Camping Books

Filled with black-and-white sketches depicting its descriptions of types of fishhooks, edible and poisonous plants, techniques for building a fire and much more, Wilderness Survivor's Guide: A Manual Of Basic Survival Techniques is a superbly presented primer to life in the outdoors. Written in easily understandable language accessible to the lay reader Wilderness Survivor's Guide is a treasure trove of fascinating information for campers, hunters, outdoor enthusiasts, and armchair travelers alike.

I recomed you to read this book because it is interesting, educational,funny and has all the qualities of a good book. This book sparks the imagination and is good for all ages. So I sugest you read it and you will have much enjoyment.

The only CG book. If a park is not listed, chances are it did not meet Woodall's minimun requirements (in other words, stay away from the unlisted parks).

It's mostly all there and fairly rated and described. We've seldom been disappointed.

If you wish to take the art of wilderness camping to its simplist form this is the book to read. I have an edited soft cover edition that I bought for $1.00 at a garage sale and it's one book I will not part with. Its a great read and filled with simple ideas to make your "Outing" enjoyable. As Nessmuk would say "we go to the green woods to smooth it, not rough it".

After reading the first book, Challenges, I was anxious to read the next. This book is told in alternating chapters between Mr. Rigby's trip to kayak Hudson Bay and Courtney Kramer's trip to the Ozarks. I ended up reading the book in 1 day because I needed to know how events unfolded in each writer's story! It was well written, entertaining, and gave me a new appreciation for the majesty and beauty of the outdoors, both in the U.S. and in Canada. Mr. Rigby is able to bring out the best in his students. I hope there will be many more years of Ozark adventure's to come!

I loved the book. It made me feel like I was having a very intimate conversation with an old friend.

The Young Fishing Enthusiast is an excellent teaching aid to novice fishermen of any age. Using lots and lots of excellent photographs to grab the reader's interest, this book covers all aspects of fishing--from history of fish, gear to use, knot tying, fly fishing vs. lure fishing, and bait lore. It has a decided earth-friendly slant to it with sections on catch-and-release fishing and "considerate fishing" (sharing the lakes and rivers with other enthusiasts and wildlife.) A wonderful overview for anyone just getting their feet wet, so to speak.

This book is amazing! All you need to know about camping and youth is in this book. It has information on just about every aspect possible for camping with youth, from camping with a youth group to being a part of a summer camp. Not only does Bob share his wealth of knowledge about camping, but also how amazing an oppotunity it is to share Christ in the camping atmosphere. It's got great instruction as well as plenty of ideas and resources you can use. If you are looking for an great resource for camp and youth and how to make it work well, get this book! Cho boy!

It's become a bit of trivial fodder: In 1972, a plane carrying a Uraguayan rugby team and their friends crashed in the Andes. They survived there for over 70 days, doing whatever was necessary to survive, sustained on their faith, and the hope that they could one day break beyond the prison of the mountains and reach civilization.

Since the story HAS become a piece of trivia, it's important that we read something that makes us understand the underlying humanity of the situation. To that end, Read's book is almost a necessity. It details day-to-day life in the crashed plane, and attempts of the Uraguayan families to find their missing loved ones.

The great thing about "Alive" is that it chronicles the event in a somewhat detached manner. At first, this might seem odd; after all, such a tragic event is an emotionally-charged topic, especially once you get down to the human element. However, to tell the tale with emotion is to get LOST in the tale. To overcome this, read uses a scientific, detached description of events, which ultimately leads the reader to ponder the horrific reality these people went through. It is a very successful storytelling mode, which only hits a few snags (he insists upon calling cannibalism "anthropophagy," and admits in the introduction that some of the survivors felt the book didn't go into enough detail about the friendship they felt for each other). Also, there is the fact that this book dates back to 1974, only two years after the events; it would be nice to know how the survivors faced the rest of their lives.

Still, the book is thorough, and it's dry, almost dead-pan style is the only real way of describing the events that unfolded, without getting lost within the maze of emotions (actually, the dry delivery almost makes things even more horrible; don't read this book if you are squeamish). "Alive" is a tale of horrific events that tested the limits of humanity. It is a must-read for anyone interested in what being human really means.

This is a very interesting book. My wife and I were living in Uruguay when this occured and I recall all the anxiety until they were found. Also, recently, our son was in a conference in California where Nando Parrado, one of the survivors, spoke. Nando has also written a book about the crash and survival.
The book Alive is a bit gruesome at points, but realistic about the guys' survival. There was shown a great deal of determination and desire to live on their part.
In general, very good.

This is the only book I've ever read where I caught myself shielding my eyes so as not to know quite so much about the fine points of cannibalism. I ended up skipping about two pages detailing the butchering of the bodies, which organs are the most nutritious, etc. However, the author was just doing his job and there's only a few pages involving cannibalism.

The plane came down in a snow field at 11,500 feet elevation, higher than the highest mountain in California by comparison. This put them far above the timber line in a frigid place devoid of all life -- not even a fly or a blade of grass. Due to incompetence on the part of search and rescue operations and also a so-called psychic who had the rescuers searching everywhere but the right place, the survivors were presumed dead and left to fend for themselves for 72 days, and would likely have never been found were it not for the daring feats of mountaineering by two of the survivors who went on an arduous 8 day trek out of the mountains and into Chile in search of rescuers.

With no food it was inevitable the group would have to eat the dead if they were survive. As someone explained, your survival instincts and your appetite will not only lead you to eat the dead, but eventually to savor it. Then, when the two expeditionaries finally connected with civilization, a peasant tossed them a crust of bread and their appetite for human flesh evaporated.

As horrifying as it was, there is an upbeat message in this book about the unshakeable will to live, about the utility of human solidarity in the face of death, and the mystical communion between the survivors and their dead comrades who saved their lives by providing the nourishment to survive.

This book has been around a long time. It's a page-turner and millions have read it, especially in South America where this event was known simply as the Andes crash, and the survivors are still celebrated as heroes. Google it if you want and you'll find lots more info, photos, and a Google map reference to the exact spot the wrecked fuselage came to rest.

What would it be like being stranded in the Andes with very little food or water? Well Alive by Piers Paul Read might give you an idea. This emotional, and yet exciting non fiction book accurately depicts the terrible seventy-two days a team of Uruguayan rugby players and their relatives experience. The setting of the book is in the Andes Mountains, Uruguay, Chili, and takes place in 1972. The theme of this book is man's will to survive is more powerful than anything. The main characters of this moderately paced book would be the last sixteen survivors, the two strongest of them being Fernando Parrado and Roberto Canessa, who play a big role in the survival of them all. After being stranded for seventy-two days in the Andes Mountains this small rugby team forms a special bond and learns the true meanings of life. I think this is a very exciting, but gory book and would recommend it to anybody but only if you have a strong stomach because there are many references to dead bodies and eating human flesh. These rugby players show us that with faith and a strong will to survive we can overcome large obstacles.

Once I finally got into the book, this was a good story of survival. The men and women who crashed in the Andes had to overcome horrible situations -- injuries from the crash, an avalanche, and then the lack of food. What they did to survive was admirable, even if some may judge them harshly over their decision to eat the flesh of their dead friends.

That being said, though, the story moves so slowly, and the author's writing style is so staid, that it took me forever to actually feel like I was reading something worthwhile.

A good story, but it's a journey to plod through it.