Customer Reviews

Exploring Glacier National Park (Exploring Series)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Obviously this is not a book intended to help you plan a trip to Glacier National Park, so the one-star review below was evidently given simply out of ignorant spite at having bought the wrong book!

If, however, you are looking for a book that discusses the geology, the flora, and the fauna of the stunning wilderness that is Glacier National Park, you can hardly do better than this one. And, if you have a brain that's turned on and are travelling in the park for any considerable length of time, as I did recently, believe me, you will have hundreds of questions about how that mountain got shaped that way or why those flowers only grow in this region or when the big-horned sheep are likely to be visible--and you will be looking for such a book.

This book discusses the different habitats and ecological niches that the park comprises, from the McDonald Creek Valley to the Alpine, includes checklists of native plants and animals, where in the park to find particular species, maps, and beautiful full color photos, and provides enough background on general principles of geology and ecology that you won't need any other resource.

On my visit to the park I saw many people with separate books for animals, for birds, for flowers, and so on. But this book has it all. I highly recommend it.

This is a comprehensive review of the geology and natural history of the Glacier area and will enhance a visit to the Park. It is not a guidebook in the traditional sense of listing accommodation and restaurants, itineraries etc. It has some colour photos, although most are black and white.

This is *not* a travel guide or a hiking book. Instead, it is intended to provide a background in natural history for any visit to Glacier NP.

It does this admirably. The chapters on geology emphasize the "big picture" story of how these mountains were formed, and where you can see particular formations. Rockwell does not get lost in the details of rock type and strata names, as all too geologists do.

The book also has several chapters on habitats such as aspen parklands, the North Fork Valley, Macdonald Creek, subalpine and alpine. Again, Rockwell avoids a dry description of plants and animals and instead tells stories of how the habitat as a whole works.

Finally, Rockwell includes some tour-guide material, such as where to find particular kinds of geologic formations or animal habitats from the road.

If you'd like greater depth than you'll get from the visitors' centers, while still being accessible to laypeople, this book would be an excellent choice.

If interested in a detailed coverage of geology, ecology, botany, and environmental issues, this book is for you.

I don't recommend this book, except if you're interested in learning about how the area around the park was formed a long time ago. Otherwise, this book is of no help on a trip to Glacier.