A Summer in the High Sierra

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This book was excellent. It covers John Muir's first summer in the Sierra Mountains. I love reading books where I can see life at another point in time through someone else's eyes. For me, the most fascinating parts of the book were his encounters with the Native Americans. His reportage on these encounters are honest, discomforting and sometimes a bit frightening--and they have bear no resemblence the politically correct images of Native Americans you get in today's scrubbed history of these en This book was excellent.

His reportage on these encounters are honest, discomforting and sometimes a bit frightening--and they have bear no resemblence the politically correct images of Native Americans you get in today's scrubbed history of these encounters. I personally find changing history so as not to hurt anyone's feelings, dishonest and I love reading original sources that are not subject to modern views like this.

Having now visited Yosemite myself, I really enjoyed the descriptions of places I have seen. What is amazing is how much was recognizable. This particular version of this book contained pictures of John Muir's actual journal and I found myself reading through all of the text he wrote, crossed out, and put in the margins. I also enjoyed looking at the sketches that were in his journal too, and it was really fun to look at the sketch right next to a photograph of the same scene--which this edition had a few of these.

Backpacking Gear List || High Sierra — Late-Summer

I recommend this book for anyone who has visited or is planning a visit to Yosemite, Sequoia or Kings Canyon, and other natural history nerds. My First Summer in the Sierra is a journal, not a novel. John Muir's wonderfully descriptive account is a work of art, a labor of love. And it poses the question how can we have become so technologically advanced and yet we have lost the basic skills of journalling?

I deeply appreciate John Muir's prose. It is way above novels that try to tackle the natural world but fall short. This read is for anyone who has gone to Yosemite National Park and wants to relive the awe that was felt when gazing at its grandeur. This is for everyone who loves the outdoors.

You might also enjoy: The Diary of a Forest Ranger. John Muir, America's favourite Scotsman, writes so beautifully and eloquently in this passionate book on the Sierra wilderness. It's playful, philosophical, poetic, scientific and very hard to put down. Read Muir singing the songs of Robert Burns to squirrels, encounter bears, describe the colourful plant life that surrounds him, engage with Native Americans and surrender his soul to the transcending beauty that is Nature.

His philosophical passages had an incredibly inspiring impact on me, and John Muir, America's favourite Scotsman, writes so beautifully and eloquently in this passionate book on the Sierra wilderness. His philosophical passages had an incredibly inspiring impact on me, and his love of the wild is unparalleled. A tour through a world that no longer exists, leading the reader with joy and humbleness through one of the most beautiful places on Earth.

The writing style is much different than the one generally used today, but it still gives the reader an intimate entry into the Range of Light with all it's variables and moods. If time travel is discovered while I'm alive, this is where I'm going!

And I may not come back It is a beautiful and entertaining look into a unique mind. Mar 13, Blake Charlton rated it it was amazing. This I suppose was my first book by a naturalist and I enjoyed it. Detailing his own trip to Yosemite as a sheep herder during the summer of , the book is a celebration of Yosemite. I felt a little envy for his unabashed use of exclamation points throughout. He's truly excited--wandering the meadows, climbing the domes, describing plant and animal life, drinking "champagne" water--and isn't restrained in showing it.

The enthusiasm is palpable and I was glad to be reading it while in Yosemite This I suppose was my first book by a naturalist and I enjoyed it. The enthusiasm is palpable and I was glad to be reading it while in Yosemite exactly years after he recorded his extended stay there The most extravagent description I might give of this view to any one who has not seen similar landscapes with his own eyes would not so much as hint its grandeur and the spiritual glow that covered it.

Another of those charming exhilarating days that make the blood dance" But, before that, he had to discover them for himself. He grew up on an improvised farm in Wisconsin with a domineering Calvinist father. He escaped as soon as he could. Leaving home, he first became a walker and then a writer. He made his first trip into the Sierra Nevada Mountains in as the rest of the country was just beginning to heal from the Civil War. Warm, sunny day, thrilling plant and animals and rocks alike, making sap and blood flow fast, and making every particle of the crystal mountains throb and swirl and dance in glad accord like star-dust.

