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River Notes: A Natural and Human History of the Colorado
Plugged by no fewer than twenty-five dams, the Colorado is the world’s most regulated river drainage, providing most of the water supply of Las Vegas, Tucson, and San Diego, and much of the power and water of Los Angeles and Phoenix, cities that are home to more than 25 million people. If it ceased flowing, the water held in its reservoirs might hold out for three to four years, but after that it would be necessary to abandon most of southern California and Arizona, and much of Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming. For the entire American Southwest the Colorado is indeed the river of life, which makes it all the more tragic and ironic that by the time it approaches its final destination, it has been reduced to a shadow upon the sand, its delta dry and deserted, its flow a toxic trickle seeping into the sea.
In this remarkable blend of history, science, and personal observation, acclaimed author Wade Davis tells the story of America’s Nile, how it once flowed freely and how human intervention has left it near exhaustion, altering the water temperature, volume, local species, and shoreline of the river Theodore Roosevelt once urged us to “leave it as it is.” Yet despite a century of human interference, Davis writes, the splendor of the Colorado lives on in the river’s remaining wild rapids, quiet pools, and sweeping canyons. The story of the Colorado River is the human quest for progress and its inevitable if unintended effects—and an opportunity to learn from past mistakes and foster the rebirth of America’s most iconic waterway.
A beautifully told story of historical adventure and natural beauty, River Notes is a fascinating journey down the river and through mankind’s complicated and destructive relationship with one of its greatest natural resources.
In this remarkable blend of history, science, and personal observation, acclaimed author Wade Davis tells the story of America’s Nile, how it once flowed freely and how human intervention has left it near exhaustion, altering the water temperature, volume, local species, and shoreline of the river Theodore Roosevelt once urged us to “leave it as it is.” Yet despite a century of human interference, Davis writes, the splendor of the Colorado lives on in the river’s remaining wild rapids, quiet pools, and sweeping canyons. The story of the Colorado River is the human quest for progress and its inevitable if unintended effects—and an opportunity to learn from past mistakes and foster the rebirth of America’s most iconic waterway.
A beautifully told story of historical adventure and natural beauty, River Notes is a fascinating journey down the river and through mankind’s complicated and destructive relationship with one of its greatest natural resources.
176 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2012
29 people are currently reading
576 people want to read
About the author
Wade Davis
85 books826 followersEdmund Wade Davis has been described as "a rare combination of scientist, scholar, poet, and passionate defender of all of life's diversity."
An ethnographer, writer, photographer, and filmmaker, he holds degrees in anthropology and biology and received his Ph.D. in ethnobotany, all from Harvard University. Mostly through the Harvard Botanical Museum, he spent more than three years in the Amazon and Andes as a plant explorer, living among 15 indigenous groups in eight Latin American nations while making some 6,000 botanical collections. His work later took him to Haiti to investigate folk preparations implicated in the creation of zombies, an assignment that led to his writing Passage of Darkness (1988) and The Serpent and the Rainbow (1986), an international best seller that appeared in ten languages and was later released by Universal as a motion picture.
His other books include Penan: Voice for the Borneo Rain Forest (1990), Shadows in the Sun (1993), Nomads of the Dawn (1995), The Clouded Leopard (1998), Rainforest (1998), Light at the Edge of the World (2001), The Lost Amazon (2004), Grand Canyon (2008), Book of Peoples of the World (ed. 2008), and One River (1996), which was nominated for the 1997 Governor General's Literary Award for Nonfiction. Into the Silence, an epic history of World War I and the early British efforts to summit Everest, was published in October, 2011. Sheets of Distant Rain will follow.
Davis is the recipient of numerous awards, including the 2002 Lowell Thomas Medal (The Explorers Club) and the 2002 Lannan Foundation prize for literary nonfiction. In 2004 he was made an honorary member of the Explorers Club, one of just 20 in the hundred-year history of the club. In recent years his work has taken him to East Africa, Borneo, Nepal, Peru, Polynesia, Tibet, Mali, Benin, Togo, New Guinea, Vanuatu, and the high Arctic of Nunavut and Greenland.
A native of British Columbia, Davis, a licensed river guide, has worked as park ranger and forestry engineer and conducted ethnographic fieldwork among several indigenous societies of northern Canada. He has published 150 scientific and popular articles on subjects ranging from Haitian vodoun and Amazonian myth and religion to the global biodiversity crisis, the traditional use of psychotropic drugs, and the ethnobotany of South American Indians.
