5 comments about Windows into the Earth: The Geologic Story of Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks.

1. This treasure will turn "topography" into a household word. Dedicated to a fellow geologist recently killed by an avalance while conducting fieldwork, "Windows" is a slick and dramatic feature presentation of volcanism, earthquakes, and geysers. Superb maps and graphs colorfully illustrate variable stratae formed through the eons. An informal and friendly text is scholarly without being stuffy. The writers establish a tone of substance and humor as they discuss multiple upheavals that created Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons. This is the kind of book that will impress early rock-ologists and even be hoarded by their more secretive, sedimental parents. The writing never "dumbs down" but is lucid with factual attention to landscape formation without snubbing the human astonishment that continually witnesses it. Thanks to geologist Smith and naturalist journalist Seigel, the book is threaded with lively accounts from park rangers, tourists, and waitresses at the Old Faithful Inn. Appeals to romantics and literalists alike. Studded with beautiful, full-color photographs. Every page is hefty and sleek to the touch, a feast for the eye as well as the brain. Kind of a wonder-book for anyone who seeks the phenomenal in terra firma.



2. A friend loaned me this book two months ago. I haven't returned it yet. It is simply the best book on these two parks that I have ever read. The authors accurately portray the very considerable geological power present in each park, and yet do not manage to make either park a fearful place to be avoided. Instead, their writing is a persuasive invitation to visit these wonderful manifestations of nature for an extended period. I was particularly impressed by the visitor's tour set out near the end of the book. I took a part of that tour in 1994, and the narrative is very accurate. I will certainly use my OWN copy of the book when I go back again this autumn. (I don't want anyone to think I don't return borrowed books!) This book is an absolute musthave-mustread for anyone going to the parks or interested in the geological processes that have made the West. Enjoy.



3. I chose this book for my final project in geology class because I was interested in Yellowstone National parks though I have never been to, and this book was very good not only to read but also to review my studying in the class. Yellowstone and Grand Teton ground systems such as ground movements and heating systems are covered and also advanced my studying. Actually, I had totally no knowledge about geologic activities before I studied in the class, so this book was also really good to review my studying. In addition, this book introduces these parks view points with beautiful and colored pictures, so this book also can be used for a tourbook. It is no doubt that I will go to these parks with this book!



4. This is an excellent book on the interesting geology of the Yellowstone ecosystem, an area that covers not only the park but a substantial area around it extending to the south to include the Grand Tetons.
   
   The artwork is really excellent: both the photography, which is provided by several local professionals including Tom Mangelson, and the drawings, which make often difficult geologic concepts easily understood.
   
   Yellowstone sits on top of a hotspot very much like the Hawaiian islands except that it's in the middle of a continent instead of the middle of an ocean. This turns out to be an important distinction, one that makes the volcano that created the park one of the largest ever in the history of the planet.
   
   This book is well written and makes the geology accesible and interesting. And at the end, is a stop-by-stop tour of the two parks that will take you face-to-face with all that you have learned.



5. I was looking for a good geologic history book after finishing John McPhee's excellent "Annals of a Former World." Windows into the Earth seemed like a good place to start, but I was very disappointed. It seems as though the authors wrote each chapter (and sometimes even parts of chapters) independently and then slapped them together with little editing. Although the underlying geology is often interesting, there's little flow or logic to the book as a whole. Key concepts are repeated over and over, as though they're being introduced for the first time each time. Analogies used to make the subject matter more accessable often miss the mark and detract from the whole. This book may be worthwhile if you are visiting the region and want to understand more of what you are seeing, but I wouldn't recommend it otherwise.

No comments about Fishing Yellowstone National Park, 3rd: An Angler's Complete Guide to More than 100 Streams, Rivers, and Lakes (Regional Fishing Series).

5 comments about A Climber's Guide to the Teton Range Third Edition(Climber's Guide to the Teton Range).

1. A good climbing guide is a personal friend. You spend hours reading about possible climbs, adventures awaiting for you. There is much pleasure in browsing a climbing guide, remembering the climbs you have made, those climbs not completed due to severe weather or other reasons, and all those climbs you have yet to try.
   
   My Teton guidebook has particular value as I always inscribe notes about my climbs: the date, my companions, the weather, route finding tips (or conversely, where I went astray), elapsed time, and other items of interest.
   
   This third edition, 1996, is more than four hundred pages. It is much to bulky and heavy to carry on a climb. But it is a remarkable reference of virtually every climbing route in the Teton Range. The descriptions are detailed and well-written. I have not encountered any climbing guide that is comparable in detail and scope to this work by Leigh Ortenburger and Reynold Jackson.
   
