I know so little about the geology, geography and history of my own country. The author of this book is a writer with the Los Angeles Times and he is trying to educate those of us who care to listen.
He can ride a horse and herd cattle, and he has a love for wilderness. He makes some connections with ranchers, old timers, residents and environmentalists living, working and/or concerned with the land, animals, environment, history, mining etc. around the Continental Divide. The only thing this disparate group of people seems to agree on is a dislike for hikers that use the Continental Divide Trail. Myself, I fall more on the environmentalist side of things, probably because I am not trying to make my living on that wilderness. I related more to Canadian Crazy Mike Judd than probably anybody else. I enjoyed reading this book, the author is a good writer and his sense of humor and perspective are enjoyable aspects to his writing.