Davis has written for National Geographic, Newsweek, Premiere, Outside, Omni, Harpers, Fortune, Men's Journal, Condé Nast Traveler, Natural History, Utne Reader, National Geographic Traveler, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Globe and Mail, and several other international publications.
His photographs have been featured in a number of exhibits and have been widely published, appearing in some 20 books and more than 80 magazines, journals, and newspapers. His research has been the subject of more than 700 media reports and interviews in Europe, North and South America, and the Far East, and has inspired numerous documentary films as well as three episodes of the television series The X Files.
A professional speaker for nearly 20 years, Davis has lectured at the National Geographic Society, American Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, and California Academy of Sciences, as well as many other museums and some 200 universities, including Harvard, MIT, Oxford, Yale, and Stanford. He has spoken at the Aspen Institute, Bohemian Grove, Young President’s Organization, and TED Conference. His corporate clients have included Microsoft, Shell, Hallmark, Bank of Nova Scotia, MacKenzie Financials, Healthcare Association of Southern California, National Science Teachers Association, and many others.
An honorary research associate of the Institute of Economic Botany of the New York Botanical Garden, he is a fellow of the Linnean Society, the Explorers Club, and the Royal Geographical Society.
(Source: National Geographic)
An ethnographer, writer, photographer, and filmmaker, he holds degrees in anthropology and biology and received his Ph.D. in ethnobotany, all from Harvard University. Mostly through the Harvard Botanical Museum, he spent more than three years in the Amazon and Andes as a plant explorer, living among 15 indigenous groups in eight Latin American nations while making some 6,000 botanical collections. His work later took him to Haiti to investigate folk preparations implicated in the creation of zombies, an assignment that led to his writing Passage of Darkness (1988) and The Serpent and the Rainbow (1986), an international best seller that appeared in ten languages and was later released by Universal as a motion picture.
His other books include Penan: Voice for the Borneo Rain Forest (1990), Shadows in the Sun (1993), Nomads of the Dawn (1995), The Clouded Leopard (1998), Rainforest (1998), Light at the Edge of the World (2001), The Lost Amazon (2004), Grand Canyon (2008), Book of Peoples of the World (ed. 2008), and One River (1996), which was nominated for the 1997 Governor General's Literary Award for Nonfiction. Into the Silence, an epic history of World War I and the early British efforts to summit Everest, was published in October, 2011. Sheets of Distant Rain will follow.
Davis is the recipient of numerous awards, including the 2002 Lowell Thomas Medal (The Explorers Club) and the 2002 Lannan Foundation prize for literary nonfiction. In 2004 he was made an honorary member of the Explorers Club, one of just 20 in the hundred-year history of the club. In recent years his work has taken him to East Africa, Borneo, Nepal, Peru, Polynesia, Tibet, Mali, Benin, Togo, New Guinea, Vanuatu, and the high Arctic of Nunavut and Greenland.
A native of British Columbia, Davis, a licensed river guide, has worked as park ranger and forestry engineer and conducted ethnographic fieldwork among several indigenous societies of northern Canada. He has published 150 scientific and popular articles on subjects ranging from Haitian vodoun and Amazonian myth and religion to the global biodiversity crisis, the traditional use of psychotropic drugs, and the ethnobotany of South American Indians.
Davis has written for National Geographic, Newsweek, Premiere, Outside, Omni, Harpers, Fortune, Men's Journal, Condé Nast Traveler, Natural History, Utne Reader, National Geographic Traveler, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Globe and Mail, and several other international publications.
His photographs have been featured in a number of exhibits and have been widely published, appearing in some 20 books and more than 80 magazines, journals, and newspapers. His research has been the subject of more than 700 media reports and interviews in Europe, North and South America, and the Far East, and has inspired numerous documentary films as well as three episodes of the television series The X Files.
A professional speaker for nearly 20 years, Davis has lectured at the National Geographic Society, American Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, and California Academy of Sciences, as well as many other museums and some 200 universities, including Harvard, MIT, Oxford, Yale, and Stanford. He has spoken at the Aspen Institute, Bohemian Grove, Young President’s Organization, and TED Conference. His corporate clients have included Microsoft, Shell, Hallmark, Bank of Nova Scotia, MacKenzie Financials, Healthcare Association of Southern California, National Science Teachers Association, and many others.
An honorary research associate of the Institute of Economic Botany of the New York Botanical Garden, he is a fellow of the Linnean Society, the Explorers Club, and the Royal Geographical Society.
(Source: National Geographic)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
July 13, 2017
The fundamental dilemma in the [American] West is that we are living with nineteenth century laws and values, twentieth century infrastructure, and twenty-first century water needs.
