Colorado Books

This is a must read book for any Vail skier. I am the son of one of Vail's pioneers (Sigi Faller) and enjoyed many wonderful days on the Mountain in the "Glory Years". The book provides a perspective of Amercian history (Camp Hale and WWII) and relates a romantic business success story, especially for those who are independent, entrepreneural and have a love of the outdoors. It's a fascinating account of finding recreational "gold" in the Colorado Rockies. An excellent collection of photos is included.

This book captures the spirit of Peter Seibert and Earl Eaton and the early days of their lives and their dream to build Vail and Beaver Creek. The trimuphs are great. Hiking Vail for the first time with skins on the skis and seeing the bowls, what a trip! Getting fired from his dream and then getting asked back during the '89 World Championships - wow!! - what a roller coaster of emotions. If you love great stories and you know the Vail Valley and the ski industry - this book is a must read!!

As a former deputy sheriff in the nowood valley, Ten Sleep, Wyoming, I found Mr. Davis' research and presentation outstanding. His descriptions and evaluations were right on the money. As a critical history buff, I was pleasantly surprised to find no faults or criticisms of Mr. Davis' work. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it to anyone with an interest in historical jurisprudence. Things might have changed in "crime detection/investigation" but in the courtroom? not so much.

Wyoming looms large for me, and I've alluded to a recent film about Wyoming "cowboys" in other reviews. Attorney John Davis, from somewhere in the Big Horn Basin, discusses events of 2 April 1909 that put the cowboy canard in its place. Those movie cowboys aren't cowboys because they're all hat and no cattle. They're sheepherders. So were Joe Allemand, shot to death on 2 April 1909, and Joe Enge, murdered and burned in his sheep wagon on Spring Creek.

Spring Creek was the last big battle of the western sheep wars, writes Mr. Davis, and was the first (only) Wyoming raid in which killers of sheepherders were convicted of murder. The murderers of Allemand, Emge, and another herder, burned to death with Emge in his wagon, were real cowboys acting out a drama that was a tragedy of the commons. Much of Wyoming even in 1909 was unfenced open range to which cattlemen claimed rights of preemption. Sheep and their crazy herders (cowboys debated overwhelming questions: Were men already crazy before they herded sheep, or were they made crazy by the sheep they herded?) were latecomers who competed for grass and water in a dry state. Sheep wrecked the range for cattle, eating grass down to the ground and then eating the ground. Then they'd bleat and excrete, wrecking water holes. In the Big Horn Basin commons, cattlemen and cowboys tolerated sheep and sheepherders as long as they knew their place. Where there were no fences, cattlemen helpfully drew deadlines, invisible lines in the sand beyond which sheep were not allowed to cross. Allemand and Emge crossed the line.

Allemand was foreign. Some accounts say he was Baszue; Davis writes that he was French. Allemand was an alien in an occupation dominated by Mexicans and Basques whose lives had been cheap. Mr. Allemand, though, was liked and respected by his neighbors despite being from somewhere else and despite sheep. Nobody wrote that he was crazy. Emge was foreign, but had been respected because he had been a cattleman before going to the dark side, sheep. He did not know his place. He kept his bovine arrogance despite turning to a disreputable occupation, sheep, and he openly disrespected his old cowboy cronies and their deadline. Emge, of course, represented something new under the hot Wyoming sun: old certitudes were dying. Wyoming, as territory and state, had run cattle and had been run by cattle. But Wyoming in the new 20th Century was born again; by 1909 Wyoming sheep were worth more than Wyoming cattle, and even founding fathers like cattle kings F.E. Warren & J.M. Carey were changing with the times. By 1909 cattle kings were running sheep.

That's the context of the story Mr. Davis tells. It's the story of an insular area, almost inbred, that was almost ripped apart by the aftermath of an atavistic raid. Davis excerpts Grand Jury transcripts that show communities and neighbors being pushed and pulled by the old and the new. He tells a story far more interesting than the fey fable that was nominated today for eight Academy Awards.

