Customer Reviews

Hiking Ruins Seldom Seen

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Okay, so beyond dinosaurs and crappy movies, I love the prehistoric southwest. When I got my hands on this book, I thought, "Awesome! Some places I've never even heard of are going to be revealed!" But I was in for something of a letdown. There are lots of out-of-the-way ruins discussed in the book, its true. But to say that they are "seldom seen" is something else again. The author mentions two hikes into Grand Gulch up in Utah - Grand Gulch is one of the most popular backcountry hiking areas in the Four Corners. He also talks about the backcountry ruins at Bandelier National Monument in New Mexico. You can find that same information on the NPS website, among others.
But, despite the fact that some of his "seldom seen" ruins aren't quite as isolated as he suggests, I can accept that. What irks me the most is the geographic disparity displayed by the author. The majority of the sites discussed are located in central or southern Arizona. There's only a handfull from Utah, a couple from New Mexico, and none from Colorado. I find that to be an unacceptable omission. There are hundreds of virtually unknown ruins in southwestern Colorado in the Canyons of the Ancients National Monument. Scores all across Cedar Mesa and the Great Sage Plain in Utah that remain unmentioned, despite inclusion in other books about the region and the fact they are in fact "seldom seen". And western New Mexico - don't even get me started. Dozens of rarely visted Chacoan Outliers could have been included. It just seems like the author hung out around Phoenix and didn't want to take the time to fully do his homework on the other states around him.
If you're in Phoenix and like ruins, buy it for sure. If you're somewhere else, go with caution - its not going to lead you to as many places as you might think.

I own about a dozen Falcon Guides. This is a welcome new addition to the series. The author gives trail descriptions for 36 hikes in Arizona, New Mexico, and southern Utah. Each hike leads to a ruin (Hohokam, Salado, Anasazi, etc.).

Although I've explored the Southwest on half a dozen long trips, most of these ruins were unknown to me. Most lie on National Forest or BLM land, not National Parks. Most are hitherto unknown to the general public, with some exceptions (for example, he includes the famous stone lions in Bandelier National Monument).

The trail descriptions are reasonably good, and include distance, USGS topo maps, and a difficulty rating. One innovation is the inclusion of GPS coordinates for the ruins themselves (but signficant waypoints might also have been nice). The author doesn't always provide altitude information.

There's a brief section discussing ruin etiquette, backcountry hazards, and photography tips.

I recommend this book for anyone who loves hiking, the Southwest, and prehistoric Native American ruins.

"Ruins Seldom Seen" is one of the most interesting and original hiking guides I've ever read. The pueblos, cliff dwellings and rock art sites described in the book are fascinating, and the interpretive information answers all of the basic questions hikers may have about them. Just as important, the book leads hikers into many obscure wilderness areas, making it a "must" for adventurous types who yearn to get off the popular trails -- sometimes off trails altogether -- and truly explore in the Southwest. Finally, contrary to what some people think, books like this help educate the public and increase appreciation of Native Americans ruins, resulting in less theft and vandalism at archaeological sites. Many critics also fail to realize that people who destroy Indian ruins tend to be ignorant, have no interest in learning about Native Americans, and sure as heck will not pay (price) for a book about archaeology. So I give "Ruins Seldom Seen" a big thumbs-up!

This book opens doors to whole new worlds of true adventure and hiking pleasure, with just the right amount of history and humor thrown in. Having spent a substantial part of the last 10 years hiking around Arizona, I have relied on a variety of sources to find "The Perfect Hike". I have referred to books, maps, travel guides, and word-of-mouth when planning my trips. None of these other sources leave the same impression on one's hiking experience as the unique writing style and easy to understand maps and directions that Dave Wilson's "Hiking Ruins Seldom Seen" can provide. The hikes to ancient ruins are relatively easy to find using this book, yet they lead you to places that very very few people have ever seen. I was surprised that within minutes from Phoenix or Tucson, there were such easily accessible and unknown Indian Ruins of such spectacular appearance. I would recommend this book to any novice, intermediate, or advanced hiker who is looking for an exciting and unique experience anywhere in the Arizona, Southern Utah, or New Mexico region. Excellent Book. A rare find!

