Lake Tahoe/Northern Sierra--VistaBooks Encore

LAKE TAHOE/NORTHERN SIERRA--
including Virginia City, Nevada

RC = RARE, COLLECTIBLE ITEMS THIS TOPIC
(See Rare/Collectible for other topics.)

A BAG OF BONES: Legends of the Wintu Indians of Northern California. Marcelle Masson.
15 stories told by old Wintu native Americans from group who lived along western Sacramento Valley of California. 10 illustrations, 140 pages. Covers damaged.
ISBN: 0-911010-26-2. Order #: NAGR0951 paper$12.95.

THE AGE OF GOLD: the California gold rush and the new American dream. by H. W. Brands.
Discovering the gold that led emigration to the area before it was a state and how that influenced the development of a population. There are stories of emigrant travel by overland routes and also by sea through Panama and Cape Horn and the perils that kept some from reaching the promised land they had intended. Development of San Francisco and the role of its early vigilance committee. discovery of Yosemite, roles of John Sutter, John Fremont, Samuel Clemens, Leland Stanford, the Mormons, Indians, and more. Photographs and drawings, maps, bibliography, 559 pages, index.
ISBN: 0-385-50216-8. 2002. Order #: RAHO2786 cloth$29.95.

ART OF THE GOLD RUSH. Driesbach, Jones, & Holland.
Artworks associated with the California gold rush of 1849, accompaniment to museum exhibit. Published by University of California Press with Crocker Art Museum and Oakland Museum of California. Color illustrations, 166 large-format pages.
Inventory= 1. ISBN: 0-520-21432-3. Order #:UNCA3462 paper$29.95.

ANIMAL FRIENDS OF THE SIERRA. by Fran Hubbard.
Stories about animals and national parks and forests and why we need them, for children. Species included are bear, lion, deer, woodrat, gopher, marmot, and more. Explains what are mammals, teeth as tools, facts about feet. Copiously illustrated by William D. Berry. 32 large-format pages.
ISBN: None. Order #: AWAN1029 paper$9.50.

THE BEST BIKE PATHS OF THE SOUTHWEST. by Wendy Williams.
Safe, scenic, and traffic-free bicycling in Arizona, Nevada, California, and Utah. Describes 56 bike paths organized by state, with maps showing locations, descriptions including mileages, general backgrounds and histories of the paths and useful tourist information; level of difficulty; type of scenery; condition of pavement; availability of food and bathroom; directions and parking. Illustrated, 222 pages.
ISBN: 0-684-81400-5. 1996. Order #: SISC8425 paper$11.00.

BIRDS OF LASSEN VOLCANIC NATIONAL PARK. by Robert C. Milne.
Text and color photos of common birds of this national park in California gives details of their preferred habitats--forest; meadows; shrubs and open slopes; streams and lakes; soaring birds. Presents nesting habits, foods, interactions with other birds and animals. Includes checklist for all 159 known species and gives status as accidental, migrant, resident (by summer and winter). Bibliography, 48 pages, index.
ISBN: None. Order #: LOOM0807 paper$4.50.

THE CONIFEROUS FORESTS & BIGTREES OF THE SIERRA NEVADA. by John Muir.
Although known for his contributions to the understanding of Yosemite Valley's geologic origin and for his conservation work, botany was always Muir's first love, and he produced wonderful writings on Sierra trees. These are both descriptive of the trees' features and appreciative of their beauty and place in nature. The magnificent bigtree, also known as sequoia or Sierra redwood, assumes an important part in this. Special, too, is the insert on "A Wind Storm in the Forests of the Yuba" in which Muir ventured out into the windy day, instead of "crouching deprecatingly beneath a roof", climbed into the upper branches of a tall douglas-fir, "to get my ear close to the aeolian music of its topmost needles", then swayed about in arcs of 20 to 30 degrees. Period engravings are added to the text. 40 pages.
ISBN-10: 0-89646-027-4. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-027-0. Covers bent. Order #: VIST0027 paper$19.00.

portrait of John Muir, conservationist, naturalist, writer, mountaineer

THE DAWN OF THE WORLD: myths and tales of the Miwok Indians of California. by C. Hart Merriam.
Stories collected from Miwok Indian peoples at the turn of the century--at a time when original cultural memories could still be recounted. Provides a special view of the cultural and philosophical ways of today's Miwok ancestors. These tales were related by Miwok elders usually in the ceremonial roundhouse at night by firelight and constitute the religious history of the tribe. Included are creation myths, accounts of the First People, of beings who antedated humans, and tales about animals, death and ghosts, witches and giants, and natural phenomena. Illustrations, 283 pages, index.
ISBN: 0-832-8193-5.1993.Order #: UNNE2722 paper$20.0.

