Natural History Travel

Over thousands of years, the Mississippi watershed was home to millions of Indigenous people who regarded "the great river" with awe and respect, adorning its banks with astonishing spiritual earthworks. But European settlers and American pioneers had a different vision: the river was a foe to conquer. In this landmark work of natural history, Boyce Upholt tells the epic story of human attempts to own and contain the Mississippi River, from Thomas Jefferson's expansionist land hunger through today's era of environmental concern

If fresh water is to be treasured, the Great Lakes are the mother lode. No bodies of water can compare to them. One of them, Superior, is the largest lake on earth, and the five lakes together contain a fifth of the world's supply of standing fresh water. Their surface area of 95,000 square miles is greater than New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island combined. They are so vast that they dominate much of the geography, climate, and history of North America. In one way or another, they affect the lives of tens of millions.

Ruppel Shell follows the elusive eel from Maine to the Sargasso Sea, stalking riversides, fishing holes, laboratories, restaurants, courtrooms, and America's first commercial eel "family farm." This is an enthralling, globe-spanning look at an animal that you may never come to love, but which will never fail to astonish you.

In this compelling narrative, O'Connor seeks out neuroscientists, anthropologists and master navigators to understand how navigation ultimately gave us our humanity. Biologists have been trying to solve the mystery of how organisms have the ability to migrate and orient with such precision - especially since our own adventurous ancestors spread across the world without maps or instruments. O'Connor goes to the Arctic, the Australian bush and the South Pacific to talk to masters of their environment who seek to preserve their traditions at a time when anyone can use a GPS to navigate.

Discover Valencia: A Three-Day Adventure Uncover the Secrets of Valencia in Just Three Days! Experience the vibrant culture and breathtaking beauty of Valencia, Spain, with this immersive travel guide. Whether you're a seasoned traveler or a first-time visitor, "Three Days in Valencia" offers a curated journey through the city's most iconic sights and hidden gems. Benefits of This Book Insider Tips Discover local favorites and must-see attractions to make the most of your visit. Day-by-Day Itinerary Follow a structured plan that covers the best of Valencia in three days. Culinary Highlights...

A travel-themed book set in the American Southwest during the early twentieth century. Embark on an awe-inspiring journey through the American Southwest in "The American Southwest," a captivating travel narrative that paints vivid images of breathtaking landscapes and rich cultural heritage. Set against the backdrop of Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Southern California during a time of transformation, this evocative tale invites readers to explore the allure and beauty of regions steeped in history and promise. In this beautifully written account, the author transports you to the ...

Manassas National Battlefield Park Travel Guide: Discover the History, Battles of Bull Run, and Natural Beauty of Virginia’s Pivotal Civil War Crossroads Walk in the footsteps of history at Manassas National Battlefield Park, the site of two of the most significant battles of the American Civil War. This comprehensive and engaging travel guide combines rich historical storytelling with practical advice for visitors who want to explore the park’s scenic trails, historic monuments, and nearby attractions. Whether you're a Civil War enthusiast, a history buff, or a traveler seeking ...

The universal appeal of Laura Ingalls Wilder springs from a life lived in partnership with the land, on farms she and her family settled across the Northeast and Midwest. In this revealing exploration of Wilder's deep connection with the natural world, Marta McDowell follows the wagon trail of the beloved Little House series. You'll learn details about Wilder's life and inspirations, pinpoint the Ingalls and Wilder homestead claims on authentic archival maps, and learn to grow the plants and vegetables featured in the series. Excerpts from Wilder's books, letters, and diaries bring to light her profound appreciation for the landscapes at the heart of her world.

The Grand Canyon Guide: Discover the History and How to Visit America’s Natural Wonder is the ultimate resource for travelers, history lovers, and nature enthusiasts who want to explore one of the most iconic natural landmarks in the world. Whether you're planning your first trip or returning for a deeper experience, this comprehensive guide offers everything you need to know. Discover the fascinating geologic story behind the canyon’s formation, learn about the Native American tribes who have long considered the Grand Canyon sacred, and trace the European exploration and conservation ...

