Great book that should be brought on all California road trips. There are good descriptions of each park, directions, contact information, and activities available at the park. These activities are mostly short hikes, or bike trips around the park. California is a beautiful and vast state with a diversity of environments to explore. There are parks throughout to state that allow the active explorer access to the state's beauty. This book is a helpful guide in that exploration.

This is the best reference for the parks in the California system. Very specific directions,activities and some pictures highlight the text. We used it this summer to plan our camping trips. No Tom Steinstra in its doggedness,it still provides useful information.

The beauty of this book is in the photograghs! Herbon does well to use a simple, interesting text, which includes just enough history to make the pictures come alive, but not too much where you will lose interest. The photos speak a thousand words!

I would have enjoyed some photos from more parts of the Park from the ground. Most photos were strictly from the air or in Kennicott or McCarthy. Since I am planning a backcountry trip there in Aug 2000 I would have enjoyed pictures from the areas that hikers are venturing to.

I would recomend the book for anyone planning to vistit McCarthy/ Kennicott and the Wrangell/ St. Elias Natl. Park.

George Pollock was an ambitious man who wrote his memoirs and died before they were published. He was a tenacious, arrogant and self serving businessman. He wasn't factual in his statement's about the mountain people. He called them squatter's when in fact most of them held deeds to their property. Deeds dating back to the early 1800's long before Pollock was born. However, it was to his advantage to portray them as squatters, illiterate, immoral and backward to stir up sentiment against them and thereby get complete approval to establish the Park and displace all these hundreds of people who had lived in the area since the early 1800's. He is solely responsible for the removals and disruptions of over 400 families. How do I know this? I am a descendent of one of those families - one of those so called "squatters"......Diane Nicholson Smith

George Freeman Pollock recounts his history at Skyland, and the early days of Shenadoah National park. Although the book is full of hard to believe tales and is not a true autobiography, Pollock does a good job of describing the vast and beautiful mountains, and the many colorful characters who inhabited them. Pollock spent most of his life at Skyland, and made great personal sacrifices to ensure that the land would be preserved for all to enjoy. Pollock's love of the outdoors, charismatic personality, and entertaining stories are inspiring. If you visit the park often, or are interested in the history of the area, this book is a great resource.

Pollock recounts the history of Skyland, and tells many tales revolving around the wonderful landscape and colorful characters of the Blue Ridge mountains. If you frequent Shenandoah National Park, or are interested in the history of the area, this book is a great resource. Pollock, ever enthusiastic, spent the majority of his life in the mountains, and made great personal sacrifices to preserve the land so all could enjoy it. Although the book jumps around a little, and some of Pollock's stories seem a bit exagerated, it is informative and enjoyable.

This book is most helpful as a guide to the markers and tablets on the Gettyburg battlefield. It will help you locate some out-of-the way markers and make a detailed tour slightly easier. However, take the comment about the objectivity of the descriptions contained on the markers with a grain of salt. For example, the four markers at the edge of the Peach Orchard describe the fighting on July 2 as III Corps commander Daniel E. Sickles would like you to understand it. The truth is a little more complicated, to say the least. The inscriptions offer evidence of the battle for memory and the shaping of narratives to privilege one view over another. When reminded that there was no statue of himself on the field, Sickles responded that the whole battlefield was his monument--a monument to his ability to impress his view of the battle on others.