[pct-l] biography of John Muir

[Scott Williams]

When I asked that same question of my favorite ranger at the Muir House a
few years ago, he recommended, *A Passion for Nature, The Life of John
Muir, *Oxford University Press, by Donald Worster.  I have not read any
other, but he said the difference between this more recent bio and the
others was that this one is less about every little thing Muir did, and
focuses more on how he fits into the intellectual landscape of his time.
 His relationships with the great thinkers of the day, how he was
influenced and how he influenced others.  He clearly had a religious
experience when he walked into Yosemite Valley, and went on to become kind
of a John the Baptist, wild man who brought many others along with him into
the belief that wilderness could heal the soul of modern man.  Many people
who met him had similar experiences just by meeting him, and had their
lives changed as a result.  Stephen Mather, the "Japanese John Muir" are
two.  His craziness and brilliance went on to change this nation, and we
hike the trails we do because of how his writings influenced people across
the nation.  He was much more famous in his own time than he is now, and I
can't think of anyone else who had two presidents seek him out to go
camping while in office.  Roosevelt and Taft.  Several National Parks are
the result of those camping trips.

This is timely as I just spent the day at the Oakland Museum of California
pouring over the current Muir exhibit.  It's wonderful, full of interactive
displays, you can follow his mountain climbing and Sierra wanderings on a
digital, moving screen that sweeps you all over the terrain he explored and
we now hike.  I couldn't leave the screen!  It also swings you through a
landscape in the Sierra and zooms in on a peak or valley he sketched and
superimposes a photo of his sketch on the landscape.  Very cool.  They have
lots of his actual journals and tiny little sketches and writings as he had
only limited paper while hiking just like us, and even some of his larger
sketches.  They have his original rough map of the entire Sierra Nevada and
all the Big Tree Groves in existence at the time.  Many are gone now.

Large dioramas are throughout, gorgeously photographed by Stephen Joseph, a
friend and probably the best nature photographer in the Bay Area at
present.  Stephens huge blow ups of Muir's plant pressings, are right next
to the actual little plant Muir dried.    For a Muirophile, it's a must.
 It closes Jan 22, 2011.  So get yourself to Oakland if you can.  I'd never
seen his actual journals before, and they are gorgeous.  But then, I'm
easily amused by anything to do with our patron saint.

The offer still stands to any on this list who are interested in Muir to
contact me and come on out to his home in Martinez and do a little hiking
on his old ranch lands.  And I will give you some John Muir Dirt to take
home.  Oh, hell, maybe some John Muir Wine too.  The only caveat is that
I'm actually here, and not off being a damned fool hiker somewhere.

Shroomer