   The number of routes and variations on the favorite peaks can be overwhelming. The most commonly used route is highlighted. Route descriptions range from easy scrambles to difficult climbs requiring substantial technical skill on ice, snow, and rock. Numerous excellent black and white photos with climbing routes overlain are scattered throughout the texts. Also, there are many detailed ink drawings of more difficult climbs.
   
   For climbers new to the Tetons, the authors have listed more than 130 of their favorite routes ranging from easy scrambles to severe climbs 5.12 in difficulty, as well as difficult technical ice climbing routes.
   
   The introduction, some sixty pages, is quite good. Major topics include a history of Teton climbing, descriptions of great climbs and traverses, details on the national park service policy, and a discussion of the difficulty rating system. The section on Teton weather and climatology is both helpful and sobering. Also, on more than one occasion I had reason to appreciate Ortenburger's and Jackson's bushwacking hints for those canyons without maintained trails.
   
   I have used A Climber's Guide to the Teton Range for many years beginning with the first edition dating back to the 1960s by Leigh Ortenburger. In the intervening years a condensed version, an extended version (volume 2), and a second and third edition have been published.
   
   This third edition is really quite exceptional and I highly recommend this guidebook to anyone planning to climb in Grand Teton National Park.



2. Excellent book. Clearly describes hundreds of routes with climbing topo's and ratings. Highly recommended.



3. If you are looking for a comprehensive, detailed, easy to understand reference guide to the history, approaches and routes of the peaks of the Grand Tetons...look no further. Complete with Topos, black and white Arial photographs, and hand drawn route diagrams, this guide is a "must have" in any mountaineer's quiver of guide books. The book opens with a history of the Grand Teton Range and introduces readers to the men and women who explored and developed many of the modern routes enjoyed by all today; particularly the "bold" first accents of the early Teton pioneers Paul Petzoldt and Glenn Exum. The meat of the book can be found in the remaining pages covering everything from, recommended equipment, mountain safety, to detailed accounts of the climbs and approaches on all the jagged peaks of the Teton Range.
   As a climber of 20+ years, I found this book to be extremely helpful on my trips to the Tetons and highly recommend this guide to anyone entertaining the possibility of climbing or hiking in the Teton Range. Whether you are a seasoned climber, or are considering cutting your teeth in one of the most spectacular mountain ranges the United States has to offer, consider this resource a must!



4. exactly what I was looking for. All the detail I needed and more. Please send my thanks to the authors for the great beta.



5. This is the classic guide book for the Tetons. Many pictures and topos are provided to help route finding, however most topos are for the more difficult routes. The text is very descriptive. The book is heavy so be prepared to make photo copies before your climb.

3 comments about Hiking the Black Hills Country, 2nd: A Guide to More Than 50 Hikes in South Dakota and Wyoming (Regional Hiking Series).

1. I live in the Black Hills and use this guide extensively. Itis well written and trails are accurately described. If you purchaseone hiking book for SD....make sure it is this one!...



2. Good hiking reference if you're new to the BH and hiking in general. I've found the ratings to be more for beginners or folks without a lot of hiking skill (ie. a moderate trail listed as strenuous). Good to get you oriented to the area.



3. I've encountered several inaccuracies in the second edition of this book. We recently hiked Lost Cabin-Harney Peak Loop and we were expecting to hike the listed distance of 8.6 miles but the actual distance is at least 12 miles and our GPS logged 14 miles. In addition, this hike's trail contact phone number for the Black Hills National Forest Supervisor's Office is incorrect as is the phone number for the Black Hills National Forest Visitor's Center in the appendix. Of the three hikes we have done we have found inaccurate information on all of them. The directions for Crow peak did not give adequate directions from the Interstate 90 exit, for Bear Butte the book lacked current fee information. Many of the hikes do not have their elevation gain listed. This book offers a nice overall listing of hikes in different areas of the Black Hills however the book's inaccuracies and lack of useful features such as an index, hike elevation profiles, and detailed maps that include all the features mentioned in the text make it, in my opinion, less useful than I would have expected.

No comments about Moon Wyoming (Moon Handbooks).

1 comments about Hidden Wyoming: Including Jackson Hole and Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks.

1. Hidden Wyoming appears in its third edition to provide selective recommendations and reviews of lodgings, sightseeing, and special dining experiences throughout the state. A "user friendly" and recommended pick for destination-bound travelers.

1 comments about Best Easy Day Hikes Grand Teton, 2nd (Best Easy Day Hikes Series).

1. I used this book when my friends and I hiked in the Grand Teton National Park. It was such a good guide to let us know where to find the trailheads and what to expect on the hikes. We all had a good time!

3 comments about Climbing and Hiking in the Wind River Mountains, 2nd.

1. Joe Kelsey has taken the old trail book of Finis Mitchell's and turned it into a Trail and Mountain Guide that leads you to every nook and crany, you would want to go.

