Customer Reviews

Rock Art and Ruins for Beginners and Old Guys

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With a sence of humor Mr. Scholl does a great job of educating others about rock art.

In an introduction chapter he discusses what rock art is and types of rock art. He discusses what rock art means and refers you to other well written books. He also provides lists of emergency equipment, camping equipment and more that you should consider taking as you begin looking at rock art.

In the next chapters he tells where to go to see rock art. He also instructs the reader about the expected behavior, tours to take, and more.

There are directions for taking pictures of rock art and explanations of clothes to wear, weather, and even a few recipes for crockpot cooking... so you can cook while you are looking and come home to a nice meal. Great!

This is a very exciting book. It made me want to jump out of my seat and go looking. The pictures are nice. His enthusiasm is catching and the format is easy to understand. Well worth the money.

Enjoy

This is a fun book and practical guide for campers and hikers who would like to see some well-known petroglyphs and pictographs and ruins on their own. The book tells you where to find some of the best rock art and prehistoric ruins on the Colorado Plateau (Southwestern U.S.); how to gather all the necessary equipment for camping out (or in a motel); the best time to take pictures at a site; and recipes to cook in a crock pot in the car while you are out and about. In his droll way, School spins some pretty funny experiences. He had me really laughing at some of his exploits.

The book leads off with a brief overview of petroglyphs and pictographs and a little history of the ancient people that inhabited the area some 6000 years ago. Scholl then gets into important vehicle advice and precautions. You then come to a well thought out, organized chapter on Food and Cooking. He lists "Basic Food" to keep on hand and cooking equipment suggestions. He has some pretty ingenious ways to make meals when you are camping out of a car or tent. (You may want to try his Carburetor Cuisine.) Then he gets into a comprehensive drug/first aid list, the necessity of physical conditioning, and photography equipment and supply suggestions. If you really want to be organized, use his lists as your base.

Once you have digested the tips on camping and surviving, you get to the part about how and where to go to find rock art and the ancient dwellings. This is divided into Chapters by state with a state map for each chapter showing approximately where the sites are. There is a description of the area, how to get to the site, the best time of year to go, type and difficulty of hike, photography tips, accommodations (both camping or motels) and his recommendations for side attractions in some areas.

Scholl gives us a practical guide - useful for young or old, as well as new and experienced campers and rock art explorers. I found some new areas I can hardly wait to visit, and with his book in hand, I am confident that I can follow his directions and be successful. Buy it! Plan your own treasure hunt.

Rock Art And Ruins For Beginners And Old Guys is a travel and field guide to more than forty major Native American prehistoric rock art sites as well as fifty other ruins and attractions that can teach even the most urbanized city slicker the basics of prehistoric rock art in the West, including where to find it, as well as how to hike, camp, and cook while making the journey. From the equipment needed on the trail to the type of vehicles that are best to drive, Rock Art and Ruins for Beginners has it all - along with descriptions and directions for many ancient, fascinating rock art sites. If you are planning on viewing rock art in the American West, begin by reading Albert School's Rock Art Ruins For Beginners And Old Guys!

What a totally fun way to learn about rock art just waiting for us to see in the Southwest. As a "beginner" I loved the good background the book provides about how these cultures came to be. Also found the maps to be invaluable as were the recipes for cooking on the road! The whole thing is told with such great fun and humor. Had me chuckling throughout. Made it a joy to read. MUCH different from most books like this that give very dry descriptions and data. Loved the continuing self-effacing references to "old guys". The author seems like someone who doesn't take himself too seriously and loves to enjoy himself all the while he continues to learn. Wonderful!

I have always been fascinated by Native American rock art. But a lot of the books I have seen either have great photos but are lacking in details about going to see the rock art, or, they are full of academic details but don't guide you and they are not much fun.

This author not only supplied great looking photos in color and black and white but he has provided maps and directions on how to get to these rock art sites and to many ruins. After all a book is one thing-but seeing them is like a relgious experience. And since I am a beginner and an old guy I think I got twice my money's worth.

On the cover of Mr. Scholl's book it's says "A fun guide to over 40 major prehistoric rock art sites and 50 other ruins and attractions". And you can tell it's a fun book because he adds,"How to get there safely, eat well and have a great time." And he delivers with neat recipes and ways to prepare a meal while out in the wilderness. One of my favorites is his method for "Ironing" a sandwich.

All I can say is take a look at this book if you are interested in the Southwest,Indian Petroglyphs and Pictographs,Paleo-Indians, the Anasazi, the Mogollon, the Hohokam and others. You'll spend more time seeing the sites because you'll spend less time asking people how to get somewhere. Believe me when you ask someone how to find an Indian Rock Art site you may wind up wandering around the desert half the day and never finding it as I once did in Utah.

This is a great guide book to carry, filled with humor and like me, I'll bet you will have it with you on all your trips in the Southwest. And, even if you don't go, it's worth the price just for the photos, recipes and wonderful humor of a man who takes excellent photographs and obviously wrote about a love of Art and native Americans.

This is unquestionably the best written book of its type that I have read. It's about time somebody took the time to write a book as a teaching vehicle using a light, humorous approach. I've a huge library of books on the subject, but this one has become my favorite. I fully intend to recommend it to others interested in the subject My advice to the author: don't stop now, write more !!!

This is really a great book!! It's very informative and easy and fun to read.This book gave me all the information I needed to visit the rock art and ruins sites I did while I was in Utah.It gives you directions,the type of hike to get there,when to go,photography tips and other useful comments.It also has lots of nice pictures,some in color and some in black and white.It's one of the best books I've read on visiting these sites in the Southwest.

albert sholl has crammed a lot of information into one book. theres something for everyone here. scholl has spent many years investigating petroglyphs and has taken camping and hiking to an art form. his sense of humor is terrific and the book is worth the price for the recipes alone. also, everyone thinking about going camping should read this book. it may save a life!

IF MY HOUSE WERE ON FIRE THIS IS ONE OF THE FIRST BOOKS I'D SAVE! IT IS FUNNY, CREATIVE, PRACTICAL, AND VERY WELL ORGANIZED. EXPERIENCED HIKERS, BEGINNING HIKERS, OR ARM CHAIR TRAVLERS - YOU WILL LOVE THIS BOOK - AND IT JUST MIGHT GET YOU OUT OF YOUR ARMCHAIR.