Amilcar Cabral one of the greatest minds of the twenteth century. A complete revolutionary. His works need to be studied by every African. He is a guide for the future for the success of Cabo Verde and Guinea Bissau if they would follow his example to overcome the colonialist mentality and to change the minds and to become liberated for a new freedom of thought,for a democracy and economic development of Guinea Bissau and Cabo Verde only in their unity in the struggle for success. One can not make it without the other. The youth of both countries must come together in the movement of JAAC. The future of Africa depends on it.

"Warriors at Work" examines the complete functioning of the Guinean people's struggle against Portuguese imperialism. Brilliantly noting the contribution and leadership of Amilcar Cabral, Dhada, as Cabral would have approved, focuses on the mass popular contribution and national role in the process of liberation. Dhada clearly reveals the brilliance of the PAIGC effort. The fighters of Guinea while battling Portuguese aggression simultaneously created a functioning relevant and indigenously produced nation state that would replace the Portuguese colonial machine. Dhada's focus on the mechanics of this process give us the most insightful view of what made the Guinean revolution effective, unique and a theoretical model for all revolutionaries to consider.

Many thanks to Mr. Hawley for producing the book that Earl Dunkle hoped to write, but was too busy working on the next mining project to complete. This is a valuable and unique historical account of the early mining days in Alaska, with primary focus on copper development, as experienced by one of the state's greatest geologist and mining engineers. It is wonderful to have all this detailed and well-documented information under one cover so that it is not lost.

Mr. Dunkle's life was centered on the Herculean task of finding and commercializing copper, gold, coal, and other important minerals at a time when Alaska was a near wilderness. His legendary strength, inquisitive and creative mind, considerable web of contacts with financiers and fellow geologists, rapport with working men, and ability to see a project through earn him a premier place in the state's hall of fame. Mr. Dunkle insight (and courage) in using small airplanes as a tool in mineral exploration and mine development also had a lasting impact on the state. For those of us who now live in Alaska, it is fascinating to encounter in this historical account the names of people, or parents of people, that are part of our lives today, fifty years after Dunkle's death. It is interesting to see how the seeds of a future Alaskan began to sprout in his early life in Pennsylvania and later at Yale University.

The book is not written as a thriller, and does not unrealistically laud the "flying miner". If anything, the drama is understated. This is a focused history book. It is the scale and importance of the events it depicts that give the book its significance. Complete footnotes, a long bibliography, and a good glossary of mining terms add to its value to anyone researching Alaska mining history. Certainly the book should be required reading to anyone planning to visit the Kennicott mining site near McCarthy!

Charles Hawley provides his readers with an incredibly detailed fact-filled account of the life of one of the most famous and brilliant Americans in history - Wes Dunkle. The book is packed with interesting facts, photos, and anecdotes of the life and times of one of the true genius minds in pioneer history. The book provides excellent historical facts and records while at the same time offers very entertaining reading. A must have for anyone interested in mining, pioneering or the history of Alaska.
Peter Besler, Toronto Canada

there is a real voice here,emotion and feelings so tangible, i found myself moved in many ways ...this is honest reading,it takes you into another place and you emerge from the final pages changed

Short and precise! The concept of neuropsychology, spirituality, philosophy, is well put forth...In an exciting adventure where the main character goes through his own created Hell, to depths that only the fearless can experience...it's a book about love, fear, and the occult side of science...The possible future where fear no longer dwells within our minds...

Richard Maurer's new book chronicles Powell's second expedition through the eyes, words, and illustrations of Fred Dellenbaugh - a 17-year-old boy from Buffalo, NY who, along with some rowing experience on the turbulent Niagara River and a facility for drawing, had the gumption to make his dream come true. This story is very well written and quite compelling and will appeal to those who love adventure stories set in the Old West. The photographs and illustrations are remarkable. My hats off to the author!

