Tag Archives: Colin Fletcher

Book Review: The Man Who Walked Through Time, by Colin Fletcher

Backpacking, Book Review, ,

Yesterday I posted a book review of The Thousand Mile Summer the first book written by Colin Fletcher. In that post I shared that three books influenced me to consider venturing into deserts and I moved to a desert in 1977, where I still live. Each of these books have stood the test of time, and I have read them several times over the decades. Over this time I have changed as I matured, society has changed. The deserts have changed too. Deserts are constantly changing.

In Colin Fletcher’s second book, The Man Who Walked Through Time, we get a close up view of a changing desert as viewed through his eyes. The geological record in the canyon walls, abandoned ruins of cliff side houses built centuries ago, a river that has been tamed by man, invasive species such has equines introduced by early European adventurers, and more.

Just like Thousand Mile Summer, this book reflects an inner transformation of the author that comes with being immersed in nature.

The Man Who Walked Through Time by Colin Fletcher and published in 1968 is a thoughtful and skillfully crafted account of his 1963 journey through the Grand Canyon.

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Book Review: The Thousand Mile Summer, by Colin Fletcher

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Over 50 years ago, on a hot summer day, I helped one of my brothers move to the Mojave Desert where he was starting college. The heat was like a blast furnance. His car overheated several times, resulting in a blown head gasket. After unloading his belongings and a fitful night of sleep, I left, hitch-hiking back to LA.

I vowed to never enter a desert again.

Six years later, I moved to the desert. A different desert. A hotter desert. Why would I do such a crazy thing?

In the time, between my vow to never visit a desert again and my relocation to the desert, I read three of my now favorite books. They piqued my interest, and I began to visit, hike, and backpack in desert environs. The first book I read was, The Thousand Mile Summer, by Colin Fletcher.

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Walking Man: The Secret Life of Colin Fletcher (a biography)

Backpacking, Book Review, ,

THIS IS A BOOK I WON’T BE READING

walking-man

 

 

Colin Fletcher is known as the “Father of Backpacking” and Robert Wehman has just published the only biography of the reclusive man.

You can purchase the book from Amazon as a Kindle version for $9.99 or paperback for $18.53. I have never heard of the author but the reviews have generally been very good.

I did buy it for a friend, but will pass on reading it myself.

WHY?

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Colorado River Camp

Camping, , ,

Yeah, I know. Another camping trip. Ho hum.

Well, not for us. We enjoy everyone of them. After our Eastern Sierra vacation, we decided we need to start using our boat more often. The problem with a boat, especially if you live in southern California and the boat has a motor, is the fact you aren’t going to find many remote, quiet, and uninhabited places close by to camp and boat.

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Grand Obsession: Harvey Butchart

Book Review,

If you are human and have stood on the rim of the Grand Canyon, you have to have been overwhelmed by its immensity and beauty.

If you have ventured down to the bottom via one of the popular trails, you must have been absorbed its charm.

If you are lucky enough to travel down to the bottom on a little known and rarely used trail, you are probably addicted to the Grand Canyon. It is a heroin drip.

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