DESOLATION WILDERNESS and the South Lake Tahoe Basin, by Jeffrey P. Schaffer. Presents 32 trips in Desolation Wilderness, Emerald Bay, South Fork American River, and upper Truckee River. There is a table of mileages to lakes you can reach by trail and there are descriptions of terrain, lakes, and vegetation with photographs. Natural history is explained: geology of Lake Tahoe, common plants and animals. especially wildflowers and birds, are covered. Area campgrounds are included as well as minimal impact camping. 154 pages, photos, fold-out topographic map in pocket.
ISBN: 0-89997-050-8. Order #: WILD6127 paper$18.95.

DISCOVERING SIERRA REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS. Basey.
ISBN: 978-0939666-03-0. Order #: YOCO1849paper$5.95.

DISCOVERING SIERRA TREES. by Stephen P. Arno, illustrated by Jane Gyer.
Covers conifer and broad-leaved trees in area ranging from Sequoia National Forest in the south to the Toiyabe and Stanislaus National Forests in the north, and including Sequoia, Kings Canyon, and Yosemite National Parks. Includes both conifers and broad-leaved trees--36 species. Describes age, size, characteristics, and reproduction. Reveals with an elevation profile how the trees are distributed according to altitude. Artist Geyer presents her scratchboard illustrations to portray foliage and cones plus portraits of full trees. 89 pages, paper cover.
ISBN: 978-0939666-04-9. Order #: YOCO1850 paper$19.50. See below for framable prints of trees from this book.

DISCOVERING SIERRA TREES--prints. by artist Jane Gyer.
A portfolio of 8 reproductions of Jane Gyer's black-and-white illustrations from the book Discovering Sierra Trees. 9 x12 inches, proportioned to framing. Cover print is of giant sequoia. Published by Yosemite Natural History Association.
ISBN: None. No date. Order #:YOCO1339 prints$47.50.

ERUPTIONS OF LASSEN PEAK. by B. F. Loomis.
A pictorial history of the eruption of Lassen Volcano, now within Lassen Volcanic National Park, in northern California, which erupted in 1914. Author Loomis took a number of these scenes, some from the mountain itself. Recounts stories of witnesses and survivors and includes before and after views of many scenes. Historical photos show views of mushroom and other eruptive clouds taken from nearby cities, boulders and ashes expelled by blasts which continuted into 1915 and later. Following the eruptions, loose rock and debris came down the mountain/s steep slopes as mudslides. 96 pages.
ISBN None. 1971. Order #: LOOM0808 paper$6.95.

A FIELD GUIDE TO THE FLOWERS OF LASSEN VOLCANIC NATIONAL PARK. by Mary Ann Showers & David W. Showers.
Organizes flower identification by habitat groups--rocky, wet, meadow, forest, and alpine areas--and also by color. Descriptions for each species includes flowering seasons, characteristics of petals and leaves, park areas where could be seen, similar species, family name. Drawings, 112 pages, index.
ISBN: None. 1981. Order #: LOOM2167 paper$6.95.

#THE FIELD GUIDE TO WILDLIFE HABITATS OF THE WESTERN UNITED STATES. by Janine M. Benyus.
This field guide and the similar one for the eastern U.S. use a habitat-first approach to learn about the varying plant and landscapes you live in or travel through, and of the animals and plants that live in association within. This western guide presents 18 habitat types (for instance, oak woodland, lodgepole pine forest, plains grassland, rocky coast, aspen forest) and descriptions include geological and ecological histories as well as their characteristic plants and where and what to look for 40 species of bird, mammal, or amphibian or reptile. Drawings, charts, and maps 336 pages, index.
ISBN: 0-671-65909-X. 1989. Order #: SISC7787 paper$16.00.