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No dullness anywhere visible or thinkable. No stagnation, no death. Jun 28, Nick Klagge rated it it was amazing. I have considered myself a big John Muir fan for a while, but this is easily the best thing I've read by him, and it's what I would recommend to anyone new to him. It's extremely accessible and is just what it says on the cover--a diary account of the first summer Muir spent in the Sierra Tuolumne Meadow area , as some sort of supervisor to a shepherd taking a herd of sheep up into the mountains.

Muir does virtually no discernible work over the course of the book. It was especially nice for m I have considered myself a big John Muir fan for a while, but this is easily the best thing I've read by him, and it's what I would recommend to anyone new to him. It was especially nice for me to read this while in Tuolumne and after coming back, but I think anyone interested in nature would get something out of it.

Muir's writing is lyrical but also straightforward, there are laugh-out-loud sections, and he is so enthusiastic to learn about nature that you can't help get carried away along with him. More than anything else, this gave me the impression of Muir as a sort of ecstatic holy man of the woods. A very special person and one who I haven't tired of reading about. I read this several years ago and thought I might enjoy listening to it this time as it is on librivox. The reader is excellent. I love this journal style of writing, but it isn't for everyone. It made me chuckle when I realized that a walk through Yosemite with John Muir would have been a little bit like a walk with Bob Ross, that "Joy of Painting" guy.

His gushing is as entertaining as the plants and animals he describes! John Muir must be the only man alive who could gush over finding housefl I read this several years ago and thought I might enjoy listening to it this time as it is on librivox.

John Muir must be the only man alive who could gush over finding houseflies on mountain tops! I love this book. Oh my god I love John Muir, my new favourite botanist. He's not replacing anyone, I didn't previously have a favourite botanist and didn't know I needed one in my life. Turns out I did and it's this wonderful man, part botanist, part scholar, erstwhile inventor, occasional shepherd, writer, campaigner and general all round lunatic. This book tells the tale of a summer trip into the Sierra Nevada mountains, or the mountains of light, as he prefers to call them.

He went with a gang of sheep farmers Oh my god I love John Muir, my new favourite botanist. He went with a gang of sheep farmers moving their animals to summer pastures and tells the story of their trip as well as some lengthly tangents on the flora and fauna of the area, which enchants Muir, you can really feel his love for it on every page. Written over a hundred years ago from notes made around one hundred and fifty years ago, you'd expect more challenging language or archaic terms but the whole thing is as plain as if he's speaking right too you, and discussing topics we think of as modern now, climate change and environmentalism.

Also contained are numerous tales, presented as little anecdotes or asides, which will leave you stunned that the man lived past his seventieth year. Tales such as the time he met a huge bear and wanted to see what it looked like running, so he sprinted at it waving his hat and shouting. The bear wasn't altogether impressed though and they shared a moment together before it ambled off. This book is wonderful, John Muir is wonderful and everyone should please read it. Feb 23, Els rated it it was amazing Shelves: I love John Muir. We're probably long-separated twins.

By a couple hundred years. This waterfall will kill me if I take three more steps. But the poetry of the falls I should probably be mo I love John Muir. I should probably be more careful. Also, Billy wins the "Worst Shepherd Ever" award by a very long shot. Apr 26, Erik rated it really liked it.

If you've ever spent some time outside in nature and just been overwhelmed by it, you'll understand how John Muir feels. It's also neat to see nature writing from a time before ecology, before Teddy Roosevelt, etc. There's also some really funny parts. I recommend you listen to this book when you're driving through the wilderness if possible. This was a DNF for me. I love the Sierra Nevada and was hoping that this would capture my fancy, but it was not to be.

It is beautifully written, but just didn't do much for me and I ran out of renewals at the library so I gave up on it. Feb 04, Bryce rated it really liked it. As a nature lover, environmentalist and having spent some time in the Sierras, this book was a delightful read. I particularly enjoy his perspective on nature church.

Great read I just love detailed descriptive books about the outdoors. The named locations within the park takes reader to the exact location is just beautiful. Aug 04, Vince Snow rated it liked it. Kind of a tough read, I really liked a couple of his stories though, especially the one about confronting the bear in the meadow and the one about how happy he was when his dog came home.

Jul 31, Shloka rated it it was amazing. What an enlightened human being! Jul 10, James Beck rated it really liked it. Learned a whole bunch about sheep herding. Jun 18, Chloe Glynn rated it it was amazing. From the pages of this book shine out California sunlight. John Muir's joy is contagious and nourishing. Even vicariously, to be so richly immersed in natural beauty uplifts the soul. It is a great read and a quiet argument for protecting that which has so long protected us. But note that this is a diary. Do not expect it to be "action" in diary's clothing. Speaking of sheep, this diary follows John Muir's first summer in the Sierra mountains in California as a sheep herder.

