Desert Survivor: An Adventurer's Guide to Exploring the Great American Desert [Paperback]

John Annerino (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 10, 2001

The Great American Desert stretches from Oregon to central Mexico, encompassing some of the loneliest, loveliest spots on the planet. Desert Survivor tells readers how to get there, what to take, and the dangers and pleasures they can expect to encounter along the way. Out-of-the-way gems of the Sonoran Desert are described alongside such popular desert destinations as the Grand Canyon and Big Bend National Park. Desert Survivor is written for the daypacker as well as the more intense traveler who wants to spend a few nights or more under desert skies. The book includes maps, drawings, and photos. Features an overview of the 53 most heavily visited national parks and monuments in the western U.S., and includes guidelines for exploring the desert both by foot and by vehicle.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Desert Survivor: An Adventurer's Guide to Exploring the Great American Desert outlines what you need to survive--and thrive--in the Chihuahuan, Mojave, Sonoran, and Great Basin Deserts."
-- Outside Magazine

"Desert Survivor: An Adventurer's Guide to Exploring the Great American Desert. A "how-to" detailing the dangers and pleasures of exploring the Great American Desert and a guide to the natural and social history of the region."
-- Southwest Books of the Year

"Some folks like to head out in search of adventure. Others prefer to find it in the pages of a book. Either way, readers can't go wrong with John Annerino's Desert Survivor. Intimately versed in the ways of the wilderness, Annerino has written a book for exploring the Great American Desert."
-- Arizona Daily Star

"Your shelf or bookstore likely has many volumes with reliable information on survival and camping. Two of my favorites [one is] John Annerino's Desert Survivor: An Adventurer's Guide to Exploring the Great American Desert and . . . "
-- Bill Broyles, author of Sunshot: Peril and Wonder in the Gran Desierto

"John Annerino is one of a handful of photographers with a real empathy for the West. His work has an edge to it, reflecting the sheer size and power of his subject a subject he treats with love and respect." - Newsweek"

From the Author

Southwest Books of the Year
* View images from this photo collection at johnannerinophotography.com
* Read the author's illustrated biography at johnannerino.com
* Get updates about the author's published work at Author Central
* Order now from Amazon
* Autographed and inscribed copies available at johnannerinobooks.com

Images from this photo collection were featured in:
* High Risk Photography: The Adventure Behind the Image
* Desert Light: A Photographer's Journey through America's Desert Southwest
* The Wild Country of Mexico / La tierra salvaje de México
* Vanishing Borderlands: The Fragile Landscape of the U.S./Mexico Border

Writing and research from these essays were featured in:  
* Canyons of the Southwest: A Tour of the Great Canyon Country, A Sierra Club Book
* Dead in Their Tracks: Crossing America's Desert Borderlands
* Desert Light: A Photographer's Journey through America's Desert Southwest

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Four Walls Eight Windows (May 10, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1568582005
• ISBN-13: 978-1568582009
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,278,062 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

John is pleased to share the exciting news that his newest book, The Virgin of Guadalupe: Art and Legend, will be published on March 1 by Gibbs Smith. John's illustrated 100 Year Centennial paeans to the Land of Enchantment, New Mexico: A Photographic Tribute, and the Grand Canyon State, Arizona: A Photographic Tribute, were just published. His landmark photograph commemorating the World Trade Center was recently published in the 2011, 10th Anniversary editions of the New York Times No. 1 bestselling books, LIFE One Nation, America Remembers September 11, 2001, and LIFE In the Land of the Free. The iconic image and others can be viewed online at www.johnannerinophotography.com. John Annerino's indelible photographs were published previously in the New York Times No. 1 bestselling book, America 24/7: 24 Hours, 7 Days, Extraordinary Images of One American Week, and the Grand Canyon state sequel Arizona 24/7: Amazing Photographs of an Extraordinary State. John is the author and photographer of many books, among them 17 distinguished photographic essays and thirty-two single-artist calendars, including Wild & Scenic Arizona, Wild & Scenic New Mexico, La Virgen de Guadalupe, and the award winning books Indian Country, Desert Light, Grand Canyon Wild, Vanishing Borderlands, Canyons of the Southwest, The Wild Country of Mexico, and Roughstock: The Toughest Events in Rodeo, (acclaimed by the Rodeo Hall of Fame). John's credits include Arizona Highways Magazine, National Geographic Adventure, LIFE, Newsweek, People, Scientific American, Time, Travel & Leisure, and many prestigious clients worldwide. In his quest to explore the renowned landscapes and secret places of the Great Southwest and Old Mexico with a camera and pen over last 25 years, John has climbed its hallowed mountains, rafted its wild and scenic rivers, journeyed on foot through its mystical chasms, and crossed its alluring deserts. He has photographed and come to know the region's Native peoples and ceremonies, Western cowboys and traditions, and Spanish heritage and celebrations. John Annerino is a member of The Authors Guild, New York. Visit his illustrated bio online at www.johnannerino.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not What I Wanted, July 17, 2006