FIRE IN SIERRA NEVADA FORESTS: a photographic interpretation of ecological change since 1849. RC FIRE IN SIERRA NEVADA FORESTS: a photographic interpretation of ecological change since 1849. by George Gruell.
The face of the Sierra has filled in-and that, Gruell says, is not a good thing; not for wildlife, not for the forest and not for the future of the range's ecosystems." - Bettina Boxall, Los Angeles Times.
Fire in Sierra Nevada Forests examines the woodlands through repeat photography: re-photographing sites depicted in historical photographs to compare past vegetation to present. 256 pages, 7.25 x 10.25. Published by Mountain Press.
ISBN: 0-87842-446-6. Order #: MOPR9062 paper$95.00. RC

GOLD COUNTRY: the story behind the scenery (CA). Paher.
Presents the great gold rush of 1849 to California, with stories of miners and places and peeks at remaining buildings and machinery. 48 large-format pages, color illustrations. Out of print.
ISBN: 0-88714-111-0 2005. Second printing. 1996. Order #: KCPU4618 paper$11.95.

GOLD COUNTRY: the story behind the scenery (CA). Paher.
Presents the great gold rush of 1849 to California, with stories of miners and places and peeks at remaining buildings and machinery. 48 large-format pages, color illustrations.
ISBN: 0-88714-111-0. 1996. First printing. Order #: KCPU4750 paper$8.95.

HUNTING DIAMONDS IN CALIFORNIA. by Mary Hill. Where to hunt for these gems, how to identify them, locate your claim, and cut them. Characteristics of diamonds, world occurrences, and sites in California where they have been found, many in the Mother Lode of the Sierra in the process of hydraulic mining where banks of ancient river gravels are washed away, leaving their heavier components. Others have been found in beach sands but hone where they originally formed. Illustrated, 80 pages, extensive bibliography.
ISBN: 0-911010-96-3. Order #: NAGR5717 paper$5.95.

INDIANS OF LASSEN VOLCANIC NATIONAL PARK AND VICINITY. by Paul E. Schulz.
Beliefs, hunting, basketry of northern California people. Includes the arrival of humans in North America, early cultures and the California Indians. Tells of their hunting, fishing, gathering and preparation of foods; their material goods including tools and weapons; clothing; ceremonies and dress for same; smoking; music and art; games and dances; political organization; war and peace; birth and babies; marriage and divorce; death and burial; concepts of counting, time, and place; concepts of sun, moon and stars; medicine and magic. Drawings, bibliography, 182 pages.
ISBN: None. 1954. Order #: LOOM0806 paper$8.95.

LAKE TAHOE: the story behind the scenery (CA/NV). by Stanley W. Paher.
Water sports in summer, world class ski areas in winter, high rise hotels, golf courses, casinos, and nightly entertainment surround this sky blue lake that is "millions of years deep". 9x12, 48 pages, 53 color photos & 1 map.
ISBN: 0-88714-088-2. 2008. Fifth printing. Order #: KCPU8113 paper$11.95.

LASSEN VOLCANIC NATIONAL PARK: a natural-history guide to Lassen National Park, Caribou Wilderness, Thousand Lakes Wilderness, Hat Creek Valley, and MacArthur-Burney Falls State Park. by Jeffrey P/ Schaffer.
Comprehensive trail guide plus road guide keyed to roadside interpretive markers, with natural history, camping and resort info. 216 pages, photos, maps with topo map in pocket.
ISBN: 0-89997-059-1Order #: WILD8412 paper$16.95.

LASSEN NATIONAL PARK AND VICINITY-- topographic map. Wilderness Press.
Wilderness permits, trails, roads, picnic areas, scenic turnouts, forested areas, lakes, streams, campgrounds. Scale=1:62,500; 18"x21" map with index of all places on map.
ISBN: None. Order #: WILD2903 map$5.00.

LASSEN TRAILS: a brief guide to the trails of Lassen Volcanic National Park. by Stephen H. Matteson.
Describes 34 trails in this national park in northern California, including to the summit of the volcano. Introduction gives overview of hiking in this region including concerns for passing through thermal regions of this volcano active in 1914. Table gives average dates when trails have opened in the spring and early summer once the abundant winter snow has melted adequately. Maps are included for each trail and starting points, trail distances and times are given plus terrain and scenic and other features. Trail maps and park overview map, 56 pages, index.
Check stock. ISBN: None. 1982. Order #: LOOM0804 paper$4.95.

LASSEN (Guide#6). Reedy.
Outdoor guide to California's Lassen area. Photos, fold-out maps, large-format pages.
ISBN: None. 1980. Order #: BORE0232 paper$3.95.

LASSEN VOLCANIC NATIONAL PARK. by Stephen C. Voorhees.
A photographic appreciation, plus commentary. Detailed and distant views of cliffs, thermal mudpot, lakeshores, droplets, streambeds, hot spring deposits,shooting-star wildflowers ,the volcanic mountain, contorted tree trunks, and more. Black-and-white and color photos, 48 pages.
ISBN: None. 1981. Order #: LOOM0801 paper$8.95.

