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This Land: A Guide to Western National Forests ReviewI purchased this book wanting to give it a positive review. Western national forests deserve a good recreational survey, and I was hoping Mohlenbrock, a prominent botanist from Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, would be able to add some fascinating insights that most recreational authors could not. And indeed, this part of the book did not disappoint. Mohlenbrock reprints a selection from nearly 20 years of articles he wrote for Natural History magazine in this guidebook. All of these articles cover areas with unique biological, geological, or historical features. Thus readers are treated to Clinton Hart Merriam's discovery of biological life zones as his observations of a century ago are recounted in an essay on the San Francisco Peaks north of Phoenix. Similarly, those who cling to a young earth chronology will be disappointed when they read of Edward Schulman's contributions to dendrochronology in the White Mountains of California. Here some hardy trees, the Bristlecone Pines, live to over 4,000 years and the record of tree rings now extends back almost 13,000 years. Even smaller sites, like my own (San Bernardino Mountains) Cushenbury Canyon, home to a number of rare plants, receive almost loving treatment in the writing of Mohlenbrock.
With so much going for a book like this, and especially considering what a disaster the last survey of California National Forests was (the entirely forgettable Recreational Guide to California National Forests), one would think it would merit high marks. But unfortunately the "guide" portion of this book is simply riddled with the most basic of factual errors. Indeed, reading some chapters, I get the impression Mohlenbrock simply glanced at a recreational map or a web page before writing large parts of this book. Consider this brief quote from Mohlenbrock's discussion of the Cleveland National Forest in California. "North of the [San Mateo] wilderness is Juan Canyon, which is much easier to traverse. The 11-mile San Juan Loop Trail circles the canyon with a side trip to Chiquito Falls."(p.84) It is hard for me to see how anyone could pack more errors and misconceptions into two sentences. The canyon is San Juan Canyon, and the San Juan Loop trail is only two miles. There is a separate 11 mile San Juan Trail running from Blue Jay campground to the former Hot Springs resort. This trail does not circle the canyon (neither does the shorter loop trail) but stays on the northern edge. And yes this canyon is easier to "traverse" because state highway 74 runs through it, unlike the nearby wilderness, but you would never guess the presence of this thoroughfare from Mohlenbrock's narrative. This is hardly an isolated incident. The Desert View trail in the Laguna Mountains offers spectacular views over Anza Borrego State Park, the floor of which Mohlenbrock says is "more than 1,000 feet below."(p.83) Quite a bit more in fact...like 4,000 feet. We are told that hikers climbing Mt. Whitney make the trip in two days "usually stopping to camp in the vicinity of Mirror Lake,..."(p.91). Usually not, since camping has been prohibited at Mirror Lake since the 1980s at least. Mohlenbrock recommends you approach the Bristlecone Pine Forest from Highway 168 in Lone Pine. Big Pine is the correct turnoff for 168, and it is about forty miles north of Lone Pine. And what are we to make of the claim that only 5,500 residents live full time in the Tahoe basin? As of the 2000 census, there were 23,609 residents of South Lake Tahoe alone, and that is not counting the communities of Tahoe City, Incline Village, etc. Furthermore, failing to mention the recently completed Tahoe Rim Trail while discussing recreational opportunities in the Tahoe management district is inexplicable. But the big problem with the guide descriptions is that, in general, they are so brief they have to omit a lot of information. That much of the information they include is also inaccurate does not help matters.
In the final analysis, this is really two books. A collection of natural history articles which are both interesting and informative, and a guidebook fraught with errors. I cannot recommend it for readers seeking recreational outlets, but if you are on the fence in buying the book, the nice plates do somewhat make up for the factual errors. If you want some light popular science reading, then this is your book.
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