Beyond The Stony Mountains: Nature In The American West From Lewis And Clark To Today

E-Book Overview

America's great epic of exploration--the journey of Lewis and Clark--was also one of the most successful scientific expeditions in history. In notebooks filled with vivid and remarkably accurate descriptions of rivers, prairies, forests, mountains, native Americans, and wildlife, Lewis and Clark gave the world an image of wild country that has rarely been equaled. In this richly illustrated volume, which features more than one hundred photographs and maps, most in full color, noted ecologist and writer Daniel Botkin traces the footsteps of the two explorers as they journeyed from St. Louis, through the breathtaking vistas of the tall-grass prairie and Big Sky country, over the arduous Bitterroot Mountains on the ancient Lolo Trail, to arrive finally at the Pacific coast and its the rugged, rainy, and darkly wooded landscape. As we travel westward, Botkin introduces us to the natural wonders recorded by Lewis and Clark--still fresh portraits of a pristine land--and recounts their many dangerous, challenging, and sometimes strange adventures. Then in his own words he describes the same sites today, providing unique insights about our nation's changes to the land. For instance, the author recounts Lewis and Clark's travels through the great tall-grass prairie, vast plains that stretched to the horizon in every direction, stunningly beautiful land that, adds Botkin, with the eye of a concerned ecologist, has virtually disappeared today beneath the steel plow. This is only one of the key problems that are addressed on the trail we follow through this wonderful book. Others, such as the endangered grizzly bear and the vanishing California Condor, are brought to the reader's attention in prose both compelling and poignant. By the last page of this chronicle, we are filled with admiration for the natural beauty of the American West, a beauty that is slowly vanishing. An exquisitely illustrated and expertly written account of the western landscape, as it was seen by Lewis and Clark, <em>Beyond the Stony Mountain recounts one of the great adventures of the American past while powerfully relating it to the American present.

E-Book Content

BEYOND THE STONY MOUNTAINS This page intentionally left blank BEYOND THE STONY MOUNTAINS NATURE IN THE AMERICAN WEST FROM LEWIS AND CLARK TO TODAY D A N I E L B. BOTKIN OXJORD UNIVERSITY PRESS 2004 OXTORD UNIVERSITY PRESS Oxford New York Auckland Bangkok Buenos Aires Cape Town Chennai Dar es Salaam Delhi Hong Kong Istanbul Karachi Kolkata Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Mumbai Nairobi Sao Paulo Shanghai Taipei Tokyo Toronto Copyright © 2004 by Daniel B. Botkin Published by Oxford University Press, Inc. 198 Madison Avenue, New York, New York 10016 www.oup.com Oxford is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of Oxford University Press. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Botkin, Daniel B. Beyond the stony mountains : nature in the American west from Lewis and Clark to today / Daniel B. Botkin. p. cm. ISBN 0-19-516243-9 1. Natural history—West (U.S.) 2. Lewis and Clark Expedition (1804-1806) I. Tide. QH104-5.W4 867 2004 508.78—dc22 2003016664 Book design and composition by Mark McGarry, Texas Type & Book Works, Inc. Set in Minion 987654321 Printed in China on acid-free paper To Jane O'Brian, one of the best naturalists I have known, and who loved the Lewis and Clark trail, and loved travel and adventure as did Lewis and Clark This page intentionally left blank CONTENTS Acknowledgments Preface 1 A Partially Settled Landscape: Lewis and
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