Davis tries to do a lot of things in the slim volume - a history, a geology, a travelogue, an anthropology, and a political statement. While I enjoyed and learned from each of these facets, the narrative did not flow well... which is ironic considering the riverine subject matter.
Relying on narratives and descriptions from Powell, Stegner, and Abbey, Davis expounds more with his own observations on a raft trip down river. If you are unfamilar with Davis' work, this isn't the best place to start. He's a great writer and storyteller, but you don't get that full effect here.
Davis tries to do a lot of things in the slim volume - a history, a geology, a travelogue, an anthropology, and a political statement. While I enjoyed and learned from each of these facets, the narrative did not flow well... which is ironic considering the riverine subject matter.
Relying on narratives and descriptions from Powell, Stegner, and Abbey, Davis expounds more with his own observations on a raft trip down river. If you are unfamilar with Davis' work, this isn't the best place to start. He's a great writer and storyteller, but you don't get that full effect here.
April 18, 2024
We've all done this. We travel somewhere, have a magical experience, and can't stop telling everyone about the trip. The author had a trip like that on the river through the Grand Canyon. From the Acknowledgments, looks like the author has wealth/connections, so he decided to write a book about it. Comes off as a literature review with some travelogue in there. I'm happy for him that he had such a great experience, but this book is only worth your time if you haven't read anything about the Grand Canyon, the Colorado River, or Lake Powell, or if you want to briefly relive a past river trip through the canyon. I was close to DNF for much of the book, but was able to push through because it's so short. Felt like he wrote out his trip report, wanted to publish, but felt it wasn't long enough. Solution was to tack on some stuff about the Delta and Glen Canyon Dam at the beginning and a (actually really great) Call to Action at the end. And with that additional content, he could call it a "natural and human history of the COLORADO RIVER" and not just the Grand Canyon.
2.5 stars. Was 2.0, but the excellent Call to Action at the end brought it up to a 2.5.
2.5 stars. Was 2.0, but the excellent Call to Action at the end brought it up to a 2.5.
October 18, 2022
Book 25 of 2022: River Notes by Wade Davis (2013, Island Press, 162 p.)
I enjoyed this book as a summary of the natural history of the Colorado River, the original inhabitants along its length, and how it has been subsequently modified in its overdevelopment. It appears to be a companion piece to the IMAX movie Grand Canyon Adventure: River at Risk that was shown at National Geographic IMAX theater in Tusuyan, AZ. T
he author, perhaps better known as the author of The Serpent and the Rainbow about Haitian voudon culture and associated cultural pharmacology, writes well and concisely about his subject matter. He concentrates on the Delta and the Grand Canyon. For the delta he draws much from Aldo Leopold’s description of the boat journey Leopold did with his brother. The Grand Canyon is a contemporary rafting trip that was done to capture footage for the IMAX film.
The book’s strength (and weakness) is the last chapter where he sets forth the danger the River is in. Part of the weaknesses in this chapter is the age of the book…things have changed for the worse and better since 2013. For instance, he writes “Each year demand for water and power increases…” (p. 134). In the last 20 years, water use has actually decreased over the entire basin, even while the economies of the basin states have increased. While he correctly identifies agriculture has the greatest use of water in the basin, he indicates on p. 141 that this use is overwhelmingly for livestock; yet he identifies this overwhelming use as around 50% of the agricultural component. He indicates that this livestock is mostly from cattle grazing allotments in the West. It is my understanding that much of the alfalfa grown using Colorado River water is not for Western range cattle, but rather for overseas markets. He further indicates that in the three Lower Basin states (including Nevada) that over 85% of the River water is used for agriculture. This is not true for Nevada, where all of the allotment is used for urban water supply (unless one counts golf courses as agriculture). Another example is the repeat that the Colorado River flow used for negotiating the Colorado River Compact was the result of decades of high flow…the science at the time did show that the natural flow of the river was less than the 15 million afy that the allocations are based on. This number was based on economic boosters who wanted more water for development in their states (mainly Arizona and California).
Despite these minor missteps in the narrative and the almost decade old publication date, I would recommend this book as a great overview of the natural and human history and the dangers posed from its overallocation.
