most biologically diverse countries on earth, it is impossible to create a book that is both comprehensive and brief. The authors have gone for middle ground, covering the portion of Ecuadorian wildlife that is of interest and/or likely to be spotted by the ecotraveller to Ecuador. There are 96 color plates (with 5-6 animals illustrated on each one), several pages of color photographs, an excellent chapter - with maps - of Ecuador's National Parks and Bioreserves, a section on Ecuador's geography and habitats (e.g., Lowland Wet Forest, Mangrove and Coastal Vegetation) along with drawings illustrating several major plants in these regions, and 200 pages of animal descriptions under the headings 'Amphibians', 'Reptiles', 'Birds', 'Mammals', 'Insects & Other Arthropods', and 'Galapagos Wildlife'.

   As an Ecuadorian resident, I have found this guide to be an excellent aid to identifying and understanding the natural history of the country. The book was both informative and fun to read, and I can highly recommend it to anyone who wants to know more about this wonderful area of the world.




3. This book was one used by my guide during a recent trip to the Ecuadorian
   Selva. I purchased it on my return home and transfered my field notes to the pages with the appropriate birds and animals I had the pleasure to see. I have enjoyed reading the addition info the book provides and it will help preserve my experience for myself and others.



4. I chose this book for my trip to Ecuador because it included non-birds, and I didn't know of a book that covered everything but birds, nor did I want to bring two separate guides. This book did include nearly all the birds, monkeys and other animals I saw in 25 days in several different ecosystems, though it could have been stronger in the area of frogs and invertebrates (spiders, ants, butterflies, snails...) and the segregation of Galapagos species into their own section was somewhat inaccurate, as several of them can also be seen on Isla de la Plata. (The jungle lodge I visited had several copies of this book on their shelves for visitor use, which I think can be considered an endorsement.) I came home perfectly satisfied with it, even though we had to rely on our naturalists for a few identifications.
   
   I'll admit to having cut out most of the text section and left it at home to save on weight, taking along only the color plates and brief haitat descriptions. Fortunately, the color pages do include enough region and habitat information on each entry to help distinguish similar species. Now that I'm home, I'll put it back together and enjoy reading the text as a way of softening the blow of leaving Ecuador. I can't wait to go back and explore more, and I didn't even try to cover the Galapagos!

2 comments about Strangers and Sojourners: A History of Michigan's Keweenaw Peninsula (Great Lakes Books).

1. I purchased this book after a vacation to the beautiful Keweenaw Peninsula where I toured one of the copper mines mentioned in the book.

   To enjoy this book it helps if one has a curiosity about the region's history it's industry and the melting pot of people that made up it's workforce.

   Although a dry history at times, I believe this book to be one of if not the best on the topic. An important contribution to Michigan History. It is my hope that upon reading it people will recognize this book as the labor of love it truly is.




2. I agree with another Amazon reviewer that the reading can be a tad 'dry' at times, quite uncustomary for the author.
   
   However, it still has that "Thurner style" fast, pleasing pace that precludes excess verbiage and allows for the covering of a rather-broad topic in a single, readable volume. Furthermore, the author is a native to the area, which doesn't hurt his case.
   
   For 'complete' coverage of the Copper Country, look no further than Mr. Thurner's three such books.

No comments about An Outdoor Guide to Bartram's Travels.