Later, I have read, Muir lobbied against allowing sheep to graze in national parks. Muir pities the pitiful sheep and is put off by their devouring grazing and the commercialism that would promote it: They cannot hurt the trees, though Poor, helpless, hungry sheep, in great part misbegotten, without good right to be, semi-manufactured, made less by God than man. Published in near the end of his life, Muir wrote this diary well before he became a key figure in the development of the U.

Muir documents his summer in detail: Many readers may find these descriptions tedious, bogging down Muir's movements, actions, and encounters with bears. Fair enough, but I was reminded of the effect that I think Herman Melville sought in fiction with his extensive, tediously descriptive passages in Moby-Dick: Muir's writing is, and Melville's writing sought to recreate, a chronicle, meant primarily to document, secondarily to inform, and tertiarily to entertain.

Muir's fascination, enthusiasm, awe, and reverence are infectious. He has a mystical appreciation for wilderness; he discovers God in the mountains, in "Nature's cathedrals, hewn from the living rock". His belief in the unity of all things recalls Buddhist tenets: When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe.

One fancies a heart like our own must be beating in every crystal and cell, and we feel like stopping to speak to the plants and animals as friendly fellow mountaineers. Nature as a poet, and enthusiastic workingman, becomes more and more visible the farther and higher we go. As a mystic couching his experience in Christian and natural terms , he humbly greets noble fellow organisms throughout his account.

He encounters "curious tree-bushes" Arctostaphylos pungens and wonders that "[e]ven the fires that sweep the woods seldom destroy them utterly, for they rise again from the root, and some of the dry ridges they grow on are seldom touched by fire. I must try to know them better.

It seems strange that visitors to Yosemite should be so little influenced by its novel grandeur, as if their eyes were bandaged and their ears stopped Yet respectable-looking, even wise-looking people were fixing bits of worms on bent pieces of wire to catch trout. Muir makes me want to wander Yosemite, but also to contribute to Yosemite's and other American wildernesses' preservation--an accolade that I think he would greet humbly and gratefully.

Such a wonderfully described adventure journal! Muir's sole use of incredibly positive and uplifting adjectives, only give the reader an option to see goodness and beauty. He only chose to use negative descriptions for times he had to leave the beauty. He "loathed" going to sleep because he couldn't enjoy the surrounding majesty.

He hated to end his adventure because he had to leave it. He even neglected probably intentionally to descr Such a wonderfully described adventure journal! He even neglected probably intentionally to describe any ugly days or poor weather. John Muir saw only light in his time in his Range of Light! I suspect there is a good possibility that John Muir's My First Summer in the Sierra was on the book shelf in my childhood home in California. He was, after all, highly regarded by my parents and the home was filled with books of all types and genre.

But, I do not remember it nor have I ever read anything written by John Muir, until this th Anniversary Illustrated Edition caught my attention. Muir's account of his adventure in and around the Yosemite Valley of the Sierra Nevada range is p I suspect there is a good possibility that John Muir's My First Summer in the Sierra was on the book shelf in my childhood home in California.

Muir's account of his adventure in and around the Yosemite Valley of the Sierra Nevada range is poetic in its descriptions of all that he saw. The obvious grandeur of the range itself as well as the sheer beauty of nature in a pristine back country setting continues to this day - in spite of the overcrowded environment that has evolved in a more populous world. Muir captures it perfectly. As a boy scout, I enjoyed a number of camping and backpacking experiences in the Sierra Nevada very near to the areas Muir describes.

While I wasn't so enamored with his itemized listings of flora and fauna, his less scientific and more sensuous poetic prose touched my soul and inspired many delightful memories. He seems to express a spiritual experience with nature while on this sheep herding excursion, for which, by the way, he rarely gives details of the actual work of herding. Yosemite Valley and Mt. On August 1, there is about 15 hours of daylight and civil twilight; by September 30, there is about Low elevations are home to the montane forest.