   Many years before Joe's book, I would hike the Winds with Mitchells book in hand as if I was following an old adventurers pencil notebook. Today, Joe Kelsey's "Wind River Hiking/Climbing Guide" is as necessary as the matches.




2. This book outlines hundreds of different routes up all of the Wind's well-known peaks (as well as several not-so-well-know ones). He did a phenomenal job amassing all of this information. There is enough here for a short lifetime of awesome mountain trekking.
   
   The information Kelsey gives is mean, lean, and straight to the point. Novices beware, this book makes no attempts to come down to anyone's level. It is written for those grounded in that arts of route-finding, technical climbing, and alpine survival. It is not a hiking book. If you are uncomfortable with this, either buy a more toned-down Wind River guide, or pick up a book to build your skills like "Mountaineering: The Freedom of the Hills" and start psyching yourself up for some world class backcountry.



3. I bought this book to plan a week-long backpacking trip. It is very similar in concept to Secor's "High Sierra" guide for CA's Sierra Nevada: Adequate description of the trails and off-trail passes, and comprehensive information for climbers on about everything climbable. I am not a technical climber and cannot judge the book's usefulness as a real "climbing guide", but I like to take off-trail excursions, shortcuts, and scrambles. Together with the "Earthwalk" topos (which are excellent) this book was just the right thing for planning a backpacking trip with "side adventures". If you stay strictly on the trail, you might find a pure trail guide more useful, as trail descriptions only make up 10 or 20% of the text. Off-trail travel turned out to be easy in the Wind Rivers, though.
   The book has a short and very interesting account of the history of Wind River exploration.

No comments about Hiking Wyoming's Medicine Bow National Forest - Second Edition.

5 comments about Lonely Planet Yellowstone & Grand Teton National Parks.

1. For one contemplating a trip to Yellowstone and the Tetons this book will be a fine handbook and guide.It is very detailed in regards to information about the parks and offers the reader a fine source of information for things to do on your visit.



2. If it's your first time in Yellow Stone or the Grand Tetons this'll be your bible .. the hikes listed in both places are well presented and with the maps included will help you plan you time in this wonderful part of the world .. The information on where you are likely to spot animals is really useful - Elk, Bison, Moose and Bear ... all accurate! The highlights and intineraries suggested helped with planning the trip .. but in addition to the traditional 'must sees' the book also suggests some wonderful off the beaten track experiences as well. Has info on where to stay and eat ..I stayed outside the park and would recommend either Teton Village or Jackson Hole as a good base with lots of top class accomodation. For European travellers Jackson Hole was the only place that I could get a mobile phone signal!



3. Maybe it's because the author admits that he ventured off to complete this project only a couple days after getting married, leaving his bride behind. Perhaps a publishing deadline loomed large. I'm not sure what Lonely Planet's excuse is, but this book is the most thrown together, unhelpful guide I've ever seen in their repertoire! I've appreciated their "secret" tips and organized guides for many of my world adventures, and this one is just way below par. Abyssmal on any scale.
   
   I did tons better researching on the internet on my own, which might be the best approach to these parks anyway, so that you're sure to get up to date information. This guide doesn't even mention the great guest ranch outside the park at which I snagged six nights a few months before my visit, how to make sure that you get tickets for special ranger-led, half-day back-country adventure hikes with 15 person limits, or that there are boat and kayak rentals/tours in Yellowstone from concessionaires.
   
   The book literally gives you a headache, trying to figure out how to make sense of the vast amount of listings presented. A menage of maps and thrown-together tidbits are pretty meaningless without the necessary organization to figure out an orderly travel plan. It would have been a lot better if the book took you around each of Yellowstone's loops and through Grand Teton in a more logical format.
   
   I alos found much of the information to be grossly outdated and inaccurate, and so many basic outdoor activities weren't explored in depth, and no real useful information or how-tos were given. I was thoroughly disappointed with my selection. With the vast amount of knowledge that I've accumulated through my own research, I could certainly re-write this guide myself!



4. Before my Yellowstone trip, I had purchased many books and maps and visited websites-you know the drill. This book helped with many insider tips-when talking with other visitors, they had consistently asked me how I knew these things, and I told them-the Lonely Planet guide. Even two park rangers wanted to know how I knew these lesser known tips-and they were impressed with the information. My favorites: how to get the best view of the Grand Prismatic pool (I'm not going to give that one away) and how to avoid bears on trails-which I'll let out of the bag-sing show tunes! Yes that sounds ridiculous-but when I saw a bear about 150 ft ahead of me on a trail and started singing Ethel Merman, well, bears are smart enough not to stick around for the encore!



5. A book published in April 2008 should not have reviews dated no later than 2007. This makes no sense.