"For nearly a hundred years we have sacrificed the Colorado River on the altar of our prosperity. Surely it is time to shatter this way of thinking and recognize that the river's well-being IS our prosperity." (p. 149)
I enjoyed this book as a summary of the natural history of the Colorado River, the original inhabitants along its length, and how it has been subsequently modified in its overdevelopment. It appears to be a companion piece to the IMAX movie Grand Canyon Adventure: River at Risk that was shown at National Geographic IMAX theater in Tusuyan, AZ. T
he author, perhaps better known as the author of The Serpent and the Rainbow about Haitian voudon culture and associated cultural pharmacology, writes well and concisely about his subject matter. He concentrates on the Delta and the Grand Canyon. For the delta he draws much from Aldo Leopold’s description of the boat journey Leopold did with his brother. The Grand Canyon is a contemporary rafting trip that was done to capture footage for the IMAX film.
The book’s strength (and weakness) is the last chapter where he sets forth the danger the River is in. Part of the weaknesses in this chapter is the age of the book…things have changed for the worse and better since 2013. For instance, he writes “Each year demand for water and power increases…” (p. 134). In the last 20 years, water use has actually decreased over the entire basin, even while the economies of the basin states have increased. While he correctly identifies agriculture has the greatest use of water in the basin, he indicates on p. 141 that this use is overwhelmingly for livestock; yet he identifies this overwhelming use as around 50% of the agricultural component. He indicates that this livestock is mostly from cattle grazing allotments in the West. It is my understanding that much of the alfalfa grown using Colorado River water is not for Western range cattle, but rather for overseas markets. He further indicates that in the three Lower Basin states (including Nevada) that over 85% of the River water is used for agriculture. This is not true for Nevada, where all of the allotment is used for urban water supply (unless one counts golf courses as agriculture). Another example is the repeat that the Colorado River flow used for negotiating the Colorado River Compact was the result of decades of high flow…the science at the time did show that the natural flow of the river was less than the 15 million afy that the allocations are based on. This number was based on economic boosters who wanted more water for development in their states (mainly Arizona and California).
Despite these minor missteps in the narrative and the almost decade old publication date, I would recommend this book as a great overview of the natural and human history and the dangers posed from its overallocation.
"For nearly a hundred years we have sacrificed the Colorado River on the altar of our prosperity. Surely it is time to shatter this way of thinking and recognize that the river's well-being IS our prosperity." (p. 149)
December 4, 2023
I did enjoy this book and found the content beneficial and entertaining. I really liked the section of geology. However, the format and lack of organization led to some confusion. I think it is a good read for those with a background of the West’s ongoing water issues but would not recommend it as a first introduction to the subject.
January 21, 2016
Don't you hate it when reviews start with "I really wanted to like this book..."? Well, I really wanted to like this book. I think if he had stuck to any ONE of the five or six things he tried to do with the book, it would have had a shot at brilliance. You want to write a polemic on western development focusing on water rights? OK. Hit me with your best arguments, fairly engage the other side(s), and marshal your arguments in something resembling a logical order when you come out swinging. You want to write a history? Great. Show me the story, again in some semblance of order (it does not have to be chronological, but it has to allow me to follow the thread). You want to tell me about your awesome rafting trip through the Grand Canyon while musing on the flora and fauna and the land itself? Do that! I will so read that book! You want to write a hagiography of various Native American tribes and conservationists? Um, not really with you there, but let's see what you can do. But when you cram all of these things together in one 176 page book, it's just not going to work, especially when you keep veering wildly from one to the other and back again. The writing is very enjoyable, but stay on topic, for crying out loud. (He excerpts his journal from his trip down the river one time, and based on that sample I will say that if the man ever publishes his travel journals, THAT will be a fantastic read, because he has led a remarkable life and is in fact a very fine writer.) There are other issues (his almost entirely uncritical embrace of Native American philosophy alongside his demonizing of the Mormons with only the briefest explanation, his immediate demonizing of the building of the Hoover and Glen Canyon dams and the formation of Lake Powell without really presenting the background first, what sounds like an attack on the development at all of the western United States for present habitation UNTIL the last chapter when he finally addresses some argument as to what could be done in the present day, and the total ignoring of any mention of the history of the river above the Grand Canyon), but all of these could have been dealt with if he had just stopped jumping around so much.
November 16, 2018
An excellent short book, beautifully written by ethnobotanist and anthropolgy professor Wade Davis. I'm now completely fascinated with the geology of the Grand Canyon and the fabled beauty of the Colorado River and its landscapes, which Davis captures in vivid, lucent prose that doesn't require any scientific background. The book also stands as a prescient and clearly presented survey of water politics in the Southwest and the long term effects of climate change, which wasn't nearly as much on the national radar when this book was written. The book is loosely organized around a 2 week raft trip that Davis took, and I especially enjoyed his observations about the people in the Park Service who serve as guides, experts who have an almost supernatural ability to "read" the river in all its variations. The narrative also includes wonderful observations about the Anasazi ("the old ones") who first lived near the river and their modern day Native American counterparts. I now have a Grand Canyon river trip on my bucket list, but I'll be portaging around some of those wicked rapids.