Trees are usually spaced widely apart, resulting in a mix of shade and sunshine. Above the montane forest is the sub-alpine zone. Trees are more scattered, tundra grass becomes common, and willows line the waterways. In the alpine, there are no trees, just grass and willows, or just rock at the highest elevations. Popular trails are well worn and signed; less popular trails demand more attention. Map-reading is generally easy due to a combination of distinct topographic features, excellent weather, and constant faraway views. No other wildlife deserves mention. Isolated pockets can remain into August, but can be avoided by planning wisely your daily schedule, route, and campsites.

September is virtually bug-less.

An ambitious hiker willing to travel off-trail can find very remote terrain, even further from help and the next closest hiker. The afternoon monsoon thunderstorms can produce lightning. River levels are way down from their peak, and fords are easy. Black bear attacks on humans are extraordinarily rare. I have several go-to stove systems. On solo trips in the High Sierra, I most often use the Cadillac. The Dirtbag would be a less expensive setup, with similar results. Go here for downloadable gear lists for my first aid, foot care, and field repair kits.

I am most pleased with this gear list and caveats for the Autumnal Sierra Hiking. I am always looking for efficient, lightweight stuff, especially for my smaller Scouts…. I want to start them easily, lightly, completely so they will have a good time. A bad time discourages them from more hiking at all.

Then, as they grow up to become pounders, they know how to enjoy longer and more adventurous stuff. I have limited computer skills so I do not know how to download the lists that appear here. If you have them in a pdf format or a doc or docx, then I can save them and share with my Scouts.

Backpacking Gear List || High Sierra -- Late-Summer

Thank you for offering so many practical and pleasant programs for outdoor-people. May GOD continue to bless you and your outreach. I intend to post a generic gear list template but I do not think I will offer a download option for each list. There is an easier solution for all of us: We take our first year Scouts backpacking, regardless of how small they are. They need to present a pack ready for an outing for Tenderfoot, right? That means that backpacking is an appropriate activity for all Boy Scouts. We teach the Patrol Leaders to distribute crew gear and shared gear like tents so that the smaller Scouts are not overloaded.

I think the above mentioned approach, introducing day hiking first, would be the best way to get a troop like mine which I think is common, unfortunately… to get into backpacking and other long term adventures canoeing, cycling, etc. The Salomon Light Short looks tiny. Basically a running short, yes? Do you use sun protection to protect your thighs during the day? How does that work? The Salomon X Ultra shoe comes in a low and a mid-high.

Which do you use? Weight is listed at Is there a number we must come in below? The Light Short has a 4 inch inseam, which will feel short unless you wear running shorts regularly. There are longer lined shorts if you want more coverage. Trekking poles and a light pack negate the need for ankle support, at least for most. Overall pack weight is low, but definitely not the lowest. Ditch the bear can if it is not required on your route, go with a 1.

Thanks for the detailed list! I am looking forward to more. Have you ever tried the Suunto M3G? Testing the M3D and M3G side by side at REI, I noticed the magnetic wizardry needed for the global needle means that the needle comes to bear in less than half the time and wobbles less while working even if the compass is held at awkward angles. This saves me quite a bit of time spent staring at the compass over the course of a multi-day orienteering event. However, personally I prefer the M3G for the reasons you said — it has a faster needle and it the baseplate need not be held perfectly flat.

I will update my comments to reflect this sentiment, thanks! But I wash my hiking shirt and shorts every other day, and my hiking socks at least daily, and my body every other day. If the REI poles had been available at the time with lever-style locks they had twist-style locks until about 2 years ago , I would have went with them instead. For all but the hardest of users big men, aggressive off-trail and snow travel , they should be fine.

Check with rangers before taking an alcohol cat food can stove. Sierra fire restrictions used to require stoves with a shutoff valve. Also homemade stoves are prohibited for Boy Scouts, so they would need to buy a White Box Stove in order to use one. Finally, you must get, print out, and carry a California Campfire Permit if you want to use a stove or fire on public land.

You can do this on-line: Andrew; I do not have the computer skills to move this nice list for lightweight backpacking into a Download or Document file. I only try to get the kids outdoors; too much Scouting has become urbanized. Your Fall Sierra list condenses the gear into smaller, lighter packaging so my smaller Scouts will actually go on the hikes. Please send my the Fall Sierra list as a pdf or a doc; I most appreciate your help. Yes, I did sign up for your Newsletter but it has not shown up on my e-mail. Thanks for helping me and my Scouts.