"THE LUCK OF ROARING CAMP" AND OTHER SKETCHES, including "Outcasts of Poker Flat" and "Tennessee's Partner". by Bret Harte.
Bret Harte was a popular writer of the gold rush days of the California Mother Lode country in the 1850s. Tales of gamblers, miners, whores, and other characters come alive in short stories. The booklet is a facsimile of the original printing with its illustrations and some additions from similar sources.
ISBN: 0-910584-77-X. Order #: FILT0476 paper$3.95.

NORTHWEST TRAILS. by Ira Spring & Harvey Manning.
Overview-guidebook to 73 park, wilderness areas in WY, MT, ID, NoCA, OR, WA, BC, Canadian Rockies. Answers myriad questions of visitors: best mountain scenery, open-country trail hiking, desert rambles, high-lakes fishing, rock-peak scrambles, best seasons, crowds, weather, sources. Maps, photographs, 192 pages,index.
ISBN: 0-89886-037-7. 1982. Order #: MOUN0893 paper$9.95.

#MODOC-TULE LAKE (Guide #8). Reedy.
Outdoor guide to California's northeast--fishing, hunting, boating, camping. Photos, fold-out maps, large-format pages.
ISBN: None. 1981. Order #: BORE0234 paper$3.95.

Inventory = out of stock but with interest could be made available. ISBN-10: 0-89646-092-4. Order #: VIST0092 notecards$9.95.

PONDEROSA COUNTRY: a scenic and historic guide to Reno and vicinity (NV). Paher.
Trips to take to view historic sites and their stories around Reno, Tahoe, Pyramid Lake, Virginia City. Historical photos, 48 large-format pages.
ISBN: None. 1972. Order #: NEVA1003 cloth$14.95.

ROAD GUIDE TO LASSEN VOLCANIC NATIONAL PARK. by Paul E. Schulz.
Park history and nature keyed to roadside markers. Learn about the park's volcanic features including hot springs and steam vents, birds and mammals, wildflowers, lakes, trailheads, waterfalls, and park museums. Map, color photos, 40 pages.
ISBN: None. 1981. Order #: LOOM0810 paper$3.95.

SHASTA RECREATION GUIDE (Guide #9). Reedy.
Outdoor guide to parks, museums, whitewater, trails in No. California area. Photos, fold-out maps, large-format pages.
ISBN: None. 1980. Order #: BORE0235 paper$3.95.

THE SHIRLEY LETTERS from the California Mines 1851-1852. Dame Shirley (Louise A.K.S. Clapper).
Classic Gold Rush Americana literature--daily life and momentous adventures, mining techniques, characters portrayed in 23 letters written by a physician's wife about the Feather and Yuba River mines. First published in The Pioneer, 1854-55 and inspiring some of the writings of Bret Harte and possibly Mark Twain. 221 pages.
ISBN: 0-878905-004-7. Order #: GISM1082 paper$14.95.

SIERRA BIG TREES. by John Muir.
In 1875 Muir made a tremendous exploration of the southern Sierra Nevada to survey the range of the giant sequoia. That trip may remain the most comprehensive single look at the tree yet, and this book tells his findings. It is an appreciative report of this tree, "very god of the woods". Muir describes the tree's range and its botanical characteristics, muses about the age it can attain, notes the effect of lightning strikes, and shares his several-days observation of a forest fire among them: "huge fire-mantled trunks on the hill slopes glowing like bars of hot iron." Foreword by former Yosemite Chief Park Naturalist William R. Jones. Period engravings. 80 pages.
ISBN-10: 0-89646-069-X. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-069-0. Paper covers, some scuffing. /Order #: VIST0069 paper$25.00.

SIERRA FLOWER FINDER: a guide to Sierra Nevada wildflowers. by Glenn Keator, PhD, illustrated by Valerie R. Winemiller.
Key to non-woody flowering plants of the Sierra Nevada mountain range above the foothills (above about 4,000 feet.) The Sierra encompasses many habitats, from the high desert of the dry eastern slope, to the chaparral, meadows, and forests of the western slopes, and the harsh environment of the rocky alpine zone, so a wide variety of plants occurs in the area covered by this book. Illustrated with clear line drawings. 128 pages.
Inventory = 61. ISBN: 0-912550-09-0 Out of Print; we have limited stock. Order #: NASG0978 paper$5.95.

