Customer Reviews

Sierra Birds: A Hiker's Guide

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Finally a good bird book for Sierra hikers! This book is very easy to use because the birds can easily be found simply by looking at the color of what you're seeing. It's excellent for kids and advanced birders alike. There isn't much information about the birds but if you just want to identify what you're seeing I don't think someone could make a better book. The size, weight and waterproof cover make it so that I'm actually happy to bring it along.

I use this guide outside of the Sierra as well to confirm the bird species I have seen.

The images are wonderful! The birds have texture and life - they are anything but flat, 2D images!

The helpful clues for IDing birds are really effective, and the bird by color instead of genus or class makes it much easier for the novice or casual birdwatching hiker to have the thrill of Bird IDing & observation!

CHEERS! JM LAWS ! U have done a wonderful job. I can't wait till your next book comes out!

I just recently looked at this book, and I'm thrilled that someone finally made such an easy to use guide! It's so much quicker to look up birds by color than by fumbling through the book, trying to figure out where to look. The illustrations are beautiful and clear, and it is thoughtfully lightweight- comfortable for backpacking. I am glad I have it, and I'd recommend it to birders both beginner and experienced!

We live in Reno, and enjoy hiking at Lake Tahoe on the Tahoe Rim Trail. This book is really helping us identify birds we see around our home and on the trail.

Everyone with a plan to hike the Sierras, or owns a home there should have one.

It is always difficult to find specific nature books by area. Although I am not a bird watcher, this helps us at least identify what birds we see around our house. Nice addition (and read) for us and our visitors.

John Muir Laws published an absolutely beautiful guide to the Sierra Nevada, The Laws Field Guide to the Sierra Nevada. Reviews all over the country, including here on Amazon, have been glowing.

Laws writes on his website that "[t]he draft of the bird section of the guide was so enthusiastically received (the reviewers did not want to part with their drafts) that we published it separately as a stand alone book. It is remarkably easy to use and is now carried by everyone from environmental educators to back country rangers."

Amazon doesn't allow people to look inside Sierra Birds, but you can see 27 of the pages, many in full color, by searching for the book on Google Books. You'll see immediately how easy the book is to use for everyone from kids to experienced birders. The book actually reviews itself.

And, even better, as he writes: "A virtual exhibit of my work is now on line at the Sierra Nevada Virtual Museum. Enter the site, click on "Galleries", click on "Natural History", scroll down to "Plants" and there it is." You'll be very happy you did.

And, if you have any interest in birds, you'll enjoy this little guidebook, even if you only hike in the Eastern mountains and dream about the Sierra Nevada as I do.

Robert C. Ross 2008

Not complete nor comprehensive, but extremely useful. It is well-organized, well-illustrated and very portable. It is useful for identifying birds in most situations. It is thin (about one-quarter inch) so it fits in the pack. It is well bound and printed on durable paper.

For the middle-aged among us, it is extremely important to not that the book is 9" x 4", which allows for adequately sized illustrations and type (you won't need the reading glasses out there on the trail). For our younger readers, please note the definition of adequately-sized illustrations and type changes after age 45.

It truly is a guide for hikers.

This is a wonderful book. Easy to use and identify birds. I gave it to my 84 year old mother in law. She loves it and delights in telling me what birds she has seen that day. I used it for the Great American Backyard Bird Count this year and it really helped. It makes a great gift for people traveling to the Sierra's or hiking in them. I live here so use it every day.

This is a well prepared compact reference. Nature lovers can find excellent identification pictures and descriptive narrative to aid in enjoying our feathered friends.