June 7, 2013
A very nice book of first-person accounts and history of the Colorado River. The integration between the two aspects of the book were successful and fascinating, but at the end it became very political.
However, the points he makes are valid and important, and certainly worth considering.
However, the points he makes are valid and important, and certainly worth considering.
February 20, 2019
Fascinating and in many ways terribly sad. The Colorado River was once one of the most spectacular rivers in the USA. Today, it barely reaches the ocean. Hopefully someday at least some of the dams will be removed and it will be allowed to flow freely into the sea.
December 23, 2014
Excellent subject matter, but please, for the love of god: get an editor.
March 17, 2024
A natural history of the Colorado River: Davis provides the clearest and most concise presentation of the geological history of the Grand Canyon I have seen. The explanation of the layers of rock is clear. The actions of the river across this region, the ability to move rock and create the canyons it has, is clear without losing the power and awe that retains the respect for natural forces felt by the reader, and by Davis.
A human history of the Colorado River: Davis covers the human history from the Anasazi to the Bureau of Reclamation. With great respect for the Indigenous nations, we see the greed of industrialists and the hard work of conservationists that have resulted in the current condition. The section on the influence of the Mormons is enlightening. In spite of the wisdom and knowledge of people like John Wesley Powell, dams were build and water allocations made that could never be met. River guides and runners still respect the Colorado and give it the honor and admiration it is due.
Davis writes leading and ending sections that describe the current water troubles of the desert southwest. He also ends with hope, and visions of possible solutions to some of the continuing problems nature has with humans taking all that water. And throughout, quotes are taken from figures of importance to this region and to this natural world: Powell, Abbey, and Leopold to name a few.
A human history of the Colorado River: Davis covers the human history from the Anasazi to the Bureau of Reclamation. With great respect for the Indigenous nations, we see the greed of industrialists and the hard work of conservationists that have resulted in the current condition. The section on the influence of the Mormons is enlightening. In spite of the wisdom and knowledge of people like John Wesley Powell, dams were build and water allocations made that could never be met. River guides and runners still respect the Colorado and give it the honor and admiration it is due.
Davis writes leading and ending sections that describe the current water troubles of the desert southwest. He also ends with hope, and visions of possible solutions to some of the continuing problems nature has with humans taking all that water. And throughout, quotes are taken from figures of importance to this region and to this natural world: Powell, Abbey, and Leopold to name a few.
February 15, 2025
I may be a little biased against this because it's 2025 and the author's admitted friendship with RFK Jr. is a turn off. I also did not like that an anthropologist was not wise enough to use the proper names for the Diné and ancient Puebloans, but the book was originally published in 2012, so I'll try to be fair.
And short, because to be honest, Davis bites off more than he is willing to chew. This is a book on environmental crisis AND travelogue AND ecology AND history AND politics in about 200 pages (or six hours of audio, by how I consumed this). Nothing is done any justice, and all are touched on better by other authors.
And short, because to be honest, Davis bites off more than he is willing to chew. This is a book on environmental crisis AND travelogue AND ecology AND history AND politics in about 200 pages (or six hours of audio, by how I consumed this). Nothing is done any justice, and all are touched on better by other authors.
March 9, 2025
Part history, part science, part memoir, Davis' story of the Colorado River has much to recommend it. I particularly enjoyed the sections on what the river was like before the dams changed everything. I did not previously know that Glen Canyon Dam was erected to solve the problems created by the Hoover Dam. When we mess with nature, it doesn't always go the way we think.
Davis' writing is easy to read and I enjoyed the excerpts he included from other writers and explorers. It would be interesting to have an update after the last chapter as things in the West are far from stagnant and I wonder what has changed.
Davis' writing is easy to read and I enjoyed the excerpts he included from other writers and explorers. It would be interesting to have an update after the last chapter as things in the West are far from stagnant and I wonder what has changed.
October 15, 2024
Lots of great detail about the Colorado River and the Grand Canyon, but devolves into a braggy account of his raft trip through the canyon. Glad he’s such a famous guy that he gets to have such a miraculous time, but it rather undercuts his argument that recreational development is one of the problems.
April 14, 2019
Fascinating account of the Colorado - now and in the past when it flowed with such abandon. I was saddened to hear how much of the great river is taken to feed the desert cities and farms but heartened when Davis described the delta that has begun to take shape again...
