Mountaineering Essays (Literature of the American Wilderness Series) Book

As the name implies, this book is a series of essays written by John Muir, a prominent outdoorsman and one of the primary reasons America has so many national parks.

Muir eloquently describes his romps around the woods, climbs up prominent peaks (Mt. Shasta, Rainier), and other adventures in the untouched western U.S. wilderness. His writing is quite beautiful, invoking feelings of awe towards nature and providing vivid imagery to put the reader in Muir's own boots. An excerpt: "when one of the greatest and most impressively sublime of all the mountain views I've ever enjoyed it came full in sight - more than three hundred miles of closely packed peaks of the great Coast Range, sculptured in the boldest manner imaginable, their naked tops and dividing ridges dark in color, their sides in the cañons, gorges, and valleys between them loaded with glaciers and snow. From this standpoint I counted upwards of two hundred glaciers, while dark-centered, luminous clouds with fringed edges hovered and crawled over them, now slowly descending, casting transparent shadows on the ice and snow, now rising high above them, lingering like loving angels guarding the crystal gifts they had bestowed."

There is no mistaking Muir's fascination and sheer love for the wilderness: his writing conveys just how much nature means to him and how he sees it differently than the average hiker.

This book is highly recommended for any outdoors person, and should be read while experiencing nature (preferably similar to where was!).

If you're wanting to experience Californian nature and mountains, I highly recommend Trinity Alps Resort, located near Redding, CA. Established in the 1920's (my great-grandfather went there as a child), it is a wonderful place to relax with friends and family and experience nature. The hike to Emerald Lake is challenging (26 miles round-trip from TAR), but entirely worth it: landscapes straight out of this book are present along the entire trail.

See also: Albert Bierstadt's complete works, California's High Sierra.