They are trees of life and trees of knowledge. They are wish-fulfillers, rain forest royalty, more precious than gold. They are the fig trees, and they have affected humanity in profound but little-known ways. Gods, Wasps and Stranglers tells their amazing story. Fig trees fed our prehuman ancestors, influenced diverse cultures, and played key roles in the dawn of civilization.

Just before the dawn of the new millennium, a curator at a New Jersey museum of natural history receives an unusual invitation from a celebrated fashion designer. She shares the curator’s fascination with the hidden forms of the animal kingdom - with camouflage and subterfuge - and she proposes that they collaborate on an exhibition, the form of which itself remains largely obscure, even as they enter into a strange relationship marked by evasion and elision.

A stunningly illustrated portrait of life and death in a hostile, high-altitude environment where no human can survive for long, Everest invites you to join Breashears, his climbers, and his crew as they make photographic history. Author Broughton Coburn traces each step of the team's progress toward a rendezvous with history - and suddenly you're on the scene of a disaster that riveted the world's attention.

“An inspiring reminder of the incredible resource that is our public lands.” —Brendan Leonard, author of The Camping Life and Surviving the Great Outdoors Across 193 million acres of forests, mountains, deserts, watersheds, and grasslands, national forests provide a multitude of uses...

The six exquisite stories in Natural History are set largely in a small community in central New York state and portray some of her most beloved characters, spanning the decades between the Civil War to the present day. Told with Andrea Barrett's characteristic elegance, passion for science, and wonderful eye for the natural world, the psychologically astute and moving stories gathered in this collection evoke the ways women's lives and expectations—in families, in work, and in love—have shifted across a century and more.

In Footprints: In Search of Future Fossils, the award-winning author David Farrier explores the traces we will leave for the very distant future. Modern civilization has created objects and landscapes with the potential to endure through deep time, whether it is plastic polluting the oceans and nuclear waste sealed within the earth or the 30 million miles of roads spanning the planet.

How has Florida's land changed across five centuries? What has stayed the same, and what remains only in memory? In Tracing Florida Journeys, Leslie Poole delves into the stories of well-known explorers and travelers who came to the peninsula and wrote about their experiences, looking at their words and the paths they took from the perspective of today.

A group of traders huddles around a pile of dried shark fins on a gleaming white floor in Hong Kong. A Papua New Guinean elder shoves off in his hand-carved canoe, ready to summon a shark with ancient magic. A scientist finds a rare shark in Indonesia and forges a deal with villagers so it and...

A chronicle of life on the resplendent island. Adele Barker and her son, Noah, settled into the central highlands of Sri Lanka for an 18-month sojourn, immersing themselves in the customs, cultures, and landscapes of the island: its elephants, birds, and monkeys; its hot curries and sweet mangoes; the cacophony of its markets; the resonant evening chants from its temples. When, having returned home to Tucson, Barker awakes on December 26, 2004, to see televised images of the island's southern shore disappearing into the ocean, she decides she must go back.

A mid-career American Emergency Doc goes off the deep end and relocates with his bewildered wife and five school-aged kids from Upstate New York to exotic Australia. Chaos, hilarity and wild Oz adventures ensue. Briskly paced; informative, insightful and entertaining in equal measure, "Doc Down Under" covers a wide array of timely topics including Australian/ New Zealand family adventure travel and natural history; contemporary Aussie lifestyle and culture, as well as US/ Australian comparative healthcare systems. Doc's philosophical musings focus on the realities of expat family life; the ...

For most of 2020, Mikes Dilger’s day-job of travelling to the four corners of the British Isles all but disappeared. Having been confined to one place by the Covid pandemic, and with daily dog walks his sole permitted outdoor pursuit, the simple pleasure of getting to know the flowers at his feet reignited a long-buried botanical passion. Now Mike is on a mission: to see a thousand different wild plants in one calendar year, and assess how our fascinating flora is faring in modern Britain.