October 28, 2025
This book is an excellent discussion of the Colorado River. I mentions historical events and discusses statistics about use and abuse of the water. The book is a fine addition to everyone’s education of land and water use.
September 1, 2017
Excellent!
July 18, 2019
Meanders. Just like the river.
August 17, 2021
A bit of optimism is always nice
February 7, 2023
The “Readers Digest” of the history of Colorado River exploration and management.
Read
January 3, 2024Lovely
February 6, 2024
A good summary of water conservation with a focus on Colorado River and the Grand Canyon. I appreciate the modern update at the beginning.
September 1, 2024
Living in Arizona, water is an ever-present concern. This slim book carries a huge punch about the history of the Colorado River, especially its traverse through Glen Canyon and Grand Canyon.
June 4, 2015
I was shocked that I had not heard of Wade Davis before reading this book. For a man who has seen and done so much in his time, I find him a quiet victor, and to take an appropriate quote from his most recent book River Notes: “Men parsimonious with language but active in deed inspire confidence.”
Like the fourteen books that came prior, Davis' River Notes is chalk full of beautiful language, but it is the sheer act of writing this fantastic book that inspired me. Too often a poetic look at a subject is brushed off as art or a non-intellectual, but River Notes proves the opposite. Laced with just enough of the sharp edged facts to prove he knows what he is talking about (and dares you to challenge him), Davis is at once a historian, an ecologist, and (my favorite) a hearty traveler. His journey along the banks of the Colorado, through the Grand Canyon is as rich as his telling of the history of how all of this land came to be.
The book doesn’t have a typical order, which allows it to flow in an almost majestic manner throughout the different issues Davis wishes to address. He inserts bits of history when it is pertinent to the story, not only in the standard introduction to the book. This makes it possible to move seamlessly through different areas of study and focal points—from the aboriginal people who roamed the shores of the Colorado long before American Settlers, to the trials and interesting histories of Brigham Young and his Mormon quest toward Salt Lake City as well as some of the first adventures of explorers down the Colorado, through the Grand Canyon.
While he is discussing these topics, he is constantly bringing us back to the adventure he is on at the tome of his writing—travelling, himself, down the Colorado. Spliced in with all of his wonderful anecdotes are histories and scientific data pertaining to the damming of the river, the consequences of the many actions taken, and some outlook on its future, should things remain the same.
Just past the half-way point of the book, Davis takes readers aside to tell us about something he remembers from his past: a time when speaking to a former professor and friend (David Brower), who in 1971 was “already a legend in the environmental community.” The interesting part of this anecdotal tangent was not when Davis was told by Brower that he could change the world—that anyone is capable of changing the world for that matter—but what he said after:
How fitting that this conversation took place in 1971 and that we are confronted with this truth today. One need not look far to draw parallels between the greed driven plight of the Colorado through Davis’ research—its dams, the creation of new, man-made lakes which do nothing but harm the ecosystem they say is being protected—and many of the environmental conflicts we see around us today. Many would put the British Columbia's Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline in this category, for example.As Davis points out, however, it is not a herculean task to solve many of these problems through analysing and questioning them critically.
As one can see, through the beautifully written River Notes: A Natural and Human History of the Colorado, Wade Davis has provided another powerful book that provokes and challenges readers, at a number of levels. To read about the history of the Colorado—how the aboriginals were wiped out, the people driven from their lands, the almost complete standstill that the river has come to compared to its former glory, and how much worse things are becoming—should be a message to all that there are some aspects of life left best untouched and untamed.
Like the fourteen books that came prior, Davis' River Notes is chalk full of beautiful language, but it is the sheer act of writing this fantastic book that inspired me. Too often a poetic look at a subject is brushed off as art or a non-intellectual, but River Notes proves the opposite. Laced with just enough of the sharp edged facts to prove he knows what he is talking about (and dares you to challenge him), Davis is at once a historian, an ecologist, and (my favorite) a hearty traveler. His journey along the banks of the Colorado, through the Grand Canyon is as rich as his telling of the history of how all of this land came to be.
The book doesn’t have a typical order, which allows it to flow in an almost majestic manner throughout the different issues Davis wishes to address. He inserts bits of history when it is pertinent to the story, not only in the standard introduction to the book. This makes it possible to move seamlessly through different areas of study and focal points—from the aboriginal people who roamed the shores of the Colorado long before American Settlers, to the trials and interesting histories of Brigham Young and his Mormon quest toward Salt Lake City as well as some of the first adventures of explorers down the Colorado, through the Grand Canyon.