(ST) Sierra Trout Guide, SB SIERRA TROUT GUIDE. by Ralph Cutter.
Sierra trout live in a wonderful environment which is portrayed in 100 beautiful color photos on thick glossy stock. Learn how to successfully fish the lakes and streams from an expert. Color fly plates and tying recipes for all the most productive fly patterns. Tackle and technique information that reveals the best ways to hook trout. Information on backpacking, fishing and hiking checklists, maps and permits, most productive waters. Distribution charts containing names and locations of over 550 rivers and 1,700 lakes and the trout species they contain. 112 inches, 8 x 11 color,
ISBN: 978-1-878175-02-1. Order #: FRAM2030 paper$19.95.

SIERRA NEVADAN WILDLIFE REGION. by Vinson Brown.
Most of the common plants, mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish of California's mountainous area are described and illustrated. 144 pages.
Sierra Nevadan is a splendid field guide to the common wild animals and plants of the Sierra Nevadan wildlife region, which includes most of the mountainous area of California. Sierra Nevadan (now in a revised and expanded edition) identifies plants and animals by arranging them in their most typical habitats. When hiking in a streamside woodland, turn to that section of the book where most of the common plants and animals of that habitat are listed. Readers can do the same with Middle Mountain Forests, Sub-Alpine Forest, Middle Mountain Meadows, Alpine Fell Fields or Meadows, Rocky Areas and Cliffs, Pinyon-Juniper Woodland, Chaparral and Sagebrush Areas, and Freshwater Areas. 126 of the region's common plants and 263 of its mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish are plainly described and carefully illustrated. Sierra Nevadan is a reliable, portable, 'user-friendly' guide that should be every hiker, camper, and wildlife watcher's constant out-of-doors companion." The Midwest Book Review, Sept. 1996)
ISBN: 978-0-87961-22-7. Order #: NAGR2025 paper$9.95.

SILVER LAKE: High Sierra Hiking Guide #17; the High Sierra between Carson Pass and Ebbetts Pass. by Joseph R. Grodin and Sharon Grodin.
Trail routes to area south of Lake Tahoe. Includes trails, trees, history, geology, campsites, wildflowers, animals, ecology. Photos and maps, 96 little pages with large fold-out topo map dated 1976. This is the third edition of April 1983, second printing of April 1986.
ISBN: 0-89997-027-3. Order #: WILD1743 paper$12.95.

SKI TOURING IN CALIFORNIA. by David Beck. A complete book for cross-country skiing in California with a large tour section for beginning as well as advanced skiers. Shows where to ski and how to ski with an illustrated technique section. Also discusses touring with kids, snowcamping, and avoiding avalanches. 35 tours are detailed, with mileages, starting points, elevations gained, dificulty class, and best season. Tolpgraphic maps show tour routes, 222 pages, index, bibliography.
ISBN: 0-89997-034-6. 1980. Order #: WILD1773 paper$12.95.

SKI TOURS IN THE SIERRA NEVADA: Carson Pass, Bear Valley, and Pinecrest--volume 2. Libkind.
Comprehensive guidebook to ski touring opportunities in this area, with route descriptions. From easier outings to backcountry adventures, gives tour difficulties, lengths, elevation changes, route-finding plus directions to start and end points, topo maps showing routes. Map, 132 pages.
Inventory =1. ISBN: 0-931255-01-5. Order #: WILD4192 paper$15.95.

WILDLIFE AND PLANTS OF THE CASCADES. by Charles Yocom, & Vinson Brown.
Covers lava beds and high mountains of Northern California, Oregon, Washington, southwest British Columbia. Describes this region's natural habitats of forest types, water areas, rocky spots, meadows, sagebrush, and its mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and common fish and plants to help get familiar with and identify them and their ways. Over 400 illustrations (4 color plates), 296 pages, index.
Inventory = 8; otherwise out of print.ISBN: 0-911010-80-7. Order #: NAGR0962 paper$9.95.

THE WINTUN INDIANS OF CALIFORNIA AND THEIR NEIGHBORS. by Peter Knutdtson.
Pre-Anglo cultural life of people of Redding to Mount Shasta, CA, area. This easy-to-read, interesting ethnographic study gives a picture of Wintun cultural life. Two of the most interesting sections of the book are the glossary and a section on Wintun use of plants. A 17 x 22" color map of their territory is included. Illustrated, with fold-out map. Maps, photos, drawings, 96 pages.
Check stock.ISBN: 978-0-87961-062-3. Order #: NAGR0946 paper$10.95.

