[pct-l] Starr's Guide to the JMT

[Reinhold Metzger]

Yes,
I also have the 1934 edition.....thanks to Deems.
It is somewhat tattered, but is nevertheless my price John Muir Trail book
and holds a special place in my heart and a prominent place amongst my Outdoor
Adventure books....THANK YOU DEEMS.
And yes, it is a wonderful book and reflects the passion Peter, Walter Starr,
Jr. preferred to be called Peter, had for the Sierra and the JMT.

Sometimes I get the urge to look for Pete's final resting place...but then I
tell myself it is best to let a "GIANT" rest in peace.
A giant of the Sierra and the JMT he was and his love for the Sierra and the
JMT was unconditional....he loved it just the way it was and his love  is
reflected in his poetry......

"God's Wilderness is calling me
To shining summits, bright and cool;
The mountain trails from snow are free,
The flashing trout are in the pool.

All winter long, the lure and spell
Of glittering lakes and towering trees
Of rushing streams and pine tree smell
And flowering meadows haunted me.".....

In many ways I share Pete's love and passion for the Sierra and the JMT.
I have been prowling around in the Sierra for many years.
I first hiked Whitney in 1968 and thru-hiked the JMT eleven times.

To me the JMT is like a beautiful women, and once "bitten", forever hooked.
I know,...I got bitten many years ago...and every summer since she has been
calling me.
Pete, I suspect, also got bitten by that beautiful lady, many years ago.

And yes Jeffrey, one of my goals also is to someday hike and explore the old
abandoned trails that Pete used to hike so many years ago.

Well my friends, it is time to say "Adios" again.
Hope to see you all on the trail someday.

JMT Reinhold
Your hopelessly in love with the JMT trail companion.
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Deems wrote:
I have a cherished first edition 1934, signed by his father, Walter Starr
Sr. If only guide books were written with the passion and adventurous spirit
that Peter Starr gave us in his words. The early Starr editions describe
Sierra trails that are no longer maintained, and a JMT that few hikers would
know today. I've read the "Missing in the Minarets" book and it is one of
the finest searches ever documented in the Sierra. If you love Sierra
history, I recommend it.
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Josie wrote:
That's great to hear those books are still around. I read "Missing in the
Minarets" by William Alsup--a wonderful recount of the search for Starr and
in the telling, some great history of the region.
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Jeffrey wrote:
My 1962 Starr's Guide also lists trails that have since been abandoned.
I wish I had a summer to just explore the southern sierra and it's
abandoned trails... A nice goal!!!