While he is discussing these topics, he is constantly bringing us back to the adventure he is on at the tome of his writing—travelling, himself, down the Colorado. Spliced in with all of his wonderful anecdotes are histories and scientific data pertaining to the damming of the river, the consequences of the many actions taken, and some outlook on its future, should things remain the same.
Just past the half-way point of the book, Davis takes readers aside to tell us about something he remembers from his past: a time when speaking to a former professor and friend (David Brower), who in 1971 was “already a legend in the environmental community.” The interesting part of this anecdotal tangent was not when Davis was told by Brower that he could change the world—that anyone is capable of changing the world for that matter—but what he said after:
Always remember, he cautioned, that no environmental victory is final. Nothing is ever fully protected. Every battle won only reveals new frontiers of conflict, because the forces of greed and self-interest, as he put it, always reemerge.
How fitting that this conversation took place in 1971 and that we are confronted with this truth today. One need not look far to draw parallels between the greed driven plight of the Colorado through Davis’ research—its dams, the creation of new, man-made lakes which do nothing but harm the ecosystem they say is being protected—and many of the environmental conflicts we see around us today. Many would put the British Columbia's Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline in this category, for example.As Davis points out, however, it is not a herculean task to solve many of these problems through analysing and questioning them critically.
As one can see, through the beautifully written River Notes: A Natural and Human History of the Colorado, Wade Davis has provided another powerful book that provokes and challenges readers, at a number of levels. To read about the history of the Colorado—how the aboriginals were wiped out, the people driven from their lands, the almost complete standstill that the river has come to compared to its former glory, and how much worse things are becoming—should be a message to all that there are some aspects of life left best untouched and untamed.
December 5, 2014
River Notes by Wade Davis is an enjoyable and informative “natural and human history of the Colorado.” It was a nice birthday present which I think my son Thomas picked it up for me at Back of Beyond Books in Moab, UT. (It’s not the sort of thing you’d find at Barnes & Noble in Naperville.) Davis, whose articles have appeared in National Geographic and Scientific American, has a talent for making natural history interesting. I credit him for making even the geology notable, although the Colorado’s rocks are inherently more interesting than most.
But Davis also brings human characters into the drama of the Colorado River – naturalists such as Aldo Leopold who explored the unique wetlands at the mouth of the river, and many of the visitors, conquerors, and natives of the land. Readers see the river from the viewpoint of Coronado, the explorer John Wesley Powell, and present-day Havasupai. At the heart of Davis’s description is his own rafting journey through the Grand Canyon. Quotes from Powell, photographer Eliot Porter, and Author Edward Abbey, among others, spice up the mix.
It’s a sensitive, but not sentimental look at the great river and the land around it -- a smart, concise collection of “River Notes” about the past, the present and the future. I recommend it to anyone with a love of the country. Those familiar with the West will see it in new light, and for all others, it’s a great introduction.
But Davis also brings human characters into the drama of the Colorado River – naturalists such as Aldo Leopold who explored the unique wetlands at the mouth of the river, and many of the visitors, conquerors, and natives of the land. Readers see the river from the viewpoint of Coronado, the explorer John Wesley Powell, and present-day Havasupai. At the heart of Davis’s description is his own rafting journey through the Grand Canyon. Quotes from Powell, photographer Eliot Porter, and Author Edward Abbey, among others, spice up the mix.
It’s a sensitive, but not sentimental look at the great river and the land around it -- a smart, concise collection of “River Notes” about the past, the present and the future. I recommend it to anyone with a love of the country. Those familiar with the West will see it in new light, and for all others, it’s a great introduction.
April 28, 2014
Mr. Davis provides a languid, somewhat rambling story of his own rafting trip through the Grand Canyon, during which he explores a number of views and topics covered extensively by several that have written before. There is much cross-over here between the historian, naturalist and adventurer (invoking John Wesley Powell's trip on the same river) and the concerned citizen (invoking McPhee's stories of David Brower, and Reisner's "Cadillac Desert"). Mr. Davis takes kindly to his river guide, a native Havasupai, and explains a little archaeology along the way as well. The geology of the Canyon is touched on at times, and I would have liked a cross-section plate near the front to accompany the provided river map and help keep the reader oriented in space and time during the rafting trip. Nevertheless, this is a casual read, something of a gentle introduction to the numerous historical, societal, scientific, engineering, and political issues around the lower Colorado River and the Grand Canyon. The reader whose interest is piqued by any given aspect of Mr. Davis' story will find plenty more in that vein by previous writers, from the prehistorical through the native tribes, through the controversy of Glen Canyon Dam, and to the present political and climatological issues on the River.
