Customer Reviews

On the Loose

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

How ironic it is to see that this book is about to be published once again. I was first given a copy in 1969, my freshman year of college, and it was the first publication I'd ever held in my hands that spoke of wilderness as something that could enlarge and enlighten the inner life of a human being. What interested me most was the fact that the Russell boys were the only people I've yet encountered to go into Glen Canyon before it was flooded to document at least some of all that was about to be lost. Given the unsuitability of the geology of the area, and the Native American sites that present day laws would have protected, it's highly instructive to have this book to illustrate what was drowned before most Americans even knew it existed. I'd certainly never heard of Glen Canyon before I picked up "On the Loose."

The merits of the Glen Canyon dam were shakey even in the sixties, but the momentum for building big dam projects could not be entirely overcome by the cautionary minority of long-term thinkers. In the end, Glen Canyon was sacrificed partly so that the Grand Canyon might escape the two dams proposed for it. In the decades since, the creation of a 180+ mile reservoir where once a mostly unexplored canyon complex once stood has proven of far less value than it's more famous cousins Hoover and Coulee, and fallen far short of it's promoters' promises. And now patient Nature, always the eventual winner, is taking her canyons back via drought, evaporation, leakage into the porous sandstones, and every dam's nemesis, siltation. Add in the fact that there is a growing movement to take the dam itself down and let the canyonlands heal as best they can, and you've got powerful incentive to revisit the Russells' little book, to see what once was and may once be again.

I hope the surviving Russell brothers have had good lives. Their beautiful book certainly struck a chord in me and a lot of people I know.

This book changed my life. I was given a copy while in high school in the mountains of colorado. I was, and continue to be, inpired by this book. My days and nights under the open sky of the west have filled my life with joy - and this book helped get me out there after growing up a city boy in california. Buy it, read it, and give copies to everyone you know.

I have a well-worn copy of the original printing by Sierra Club Books, which inspired my own travels in the American West. To find "On the Loose" back in print, nearly 30 years later, and to give the book as a gift to my son, is to come "full circle."

I got this book from my boarding school roomate, who also introduced me to such endeavours as rock climbing and Zen poetry. Obviously, many thanks to him for broadening my world and pushing my limits. Likewise, this thin book does the same. On the Loose is one of the books I keep handy for reading when things get too dark and I need to get out of the city limits. It's a positive idea - two young men, running wild through the west, productive in the sense that they are becoming conscious of Nature, themselves, and the encroachment if 'civilization' on that fragile world, and remains an inspiration to me to hold on to my own wild places I have found. The combination of grainy photos and wonderful quotes, as well as the poetic prose, inspire and center. I have purchased copies for friends, when it was still in print, and jealously guard my copy, although I am pleased to hear that the book will once again become available, as well as a follow-up. I expect it to be as strong of a work.

For all of you who are pining to find a copy, check out bookfinder.com. There are hundreds of copies available (all pre-owned, as far as I can tell) in all varieties of condition and at all kinds of prices. I recently purchased four copies for my husband, for me, and to give as gifts. Good looking!

It's quite rare when you can honestly say that a book changed your life but after having read "On The Loose" during my sophmore year at college in 1969, I became an ardent enviromentalist. I also purposed to hike the Appalachian Trail as a result of reading it. Eight years later I fulfilled that promise proudly carrying "On The Loose" in my backpack the entire way.
I feel so fortunate to still have my original copy ... it's stained from many days of being with me on various hikes all over the United States but I suspect I'll want to be buried with it!
I am so happy to see it re-published. I just hope my grandchildren will someday read it and be moved as I was so many, many years ago.
The best books are often the simplest - this is truly a masterpiece. Anyone who cares about the environment or just plain loves going for a hike needs to read it and "feel the eternal connection".

What a treasure to find that On The Loose is still around. This book is full of wonder and joy on every page. On The Loose found me in 1967 when I was an undergraduate student. It is still with me. I was wandering and On The Loose spoke to me of the wilderness as something full of awe. This is truly a beautiful book. It continues to remind me over and over that, as I can see I will keep looking and as long as I can walk, I will keep moving. I am so happy that with the reprinting of On The Loose it will now find its way into my grown children's hands as they continue to make their way and look beyond the light and dark.

There are so many wonderful and amazing photographs and quotes in this book. This book is truly an invitation towards insights gained by looking outward and beyond. Let yourself go beyond where you can barely see. Buy this book. Always ride for the high points! This is the book to take with you.

D. Budd
Edmonton, AB Canada

This book is a treasure...golden and important. It is a primer of sorts for living a good and authentic and adventurous life...the bible with a small b for so many of my friends who discovered at some point how big the world is...and how much we can experience if we widen our perspective. "Take shelter under the cloud...while others flee to carts and sheds" I probably am misquoting from memory but there are so many great quotes in this small but vital book. One of my favorites for so many reasons...to be shared with friends and family.

I received my copy of On The Loose 24 years ago and it is still my favorite book. This moving account of two young borthers' love for the American West is inspirational. The breathtaking photographs paired with brief and almost religious text are extremely insightful, while at the same time sad. I enjoy reading parts of this book from week to week and always find new meaning when I reread its well worn pages. Like many others, I would love the opportunity to give this book to close friends, and I am looking forward to the time when the Sierra Club reprints it.

this is the most incredible book i have ever read. it took me out of my decaffeinated white picket existence and said there were places left in the world where one could wander at will, no questions asked. read this, then leave it at home and go outside.