YOSEMITE, LASSEN VOLCANIC and REDWOOD NATIONAL PARKS and surrouhnding area. Rand McNally National Parks Recreation Director in associaiton with the National Park Foundation. by Jean Pierce Postelwaite.
Includes surrounding areas: San Francisco, Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Whiskeytown-Shasta-Trinity recreational areas, Lava Beds, Lake Tahoe. Rates points of interest, includes guided tours, seasons, gateways, scenic overlooks and drives, camping, terrain, activities. Explains plant and animal life, geology. Photogaphs and drawings, maps, 192 large-format pages, index.
ISBN: 0-528-84942-5. 1985. Order #: RAMC1347 paper$9.95.

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK. by Rand McNally.
Rand McNally National Parks Recreation Directory. Including San Francisco, Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Lake Tahoe, and Gold Country with scenic trails and auto tours. History and sightseeing opportunities are presented for localities. Verify data pre-trip. Detailed park and area maps, 192 pages.
ISBN:0-528-84944-1. 1985. Order #: RAMC2949 paper$4.95.

VISTABOOKS HISTORY REPRINTS--
Califorinia Lake Tahoe/Northern Sierra
(in stock: for quantity orders, go to vistabooks.com):
also available on ebay and ebid

ACROSS THE PLAINS IN THE DONNER PARTY: a personal narrative of the overland trip to California, 1846-47. by Virginia Reed Murphy.
Virginia was 12 years old when her family left Springfield, Illinois to trek across the plains to California, their intended new home, along with 25 fellow emigrants. Along the way, her grandmother died, her pony had to be left, her family lost their oxen and had to abandon a wagon with their possessions, her stepfather killed a man and was banished from the train, and then she and her group were trapped in snows at the eastern foot of the Sierra Nevada crest at and near what is now Donner Lake and Truckee, California. As a result, 13 of those who started with her in Springfield, and 29 more who joined her along the way, never did cross those mountains. Here is the little girl's story, written by her later as an adult, now a part of the American epic of winning the West. Reprinted from Century Magazine with illustrations added from Frederic Remington and others. 64 pages.
ISBN: 978-0-89646-099-7. Order #: VIST0099 paper$7.95. See sample pages, illustrations.

C.P.R.R.: the Central Pacific Railroad. by Charles Nordhoff.
Reprinted from Marvels of the New West,1882. This is the epic story of building the line across the Sierra Nevada of California, the deserts of Nevada, and the salt flats of Utah to meet the Union Pacific Railroad at Promontory Point on May 10, 1869. Rail fans and history buffs have access today to historic parks and museums at the ends of this line in Sacramento and Promontory Point and along the way at the Donner Lake State Park. There is also an article explaining train travel by passengers at this early date. Period engravings. 48 pages. See sample pages.
Check stock. ISBN-10: 0-89646-097-8. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-097-3. Order #: VIST0097 paper$6.95.

THE DIARY OF PATRICK BREEN: one of the Donner Party. by Frederick J. Teggart.
Diary kept by 1846-47 Donner Party emigrant who survived over-winter entrapment in Sierra snow near Truckee, California. Breen and his family all survived the ordeal, but many from other groups perished. The diary records days of snowfall, the experiences of others who were marooned with them, and the scant food available, plus delayed attempts from outside to rescue them. 7 photos, 16 pages.
Check stock. ISBN: 978-0-89646-102-4. Order #VIST0102 paper$3.95.

THE HUMMINGBIRD OF THE CALIFORNIA WATERFALLS. by John Muir.
Reprinted from 1878. This has been called "the finest bird biography ever written". Muir's "waterfall hummingbird" is the water-ouzel, of course, now also called the dipper. Although Muir buffs and birders already know this, even they will enjoy reading or re-reading the story of this little bobber. Some might have seen this little bird, but without this article have not yet enjoyed the flyer/swimmer fully. As Muir's portrayal shows, much of the bird's intrigue is its physical elusiveness while remaining visually accessible. Enjoy this little story and enjoy this little bird. Foreword by former Chief Park Naturalist, Yosemite National Park. Period illustrations. 24 pages. See sample pages.
ISBN-10: 0-89646-019-3. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-019-5. Order #: VIST0019 paper$3.95.