March 20, 2013
I read this book concurrently with George Handley's _Home Waters_, a book about a less famous river, the Provo, which passes through my home town of the same name toward the end of its 70 mile journey from the high Uintahs in eastern Utah to Utah Lake.
One interesting similarity between the two books was their differing perspectives on a common topic, Mormonism. Davis was very critical of Mormonism but also of the other groups responsible for irrigating the West. The book contains lots of interesting information about the Havasupai, the Hopi and other indigenous peoples whose worlds and ways of life are dependent on the river.
_River Notes_ is part history and part travelogue, and in it he makes an appeal to re-think how we apportion and value water here in the West. Noting that John Wesley Powell already understood full well back in his day that there would never be enough water to turn the desert into farms, he points out that we still haven't learned that lesson in our own day. If cattle ranchers had to pay for their water at the same rate that people living in San Diego pay for their residential water usage, he writes, the resulting price of beef would be impossible to sustain for any length of time.
One interesting similarity between the two books was their differing perspectives on a common topic, Mormonism. Davis was very critical of Mormonism but also of the other groups responsible for irrigating the West. The book contains lots of interesting information about the Havasupai, the Hopi and other indigenous peoples whose worlds and ways of life are dependent on the river.
_River Notes_ is part history and part travelogue, and in it he makes an appeal to re-think how we apportion and value water here in the West. Noting that John Wesley Powell already understood full well back in his day that there would never be enough water to turn the desert into farms, he points out that we still haven't learned that lesson in our own day. If cattle ranchers had to pay for their water at the same rate that people living in San Diego pay for their residential water usage, he writes, the resulting price of beef would be impossible to sustain for any length of time.
August 10, 2016
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The author’s descriptive writing made me feel as though I was right there on the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. It inspired me to yearn for a trip to the Grand Canyon as this book was an excellent prelude for such a journey. I found the history of this area very interesting and most enjoyable. It also brought out my environmental concerns of what humans have done to kill our wildernesses. It reminds me that we take nature, animals, land, and water for granted and don’t always utilize them as we should. Aldo Leopold’s quote “Man Always Kills the Thing He Loves” will haunt me forever. This book inspired me all the more to do whatever I can to preserve our natural resources. This is a book that one needs to read more than once and I surely will!
August 16, 2016
Indeed the entire water crisis in the American West essentially comes down to cows eating alfalfa in a landscape where neither really belongs.
- Wade Davis
The subtitle of River Notes pretty much sums up this slim volume … A Natural and Human History of the Colorado. Davis uses a raft trip down the Colorado River as a jumping off point to discuss the natural history and human history of the area, as well as threats to the region from dams, human development and invasive species.
The book is interesting and Davis has a nice writing style, but as someone with a higher than average interest and knowledge of Grand Canyon I didn’t feel like I learned very much (other than the origin of the names for Badger and Soap canyons).
- Wade Davis
The subtitle of River Notes pretty much sums up this slim volume … A Natural and Human History of the Colorado. Davis uses a raft trip down the Colorado River as a jumping off point to discuss the natural history and human history of the area, as well as threats to the region from dams, human development and invasive species.
The book is interesting and Davis has a nice writing style, but as someone with a higher than average interest and knowledge of Grand Canyon I didn’t feel like I learned very much (other than the origin of the names for Badger and Soap canyons).
March 24, 2013
Written in the lyrical style of literary fiction, this is not fiction at all, but the story of Colorado River. It is captivating in the well-chosen words that describe the beauty of this river sometimes told through the words of the explorers who first followed it from its origin and into Mexico. We learn about the tectonic plates that helped to form it and about the Mormons who began to change it. Later the dams reduced its flow so that it is but a shadow of itself, yet utterly vital to the existence of cities of the American Southwest. Every person who cares about water sources and about the environment in general should read this book.
June 2, 2013
Part memoir, but mostly history, and thoroughly readable. Davis uses his experience on a rafting trip down the Colorado River to talk about its history, both geologically and anthropologically. He dips into (no pun intended) the current ecological and water rights challenges facing the river, talks about John Wesley Powell's expedition(s), and introduces the reader to the wealth of Native American beliefs and guardianship of the river.
I knew little about the Colorado River and its canyons before reading this book, and found it informative as well as engaging. Very much recommended!
I knew little about the Colorado River and its canyons before reading this book, and found it informative as well as engaging. Very much recommended!
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