Howard, in Edmonds, WA. A bra suggestion for the ample who need good support at the lightest weight. Often available on ebay. I love these lists, and think you should publish them more an analysis of page views of this gear list might support that idea. Publish these more, publish them in the different regions you go to. Thanks for the encouragement. It is definitely my intention to publish more of them, for a number of reasons. I hope to get two more lists up in August, for the Northern Rockies and for Colorado elk hunting, and I hope to post many more over the winter when I have down time.

Are those quilts too fragile for this kind of trip? As a very basic reason, we all sometimes go with what we have access to, versus spending several hundred dollars to save a few ounces or to get a marginal improvement in performance. In my personal fleet of bags and quilts, the SD quilt made the most sense.

There is also a functional explanation, however. The SD quilt is wider than most quilts less drafty , it is tall enough that I can pull it over my head and utilize its hood-like gap warmer , and it features DWR down more reliable performance when humid or damp. Why do you consider a fleece mid layer top optional and an insulated down jacket required?

I find myself making the opposite choice: I find that I never wear insulated jacket while moving unlike fleece and in camp I could just jump into shelter and sleeping bag for warmth that also leads to a heaver shelter and sleeping bag. Also, I find that a fleece is most useful for cold-and-wet conditions; if the 5-day forecast is dry, which is often the case, the fleece can be left in the car.

Hopefully readers use my list as a template but adjust it to the specifics of their trip: In specific regards to your question, I think my list would have been entirely appropriate for those conditions — the likelihood of cold-and-wet Sierra storms is built into the clothing and shelter systems. However, this is not to say that the weather would be a non-factor if you had this exact kit; rather, such conditions will still probably force you to shorten your day, change your route, or endure more discomfort than the normal Sierra experience.

The issue is really one of comfort and safety — Can you at least fare in those conditions, since excelling is really not possible? Thanks, a great answer. My question was raised by a number of people seemingly caught out by the downpours recently on the JMT. Waterproofs for an afternoon storm failed under hours of rain, and then compounded by cold nights.

The REI Sahara poly pants dry quickly. This lamp now discontinued. Bauer down jacket, light Mechanix gloves. They can be quite troublesome. Even when your food is far from camp theyre known to chew through tents and packs if left unattended. Thanks for posting the gear lists! I noticed that you are only carrying six stakes. Are you forgoing the midpoint tie-outs on the grace tarp and only pitching the ridgeline and the corners? Hi Andrew, thanks for continuing to offer your thoughts and recommendations here.

If you are at all comfortable on snow, I would leave them behind. Since Buzz was already off the snow by the time I laced up and stepped onto it, it was clearly a waste. Hello Andrew, your book and numerous online talks, videos and posts have proven to be some of the most candid and educational that I have come across as a novice thru-hiker. I am planning on hiking the JMT with my 2 brothers next summer, and like you have parents that worry for the well-being of their sons.

We are hiking N to S and aiming for days not 7! The JMT is very safe: So it seems like you should be able to get away without one, from an emergency perspective.

This is a very helpful list, thank you. I was wondering if you thought boots were required for the off-trail stuff in the Sierra High Route? No, not required, and not recommended either. I would stick with trail runners or light hikers. But select a robust model — you will appreciate the durability and foot protection e. Some might want to consider taking an ACE bandage, particularly if they are older.

I never carried one, and then this summer I got a tibula stress fracture and it really helped me to get back off the trail and probably minimized the damage, and then on different trip this summer my friend experienced serious unforseen ankle issues. Yes you can partially make-do with wrapping other textiles, but at 1 oz an ACE bandage is very efficient and effective. Now a permanent part of my kit. Due to the stretch of the ACE bangade, it is generally considered ineffective at immobilizing injuries.

For that, static tape is best. Reading through the comments I think people are missing the point that this is a suggested guide, and that everyone will want to balance their pack to their own particular style. My balance is cost. So yes you can do similar trips at a fraction of the cost. But I sacrifice some weight and comfort at the expense of being able to buy groceries when I return home from my trips: Actually as a side note I love my backpack.

It weighs less than 2 lbs and has held up well. Definitely not as comfortable as some more expensive packs, but works well for ultralight trips with 6 day re supply times. I consider my list a template for your own — a guide, as you said.

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