HYDRAULIC GOLD-MINING IN CALIFORNIA, 1883. by Taliesin Evans.
By the 1870s and 1880s in the California gold country, the gold that had been easy to pick up already had been. But there was lots more, buried in the earth. A massive plumbing system was built to harness water as a tool to wash the earth away and leave a residue of heavy metals, especially gold. Meanwhile, though, mud and gravel released in the process washed downstream to inundate farms and homes. Dwellers there objected, and in court they effectively stopped the hydraulic mining--one of the earliest environmental court actions. But when our author was there, his interest was describing a vital western industry. And the mines can still be seen--Interstate Highway 80 runs right through one at Gold Run, and another is the Malakoff Diggings State Historical Park, where you can not only see the washed banks but also some of the nozzles and mining equipment used to get the gold out. Reprinted from 1883. 16 pages; iIllustrations are from the original article and other period sources. See sample pages.
ISBN-10: 0-89646-052-5. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-052-2. Order #: VIST0052 paper $3.95.

LAKE OF THE SKY: Lake Tahoe in the High Sierras of California and Nevada. by George Wharton James.
This book (in abridged form here) has long been a standard history of Lake Tahoe--telling how the lake was discovered by Fremont while he was what we would today call lost, how it got its name (at first, names), how it was formed, and how it was first used and developed. Author James was a prolific writer early in the 20th century, and did a number of other books on Western travel sites, as well as a technique manual showing how Indians made their baskets. His text in "Lake of the Sky" affirms that this was a favorite site of his, where he returned often. Abridged edition reprinted from the 1915 original. Period illustrations. 96 pages. See sample pages, illustrations.
ISBN-10: 0-89646-038-X. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-038-6. Order #: VIST0038 paper$6.95.

MARK TWAIN'S VIRGINIA CITY: Nevada Territory in the 1860s. by Mark Twain. (Samuel Clemens).
Here are the famous humorist's adventures in and around early Virginia City, Nevada Territory (now Nevada state). There are silver mining, speculation in silver mines, work in a quartz mill. A trip to Lake Tahoe to secure a timber empire resulted mainly in starting a forest fire. There was the search for the Lost Cement Mine, and, finally, reporting for The Territorial Enterprise, Virginia City's rollicking newspaper that reported the episodes of riches and murders rampant in this important Western mining center. The writings here were first published in 1872 in "Roughing It", but we have pulled from the larger work just episodes on Virginia City in order to maintain that as a focus. Read these Twain anecdotes for fun, but, remember, too, that these incidents really happened, and that the principals were often in dead earnest; it just took Twain's insights to show the satirical side of human nature. Illustrations are from the original book and other sources. 64 pages. See sample pages, illustrtionss.
ISBN-10: 0-89646-074-6. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-074-4. Order #: VIST0074 paper$6.95.

A MINER'S SUNDAY, 1849. by Charles B. Gillespie.
This story is set in Coloma, the California gold discovery site of 1848. But it might have happened at any of the gold-rush sites of the West--Virginia City, Cripple Creek, the Klondike--and it probably did, but only on Sunday. Town was a lively place the one day the mines were shut down, with a mix of nationalities engaging in gambling, auctions, horse-racing, shopping for clothes and supplies, eating, drinking, brawling, and general tom-foolery as you might expect from a bunch of young men from all over the world who were off to a get-rich adventure. Illustrations are from early sources, including the original article of 1891, Frederic Remington, and the Crocker Art Museum. 16 pages. See sample pages, illustrtionss.
ISBN-10: 0-89646-005-3. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-005-8. Published by VistaBooks 1981. Order #: VIST0005 paper$3.95.

MONARCH, THE BIG BEAR OF TALLAC in the Lake Tahoe High Sierra. by Ernest Thompson Seton.
This classic wildlife story was created just after 1900, when a few California grizzly bears, like Monarch, still did roam the Sierra; now they roam only on California's state flag. It is a story of the sad life of one of the last wild grizzlies who lived near Tallac, the high mountain rising above Lake Tahoe's west shore, still wild country today, located in the Desolation Basin Wilderness Area. The book Monarch was written for children, but like all truly classic children's literature is excellent reading for adults, too. Author Seton left many wildlife works for us, such as Wild Animals I Have Known and The Biography of a Grizzly and was also a practical leader, founding the Woodcraft League, forerunner of today's Boy Scouts. His museum is at the scouts' Philmont Ranch in New Mexico.
100 drawings from the original, by the author, are included. 168 pages. Covers scuffed. Limited supply. See sample pages.
ISBN-10: 0-89646-040-1. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-040-9. Order #: VIST0040 paper$12.95.

