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The Last Empty Places: A Past and Present Journey Through the Blank Spots on the American Map
Americans have shaped the idea of wilderness, and it has shaped us. The Last Empty Places is one man’s love letter to the enduring American wild, where our country’s character was forged and its destiny set in motion.Memories of growing up in a log cabin in the Wisconsin woods inspired writer Peter Stark to seek out untouched tracts of the American wilderness. What he discovered in these “blank spots” on the U.S. map is that these places are actually teeming with the rich history of our nation.Stark journeys into the great wild to four of the emptiest expanses he can find—northern Maine, central Pennsylvania, the Gila Wilderness of New Mexico, and southeast Oregon—and in so doing weaves together a majestic and dramatic tale of frontiersmen and fighters, naturalists and philosophers, émigrés and natives. But he also goes beyond that, acknowledging to some of the great minds that first framed our relationship to the wilderness that would become our home—passionate thinkers and writers including Thoreau, Emerson, and John Muir.The result is a narrative that blends nature and history in a vivid new way, a tale that provides an unforgettable window into our country’s past and present.From the Hardcover edition.
256 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2010
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December 17, 2018
The author has selected four "empty spaces" in the United States, places where very few people live. He made his selection on the basis of nighttime satellite photos which showed dark areas of very few lights, unlike most of our well-lit country. The four areas he selected were northeastern Maine, next to the Canadian border, a part of western Pennsylvania, southeastern Oregon, and the high desert country of New Mexico.
Of course any area will have some people living there, as well as having had past inhabitants, and one reason he selected these four areas is that they have interesting pasts. Stark's approach is to visit these areas, describe what they feel like today, and then recount details of their past, all of which makes for a fascinating read.
In Maine, he takes his wife and two children by canoe down a river, the same river that Henry David Thoreau wrote about, not in WALDEN, but in his writings about the remote north woods of Maine which he visited three times int he l840's and 50's. He attempts to climb a rugged mountain peak, but turns back, as Thoreau did, because of bad weather, leading to his thoughts on how vulnerable humans are to nature and weather.
You'd normally not think of western Pennsylvania as a remote area, but the mountainous area Stark visits was initially logged off 100 years ago and lost most of it economic value. It was bought by the U.S. government and became federal forest land, explaining why it is mostly uninhabited today. But 300 years ago it was an strategic area, near key rivers, and was fought over by Britain and France in a the French and Indian war, which was crucial in determining the fate of North America. Interestingly, the young George Washington fought with the British in this area.
Southeastern Oregon, while remote, is full of natural life and attracted the attention of the famed naturalist, John Muir, who did much to preserve natural areas from destructive human encroachment. And it was important, too, as a desert that had to be crossed by wagon train immigrants to the Willamette Valley of Oregon, frequently with tragic losses. Today, Stark found mainly cattle ranchers who graze their stock on vast areas.
The last area that Stark visits is in New Mexico, an area that the Spaniards trekked through in the 1500's, seeking the fabled "seven cities of gold" which turned out to be illusory. It's rugged country, but again, he, his wife, and two children, hiked and camped in remote canyons, and he writes of Aldo Leopold's 20th century efforts to preserve this region by showing "the interrelatedness of the natural world and the all-too-common human ignorance of it."
Finally, are these blank spots of any real significance? Starks thinks so, and eloquently writes of the lessons that their wilderness imparts to us, "Creation is continuous and infinitely complex. Man is only the tiniest, tiniest part of all Creation. And you - yes, you - are even tinier than that. That's what the blank spaces tell us." And these blank spaces on earth are only part of the incredibly vaster spaces of the universe.
Of course any area will have some people living there, as well as having had past inhabitants, and one reason he selected these four areas is that they have interesting pasts. Stark's approach is to visit these areas, describe what they feel like today, and then recount details of their past, all of which makes for a fascinating read.
In Maine, he takes his wife and two children by canoe down a river, the same river that Henry David Thoreau wrote about, not in WALDEN, but in his writings about the remote north woods of Maine which he visited three times int he l840's and 50's. He attempts to climb a rugged mountain peak, but turns back, as Thoreau did, because of bad weather, leading to his thoughts on how vulnerable humans are to nature and weather.
You'd normally not think of western Pennsylvania as a remote area, but the mountainous area Stark visits was initially logged off 100 years ago and lost most of it economic value. It was bought by the U.S. government and became federal forest land, explaining why it is mostly uninhabited today. But 300 years ago it was an strategic area, near key rivers, and was fought over by Britain and France in a the French and Indian war, which was crucial in determining the fate of North America. Interestingly, the young George Washington fought with the British in this area.
