Category Archives: The West

“Mysteries of the National Parks”: A Geographical Hoot

I have to hand it to Mike Bezemek, whoever he is. (Full disclosure: I know nothing about the guy.) It’s not so much about the mysteries of national parks as more of a humorous glimpse into one man’s odd obsessions that somehow, often tangentially at best, relate to national parks. Continue reading →

Posted in Kooky books, Mike Bezemek's "Mysteries of the National Parks", The West, Wildlife, writing, Yasunari Kawabata's "The Lake", Yellowstone National Park backcountry trips, Yellowstone wildlife | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Lost in the Great Utah Flood

The El Nino we’re now experiencing seems to have thrown a monkey wrench in the weather gears.  Continue reading →

Posted in Climate Change, Human Prehistory, San Juan River kayaking, The West, Weird Weather | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Review of Paul Andrew Hutton’s “The Apache Wars”: Historical Origins of Cormac McCarthy’s “Blood Meridian” (1986)

Hutton’s The Apache Wars, a nonfiction work, provides great context and understanding to this era, and reinforces the visions of Cormac McCarthy.  Continue reading →

Posted in Cormac McCarthy novels, History of the Southwest, Native American History, The West | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

The Year Without a Winter Over, Wildfire Season Begins

“So it’s hard to convey or describe just how oddly warm this winter has been in the Southwest.” Continue reading →

Posted in Climate Change, Michael Mann's The Hockey Stick and the Climate Wars, Santa Fe, The West, Weird Weather, Wildfire Season 2026, Year Without a Winter | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

On Pekka Hamalainen’s “Indigenous Continent”: Finnish Historian’s View of Native American History

“Hamalainen’s Indigenous Continent is an impressive book, long and detailed.” Continue reading →

Posted in History of the Southwest, Native American History, The West | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

On the New Film “Grizzly Night,” Based on the Nonfiction Book “Night of the Grizzly” (1971)

So it was my (pleasant? gruesome?) surprise yesterday to stumble upon this new film Grizzly Night, which is based on a true story, famously recounted in Jack Olsen’s nonfiction book Night of the Grizzlies (1971). I’m a sucker for a … Continue reading →

Posted in "Grizzly Night" 2026 film, "Night of the Grizzlies" by Jack Olsen, Animal attack movies, Bear attacks, Bears, books/film, Film, Glacier National Park backcountry, Horror Films, The West, Uncategorized, Wildlife, Yellowstone National Park backcountry trips | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Shoshone Lake Paddle Trip Report: Yellowstone National Park, September 2025

So last Spring when I was arranging a week-long kayaking trip on Shoshone Lake in Yellowstone National Park I read a number of Trip Reports, on various blogs and backcountry-travel sites. They were helpful. Some of them were kooky, such … Continue reading →

Posted in Photography, Shoshone Lake, The West, Yellowstone National Park backcountry trips, Yellowstone National Park kayaking, Yellowstone wildlife | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

The Year Without a Winter (in the Southwest): 2025-2026

So here’s a story that hasn’t been featured much in the news media: The Southwest has had a pitiful winter so far—parched and warm. It’s drier than a tumbleweed here in south-central Colorado. And it’s worse elsewhere south and west … Continue reading →

Posted in 2025-26 Drought, Climate Change, Michael Mann's The Hockey Stick and the Climate Wars, The West, The Year Without a Summer, Uncategorized, Weird Weather | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Bobcats Not in Bad Decline: CivilWarLand Is Here, and Bobcats Are Invading

So my title today is a nod to my writer-friend’s excellent book of stories, George Saunders’s CivilWarLand in Bad Decline (of which I have a rare first edition). With all the ICE chaos and MAGA mayhem it’s a relief to … Continue reading →

Posted in Bobcats, Photography, The West, Uncategorized, Wildlife | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Shocking Bird Population Decline as in The Bird Saviors

So for years I’ve been reading about and studying Climate Change (though I do find Global Weirding to be witty and accurate), for various reasons, some of them personal of course: I have a daughter who will live in this … Continue reading →

Posted in Birding, books/film, Climate Change, The West, writing | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment