Columbia Reviews

If you're moving to the D.C. area, this is a wonderful guide to have around in the weeks up to and during your move. It focuses a little too much on D.C. proper, and not quite enough on the Northern Virginia or suburban Maryland areas. There are some minor errors scattered here and there that could have been easily checked and corrected. And not wrong, but irksome: on the beigish-yellow portions of map 13, the Yellow Metrorail line is all but invisible. Smart thinking, Fodor's.

But the sheer amount of useful information in this book is staggering. The maps are clear, the neighborhood descriptions put me right in the middle of the bustling crowds, and the places and activities listed could keep me busy for a good five years without repeating anything.

If and when I move to D.C., this book is going to be creased and cracked and dog-eared in mere days. I'd also recommend it for people who are just traveling to the city for a few days.

Thank you Mr. Anglin for a comprehensive review of an area often visited and seldom appreciated. Central Washington is shrub-steppe and lacks the beauty and lustre of the more spectacular pine forests of the Cascades or the Puget Sound with its rugged pioneers. However, major waterways. springs and bunch grass concentrations helped direct traffic in and around the arid wilderness of the Columbia Basin. Anglin has been thorough in his research and methodical in his presentation of the various phases of transit. His level of detail has made me reach for the gazeteer or road map many times to envision a herd of 2000 cattle fording some stream or fighting off some Yakama warrior party. My only complaint was the rather small number of maps compared to the wealth of narrative.

This is a classic for anyone interested in the history of logging in the Pacific Northwest. Together with Andrews other companion book, "This Was Sawmilling" the reader will gain a great understanding how trees were harvest, transported to mills and converted into the resources which built this Country. There's hundreds of wonderful photos from the woods along with many contraptions which loggers created to make their tasks either easier or more likely, more productive. Can you imagine a raft 1000 feet long and 30 feet wide and deep made out of logs laced together with huge chains? These structures containing millions of board feet of trees would be created in the far Northwest and floated down the coast to San Diego, CA and further. There's photos in the book. There's a great photo of a logger standing on the top of a tree hundreds of feet in the air just after he has completed preparation for high-lead logging. The book is separated into geographic regions from British Columbia and each of the States of the Northwest. It has numerous poems written about loggers. (Please don't call them lumber-jacks. I never heard a man who works in the woods called a lumber-jack all my years going up in Oregon. Yet a recent TV show about the worlds most dangerous jobs constantly referred to them a lumber-jacks.) Distraction of this classic includes the lack of a table of contents, index, and the disconnect between the photos and the stories. Which is to be expected. Andrews rarely had photos of the people in the stories and vice versa. Why this short-comings. Superior Publishing printed many of these books by folks who simply wanted to document the hard work of others. Regardless whether it was logging, railroading, or shipping they were willing to publish the books. Thank goodness they did or we'd never have had these classics. If you have an interest in the history of logging this book will be a great addition to your collection.

I have the 5th Edition of this book, but, this can only be better I hope.

It is a very personal review of the states and what they have to offer and as opposed to other books that are just boring and incomprehensible listings of attractions and dining and lodging .
I actually went to some of the dining and hidden attraction recommendations from this book and it didn't fail me. All those places were certainly what the book said they would be or maybe more than that.

The only drawback i can see is that there wasnt any mention of good campgrounds that car-campers could easily refer to. But for that, you can look up "the best in tent camping".

Good Luck with your trips. I know mine was a great success.

If you love hiking and live in the Columbia Gorge area (or plan to pass through) this is a nice guide to have. I learned of hiking trails I didn't know existed and the Gorge seems to have plenty of them. Each hike is listed with a general description, the distance of the trail, how much traffic of people to expect there, the best season to go, the elevation gain and maximum elevation. A map is shown and directions to the hike are given along with detailed description of the hike. Many black and white photographs show views from the various hikes. My one disappointment with this book is that the Deschutes River trail that is branched off directly from the Columbia River Gorge is not mentioned in this book, because it is east of The Dalles; this book only mentions the trails from Portland to The Dalles.

The book "Ice Runway" details the highlights of a private pilots flying career on the West coast of Canada. If you are a pilot, or hope to become one, and plan to do any mountain flying at all, then this is the real life adventure book for you! Roy gives us the real-life wisdom and highlights of his 20 years of flying the west coast mountains. An engineer by profession, a rock climber by choice, Roy details how he mixed his love for flying, with his love for climbing by landing on many of the major glaciers and high mountain lakes in BC. Roy pushed his super cub to the limits, and when that wasn't enough he (and a few close friends) rebuild a super cub to go even higher and farther. And yes, he lived to write the book! Roy is a one of a kind, old , bold pilot.

This big thick tome is written by a renowned local outdoor writer and offers a huge amount of information about British Columbia and is a good companion for those who will be spending a lot of time in the area. It's obvious the author is well traveled as his descriptions are spot on. This great detail has a downside. If you're traveling to a place using this book it's often difficult to extract the highlights.

I've read a lot of reviews that compare the various guidebooks, but as each has a different niche this sometimes isn't fair, as in the case of this book, which excells in recreational coverage while only briefly covering places to stay and eat. Each chapter ends with a shortlist of places to stay and restaurants. These are condensed from another book in the series (so the Introduction says) and so in my opinion lose their usefulness as cutting corners has obviously come in front of continuing with author Christie's expert voice.

While the general information in this book is excellent and comprehensive, many things have changed since it was written, such as Forest Service campgrounds being free and the advent of the internet (no websites listed).

Joe takes his experience, local knowledge, some lore, as well as the technical "Sailing Directions" to put together an excellent feeling for what life along the Inside Passage is like. Transient, wet, varied, moving. Joe spent his young adulthood transitting this area from Seattle to the fishing grounds in Southeast and beyond. The book gives a good account on the differences in life between Alaska (fishing, logging, etc) and Seattle. This book is a good introduction to the Inside Passage, life on a fishboat, being away from loved ones, and the risks encountered at sea.

Enjoy cruising mostly inland waters that present more dangers than one imagines. This is a view from the cabin of a working boat, but translates very well to cruisers and sightseers who are planning a trip up the Inside.

This book is essential reading for a balanced understanding of Pacific Northwest Catholic missionary history. The subject of the book, Fr. Charles Pandosy, O.M.I. is a hero, a true pioneer and a witness to many of the events that shaped the present Pacific Northwest experience. The author provides good translations of early letters and documents related to the subject of his study. Although the footnotes are disorganized, the reflections upon the meaning of Father Pandosy's missionary life are apt. Father Pandosy was a Missionary Oblate of Mary Immaculate of the first generation of his missionary congregation and of the first magnitude. French by birth, he loved God, the Native Peoples with whom he worked, music and singing. Kowrach conveys all the elements of this complex and interesting person. As very little is written about Father Pandosy, Kowrach breaks new ground with this effort.

A fairly comprehensive guide to Southwest BC. I've been doing some weekend road trips from Seattle and this guidebook has been a tremendous help. The maps are easy to follow and the route descriptions have been accurate so far. My only complaint is that the majority of rides are under 12 miles (though many rides can be combined to make longer days). Still, there is a good variety of rides including ones for less advanced riders. For riders living in the area or heading up for a vacation/road trip this guide should prove a good investment.