I read Dellenbaugh's reprinted "Canyon Voyage" (the much abbreviated title) as a young man in the flatlands of western Kansas in the 1960's. The romance of the period of Dellenbaugh's youth, and the Powell Expeditions in particular (1869-72), stimulated in me an ongoing interest in the history of the region. I have read the edited and published diaries of most of the participants of the two expeditions, and continue to invest in an array of scholarly and coffee table books that even remotely address the subject. My annual crossings of the Colorado and Dirty Devil rivers to pursue research interests in southeastern Utah never fail to regenerate my own wish to have participated in such an epic adventure. Thus, when I saw the notice of publication of Maurer's book about Dellenbaugh on the second Powell expedition, with the expression in the title "the true adventures," I was expecting something on the order of D.D. Fowler's book about Jack Hiller's, another expedition participant. That is, a pretty serious biography of the man and a pretty faithful reproduction of the daily diary kept during his time in the field. Well, it might be the former, but it is certainly not the latter. Unlike the other expeditioners who kept diaries, Dellenbaugh's original diary has never been published. Perhaps this is because his 1908 "Canyon Voyage" was a timeline-based (albeit compressed) narrative and researchers may have believed there was nothing more of value in the original diary. While Maurer read the diaries of all the participants, including Dellenbaugh's, as well as Dellenbaugh's "Canyon Voyage" and the earlier "Romance of the Colorado River," Maurer's timeline is even more compressed than Dellenbaugh's. Consequently the book lacks the rich detail of Dellenbaugh's diary and earlier publications. For example, unlike the present book, the consecutive daily diary entries of "Looked for the Major today but of course he did not come; carried the rations over," "Looked for the Major again," and "Still waiting,"conveys a real sense of frustration at being in the same camp, on the bank of the Colorado, day after day, laying up under a boat to avoid the oppressive August heat, with nothing to do, waiting for the Major and Prof to come in so the party can continue the trip down the river through the Grand Canyon. Maurer acknowledged that in the writing of the book he "sometimes resorted to the methods of historical fiction to flesh out some of the stories" and that "footnotes would be out of place in a book like this." Thus despite having the best possible materials at hand from which to draw, this book was never intended as a scholarly work. In that context, the writing was a success. Maurer did locate some great historical photographs and drawings not published elsewhere, and that alone is an important contribution. More than that, though, the book was a really entertaining read. I can well imagine some person, like me once, never having heard of either Powell or Dellenbaugh, picking up the book and just marveling at what they did. And, interest aroused, they have an avocation.

I very much enjoyed the technical information and the more human aspects also included. I would have enjoyed more pictures but I know it is already a large volume. It is worth taking with you if you plan to travel the canyon. One can more fully appreciate the beauty and struggle that went on in the building of the highway.

Haley's book on Glenwood Canyon is extremely well-written, attractively illustrated, and exhaustively researched. He does an excellent job of detailing the design and engineering problems, the concerns of the environmentalists, the personalities of the myriad individuals and organizations that provided unput during the planning and construction processs Finally, he shows the reader the engineering marvel that is Interstate 70 through Glenwood Canyon.

I have read this book hundreds of times. My daughter fell in love with it and we had to read it every night before she went to bed. It was our ritual, one of our many bonds. I highly recommend this book to any parent for their child. Of all the books I read to her, this is the one I will never forget.

A great book. I bout it cause yogi rules. Now so does the colorado river. It is great. I loves it. It is so very interesting. Buy it. Great book, about the colorado river. Peace out, Yogi rules all bears. Picinic basket.

The operative word is SHORT, not easy. No hike, according to the author's calculations, takes more than 2.5 hours; seven take less than a half hour. Although a number of the hikes covered are really just strolls, such as at Sprague and Lily Lakes, several offer more challenge because of elevation increases. Remember, for the most part you are starting out at 8500 feet or more: mouth breathing territory for many folks.

Although this is a slender booklet (easy to take along), there are good tips for health, safety, and comfort. A map of the park and its immediate surrounds is a useful partner to the clear instructions about reaching trailheads. Aerial photos of each trail and the "step by step" guide provide a succinct, but sufficiently thorough, introduction to each trail.

I have a number of books about hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park and would be reluctant to name any as the best. But this is one I consider indispensible, especially for helping our visitors find interesting and satisfying experiences in a magnificent setting. If you are lucky enough -- as we are -- to live near the park, you will want a variety of guides, including this one. If you will visit only a day or two, this may be a good, inexpensive choice for enriching your time there.

This is the perfect gift, not to mention a must have for anyone who is familiar with Colorado and Aspen. Berko's work is timeless and beautifully displayed in this calendar. Highly recommended!!!