THE MURDER OF JULIA BULETTE: Virginia City, Nevada; 1867--with the life and confession of John Millian, convicted murderer. by Charles E. DeLong, convicted murderer's attorney, et. al.
Julia, a courtesan now legendary, had not only been a favorite female companion of Virginia City's males, but had been an active contributor to the community in times of civil need, such as the Comstock's early, terrible winters when she attended the sick and needy. Her support of the volunteer fire brigade earned her the title of Honorary Member. Her murder severely offended the camp's code of decency, hard though that was. When her murderer was found, tried, convicted, and hung, virtually the whole town turned out for the final event, "a fine hanging", "the most gala to date in Nevada", it was called. That same evening, Mark Twain, returning from the Holy Land to this town where he had begun his writing career, gave a lecture. Reprinted from a pamphlet issued on the eve of the hanging of Julia's murderer.
Illustrations from contemporary publications. 16 pages. See sample pages, illustrations.
ISBN-10: 0-89646-044-4. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-044-7. Order #: paper$3.95.

THE MAMMOTH TREES OF CALAVERAS. by J. M. Hutchings.
An excerpt from Hutchings' larger work, Scenes of Wonder & Curiosity in California, centering just on this bigtree grove to show how early tourists traveled there by river steamer and stagecoach. We hear of early attempts to exploit the grove's wonders by cutting the bark from the giants and shipping it to the East for exhibition, a move widely deplored by the abundant tree-lovers of that time. Also tells of the efforts to cut down one of the huge and tall trees, using a stump as a dance floor for 32 people, and putting a bowling lane along a fallen trunk. Our author had been deeply involved in the tourist movement, having led the first tourist party into nearby Yosemite, operating a hotel there, and publishing the California Magazine. Illustrations from period sources. 24 pages. See sample pages.
ISBN-10: 0-89646-050-9. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-050-8. Order #: VIST0050 paper$3.95.

MARK TWAIN'S VIRGINIA CITY: Nevada Territory in the 1860s.by Mark Twain. (Samuel Clemens).
Here are the famous humorist's adventures in and around early Virginia City, Nevada Territory (now Nevada state). There are silver mining, speculation in silver mines, work in a quartz mill. A trip to Lake Tahoe to secure a timber empire resulted mainly in starting a forest fire. There was the search for the Lost Cement Mine, and, finally, reporting for "The Territorial Enterprise", Virginia City's rollicking newspaper that reported the episodes of riches and murders rampant in this important Western mining center. The writings here were first published in 1872 in "Roughing It", but we have pulled from the larger work just episodes on Virginia City in order to maintain that as a focus. Read these Twain anecdotes for fun, but, remember, too, that these incidents really happened, and that the principals were often in dead earnest; it just took Twain's insights to show the satirical side of human nature. Illustrations are from the original book and other sources. 64 pages. See sample pages.
ISBN-10: 0-89646-074-6. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-074-4. Order #: VIST0074 paper$6.95.

A MINER'S SUNDAY, 1849. by Charles B. Gillespie.
This story is set in Coloma, the California gold discovery site of 1848. But it might have happened at any of the gold-rush sites of the West--Virginia City, Cripple Creek, the Klondike--and it probably did, but only on Sunday. Town was a lively place the one day the mines were shut down, with a mix of nationalities engaging in gambling, auctions, horse-racing, shopping for clothes and supplies, eating, drinking, brawling, and general tom-foolery as you might expect from a bunch of young men from all over the world who were off to a get-rich adventure. Illustrations are from early sources, including the original article of 1891, Frederic Remington, and the Crocker Art Museum. 16 pages. See sample pages.
ISBN-10: 0-89646-005-3. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-005-8. 1981. Order #: VIST0005 paper$3.95.

NOTECARDS--Donner/Tahoe Sierra:
Donner Lake. by Thomas Moran, 1874.
Lake Tahoe. by Thomas Moran, 1874.
Summit of the Sierras. by Thomas Moran, 1874.
Eagle Falls, Emerald Bay at Lake Tahoe. Picturesque America, 1874.
Mountain scenery etchings are reproduced from artistic--now historical--engravings published in books from the 1870s, such as VistaBooks has often used in its own reprints. Notecards are 4 1/2" wide by 6" tall when folded, black on cream-colored stock. Insides are blank, providing 2 1/2 pages of writing space. Set includes 8 notecards (2 scenes each of the 4 shown) with 8 matching envelopes in a re-sealable bag.

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