By 

Robert Summers (San Jose, CA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Desert Survivor: An Adventurer's Guide to Exploring the Great American Desert (Paperback)

I am considering doing some backpacking in the desert. I wanted a book that contained some mixture of desert hiking advice, suggested routes, gear selection tips, and ancedotes.

This book does contain those things, sort of, but I was disapointed. It suffers from a lack of focus and organization. The author wanders between stories of the American Indian tribes, the history of European exploration and his modern day trips. In more skillful hands this might been an interesting interweaving of past and present but it fell flat for me.

The part of the book that I enjoyed the most was the two tales in the introduction. In those tales, the author sounds like an interesting person. The most useful thing that I found in the book was the author's rule-of-the-thumb for estimating the amount of water needed for a desert hike.

In his discussion of the usefulness of water stills and how hard it is to get water from cacti, the author lets it slip that he has taught desert survival, the book would be better if he had elaborated on that more.

All-in-all, I'm glad that I didn't pay full price.

0 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Review of "Desert Survivor", September 9, 2009

By 

Joseph Wenzel - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Desert Survivor: An Adventurer's Guide to Exploring the Great American Desert (Paperback)

Modest price, timely received, VG to E condition. This book deals with desert hiking is a serious warning about dehydration on such trips and is important reading for hikers, cyclists and runners in the desert, here in the USA or elsewhere.

1 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Ultimate Guide to this vast and fascinating region!, June 22, 2007

By 

Alex D. (Lost Horizons, Santa Fe) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Desert Survivor: An Adventurer's Guide to Exploring the Great American Desert (Paperback)

"Some folks like to head out in search of adventure. Others prefer to find it in the pages of a book. Either way, readers can't go wrong with John Annerino's Desert Survivor: An Adventurer's Guide to the Great American Desert. Intimately familiar with the ways of the wilderness, Annerino has written a how-to book for exploring the Great American desert from Oregon's Great Basin Desert to Northern Mexico's Chihuahuan Desert. . . ."

- Arizona Daily Star

"I just finished Desert Survivor, but there is so much information I think I will immediately re-read it. This is the one book I have read that focuses exclusively on North American deserts and how to survive and enjoy them, concentrating on preparedness rather than survival for the unprepared. Also with a heavy emphasis on Native peoples' methods for surviving and in some cases flourishing."

- Backcountry Books

"Your shelf or bookstore likely has many volumes with reliable information on survival and camping. Two of my favorites are John Annerino's Desert Survivor: An Adventurer's Guide to the Great American Desert and Peggy Larson's The Deserts of the Southwest: A Sierra Club Naturalist's Guide."

- Bill Broyles, desert rat and author of Sunshot: Peril and Wonder in the Gran Desierto

"Stretching from Oregon to central Mexico, the Great American desert encompasses North Americas most famous landmarks including the Grand Canyon, Big Bend in Texas and Utah's Canyonlands. Desert Survivor is the ultimate guide to this vast and fascinating region. Photos & illustrations."

-Libreria Universitaria, Italia

"Following the stories of Annerino's own experiences thwarting death in the remote deserts of the American southwest, Desert Survivor is devoted to a fascinating history of the earliest adventurers in America's remotest desert and an equally compelling survey of the area's geology, flora, and fauna."

- My Destinations

"A well informed, practical guide and handbook for hikers, backpackers and anyone else who would like to explore the parks and wilderness areas of the Chihuauan, Mojave, Sonoroan and Great Basin deserts of the American Southwest. With maps, drawings, photos, and guidelines for safe travel. Annerino is a popular author, photographer -- and desert rat -- who lives in Tucson. With an excellent overview of the natural and cultural history of the Great American Desert."

- Longtitude Books

"Desert Survivor: An Adventurers Guide to Exploring the Great American Desert by John Annerino details the dangers and pleasures of desert sojourns."

- Publishers Weekly