This book opens doors to whole new worlds of true adventure and hiking pleasure, with just the right amount of history and humor thrown in. The hikes to ancient ruins are relatively easy to find using this book, yet they lead you to places that very very few people have ever seen. I was surprised that within minutes from Phoenix or Tucson, there were such easily accessible and unknown Indian Ruins of such spectacular appearance. I would recommend this book to any novice, intermediate, or advanced hiker who is looking for an exciting and unique experience anywhere in the Arizona, Southern Utah, or New Mexico region. Excellent Book. A rare find!

This book was very helpful and exciting! Two days after I recieved the book, me and a friend went out to find Nogales Canyon, NM. We had ALOT of fun and we found it with no problems. The book was extremly helpful and without it we would have never even known about this dwelling.

I've hiked almost all of these hikes using this book. About half are accurate, the other half, forget it. You cannot find the trailhead. I was pissed off alot of the time because I drove miles out of my way and couldn't find the trail. Also, this book is old and the topography has changed quite a bit. SOme of his strenous hikes are not, but usually it is the other way around. He needs to drive these roads again, some of the "well graded" dirt roads are horrible, rough and rocky. Don't even think of going to White Mountain Tanks near Phoenix, it is a zoo. The Picacho Peak site was great, though.

Having grown up in the Southwest, I sometimes get a bit weary of all the newcomers who think they have to write a book about their "discovery" of this region. This book stands in contrast to many of those books in that it invites the reader to come along on the path of discovery.
The text is written clearly and competently edited. Directions to the sites are easy to follow, and the difficulty level of each hike is realistic if the adventurer is healthy and in good shape.
The information the author gives about the sites is fairly accurate, considering he is not a trained anthropologist. In fact, that may be an advantage in that the text is not cluttered up with a bunch of incomprehensible jargon; however, the author's explicit demand that those wishing to visit these sites show them complete respect should satisfy any professional in the field since they are notoriously picky about laymen visiting sites without the company of an expert.
In all, it's an enjoyable read that gets me excited about taking a hike.

Let's face it, when it comes to hiking books, by-and-large they're not the most researched publications in the world. They tell you where to begin a hike, where to end, and a bit about what you'll see along the way, but almost nothing beyond the author's own observations.

Ruins Seldom Seen is the first hiking guide I've seen that is truly different. In addition to the usual practical information, the book provides information on the history of ancient Native American pueblos, cliff dwellings and rock arts sites. You learn which Indians occupied specific archaeological sites, when they were occupied, and what purpose the sites served (not all ruins were used for habitation). Clearly, the author has done his homework. If you don't believe it, just check the bibliography, which contains page after page of research papers written by professional archaeologists.

It's also refreshing to read a book about Indian ruins that isn't obsessed with "glamour" sites in the Four Corners area. Actually, the book does contain quite a few chapters on Anasazi cliff dwellings and rock art sites in New Mexico and southern Utah, but the emphasis is on ruins in Arizona that you've probably never even heard of let alone seen. I was amazed to learn there are cliff dwellings in the Sierra Ancha Mts., Superstition Mts. and other places in central Arizona that are every bit as fascinating as those further north. As for the many "hilltop pueblos" covered in the book, I was equally amazed to learn that so many of them even exist in the Grand Canyon state. Anyone who is not aware of such places has clearly not done THEIR homework.

Because of its originality wealth of historical information, I give the book Ruins Seldom Seen and enthusiastic "thumbs up."

I live in Phoenix and never knew there were ruins near me I could hike to - not a part of a museum, etc. Makes me want to travel to some of the other sites and check them out, too! Road trip!