Rough-Hewn Land - read free eBook in online reader or directly download on the web page. Select files or add your book in reader. Download and read online ebook Rough-Hewn Land write by Keith Heyer Meldahl. This book was released on 2013-05. Rough-Hewn Land available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. "Rough-Hewn Land tells the geologic story of the American West--the story of its rocks, rivers, mountains, earthquakes, and mineral wealth, including gold. It tells it by taking you on a 1000-mile-long field trip across the rough side of the continent from the California coast to the Rocky Mountains. This book puts you on the outcrop, geologic hammer in hand, to explore the evidence for how the spectacular, rough-hewn lands of the West came to be. When North America broke free from Eurasia and Africa some 200 million years ago, it triggered a cascade of violent geologic events that shaped the West we see today. As the west-moving continent crunched across the seabed of the ancient Pacific, islands and assorted pieces of ocean floor collected against its prow to build California--and plant gold there too. Meanwhile, mountains squeezed upward from California to Colorado, and vast quantities of molten rock seeded the crust with precious metals while spewing volcanic fire across the land. Later, the land stretched like an accordion to form the washboard-like Basin and Range province and Great Basin within it, while California began to crackle along the San Andreas fault. Throughout the West today, a near-constant drumroll of earthquakes testifies to a world still reshaping itself in response to the ceaseless movements of the Earth's tectonic plates. Rough-Hewn Land weaves these stories into the human history of the West. As we follow the adventures of John C. Frémont, Mark Twain, the Donner party, and other historic characters, we see how geologic forces have shaped human experience, just as they direct the fate of the West today"--
Hard Road West
Hard Road West - read free eBook in online reader or directly download on the web page. Select files or add your book in reader. Download and read online ebook Hard Road West write by Keith Heyer Meldahl. This book was released on 2012-01-11. Hard Road West available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. The dramatic journeys of the 19th century Gold Rush come to life in this geologist’s tour of the American West and the events that shaped the land. In 1848, news of the discovery of gold in California triggered an enormous wave of emigration toward the Pacific. The dramatic terrain these settlers crossed is so familiar to us now that it is hard to imagine how frightening—even godforsaken—its sheer rock faces and barren deserts once seemed to them. Hard Road West brings their perspective vividly to life, weaving together the epic overland journey of the covered wagon trains and the compelling story of the landscape they encountered. Taking readers along the 2,000-mile California Trail, Keith Meldahl uses settler’s diaries and letters—as well as his own experiences on the trail—to reveal how the geology and geography of the West shaped our nation’s westward expansion. He guides us through a landscape of sawtooth mountains, following the meager streams that served as lifelines through an arid land, all the way to California itself, where colliding tectonic plates created breathtaking scenery and planted the gold that lured travelers west in the first place. “Alternates seamlessly between vivid accounts of the 19th-century journey and lucid explanations of the geological events that shaped the landscape traveled.”—Library Journal
Surf, Sand, and Stone
Surf, Sand, and Stone - read free eBook in online reader or directly download on the web page. Select files or add your book in reader. Download and read online ebook Surf, Sand, and Stone write by Keith Heyer Meldahl. This book was released on 2015-10-13. Surf, Sand, and Stone available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. "Meldahl tells the scientific story of the Southern California coast by blending research from geology and oceanography with a compelling narrative and clear illustrations that take readers out in the field with the author to learn about the processes that have generated the coast as it exists today and how the region will change in the future. The author's geographic scope spans from San Diego to Point Conception, taking in coastal portions of San Diego, Orange, Ventura, Los Angeles, and Santa Barbara counties"--Provided by publisher.
Geology of Southeast Alaska
Geology of Southeast Alaska - read free eBook in online reader or directly download on the web page. Select files or add your book in reader. Download and read online ebook Geology of Southeast Alaska write by Harold Stowell. This book was released on 2006-03-01. Geology of Southeast Alaska available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. The most powerful forces on earth have shaped the landscape of Southeast Alaska. Scientists and visitors from around the world trek north to experience wild rivers, powerful glaciers, and breathtaking mountain peaks. Now, for the first time, a handy guide to the region is available. Complete with color illustrations revealing millions of years of geological history and in-depth descriptions of Sitka, Juneau, and Glacier Bay, Geology of Southeast Alaska is essential reading for anyone fascinated by rock and ice in motion. Written by a geologist with over twenty-five years of experience in the north, Geology of Southeast Alaska will entertain and inform with abundant photographs and detailed drawings. Whether you want to understand the forces that shaped the state of Alaska, or you want to learn the basics of glacial movement, this compact, authoritative book is for you.
Great Sand Dunes National Park
Great Sand Dunes National Park - read free eBook in online reader or directly download on the web page. Select files or add your book in reader. Download and read online ebook Great Sand Dunes National Park write by . This book was released on 2004. Great Sand Dunes National Park available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. For three years, John Weller captured the Great Sand Dunes with his extraordinary photography and vivid stories. Here is his masterly result in a phenominal book to celebrate our nation's newest national park.