Southeastern Oregon, while remote, is full of natural life and attracted the attention of the famed naturalist, John Muir, who did much to preserve natural areas from destructive human encroachment. And it was important, too, as a desert that had to be crossed by wagon train immigrants to the Willamette Valley of Oregon, frequently with tragic losses. Today, Stark found mainly cattle ranchers who graze their stock on vast areas.
The last area that Stark visits is in New Mexico, an area that the Spaniards trekked through in the 1500's, seeking the fabled "seven cities of gold" which turned out to be illusory. It's rugged country, but again, he, his wife, and two children, hiked and camped in remote canyons, and he writes of Aldo Leopold's 20th century efforts to preserve this region by showing "the interrelatedness of the natural world and the all-too-common human ignorance of it."
Finally, are these blank spots of any real significance? Starks thinks so, and eloquently writes of the lessons that their wilderness imparts to us, "Creation is continuous and infinitely complex. Man is only the tiniest, tiniest part of all Creation. And you - yes, you - are even tinier than that. That's what the blank spaces tell us." And these blank spaces on earth are only part of the incredibly vaster spaces of the universe.
April 15, 2021
I was introduced to Peter Stark through his 2015 book, Astoria. In the acknowledgements Stark said his curiosity about John Day's role in the Astoria Expedition was raised as he was writing this 2010 book. Eastern Oregon is my home, so I immediately started reading, hoping to learn more about my backyard.
Stark's premise: using a satellite photo of America at night, look for the blank spots, those places where there is no man-made illumination. I enjoyed each time Stark revisited and refined his definition of blank spot.
• no roads or human features
• unpredictable, uncertain
• the longer it takes to reach a blank spot, the more time it demands of us, the more precious that spot will become
• absence of outside communications; all messages are local
• guided tours will not get you fully into the wild
• looking at the stars while at a blank spot (dark spot on map), one sees the inverse image in the sky
Stark visited four places: Northern Maine, Western Pennsylvania, Southeast Oregon, and the High Desert of New Mexico. Along with this travelogue and meditations on wilderness, he weaved a mini-biography of a naturalist with each spot: Thoreau, Billy Bartram, John Muir, and Aldo Leopold.
While I don't share Stark's presuppositions, I value the wilderness and reading about its history.
I was a bit gobsmacked that [I can't be sure of this without re-reading the book; but I don't recall him ever referring to the any part of nature other than earth] he used the word Creation in his conclusion: Creation is enormous and infinitely complex. Man is only the tiniest, tiniest, tiniest part of all Creation. And you—yes, you—are even tinier than that. That's what the blank spots tell us.
Stark's premise: using a satellite photo of America at night, look for the blank spots, those places where there is no man-made illumination. I enjoyed each time Stark revisited and refined his definition of blank spot.
• no roads or human features
• unpredictable, uncertain
• the longer it takes to reach a blank spot, the more time it demands of us, the more precious that spot will become
• absence of outside communications; all messages are local
• guided tours will not get you fully into the wild
• looking at the stars while at a blank spot (dark spot on map), one sees the inverse image in the sky
Stark visited four places: Northern Maine, Western Pennsylvania, Southeast Oregon, and the High Desert of New Mexico. Along with this travelogue and meditations on wilderness, he weaved a mini-biography of a naturalist with each spot: Thoreau, Billy Bartram, John Muir, and Aldo Leopold.
While I don't share Stark's presuppositions, I value the wilderness and reading about its history.
I was a bit gobsmacked that [I can't be sure of this without re-reading the book; but I don't recall him ever referring to the any part of nature other than earth] he used the word Creation in his conclusion: Creation is enormous and infinitely complex. Man is only the tiniest, tiniest, tiniest part of all Creation. And you—yes, you—are even tinier than that. That's what the blank spots tell us.
December 27, 2015
Blank places on a map. Seriously, is there anything more dreamily romantic than that? I've been infatuated with them ever since my childhood days of poring over the ancient bound sets of very early National Geographic issues. And it seems as if I am not the only one.
Stark used night satellite aerial shots to find locations within the continental United States that were the darkest. They had to be areas that were plausibly habitable (Great Alkaline Desert of northern Nevada, I'm giving you the side-eye) but are not currently. He came up with the woods of western Maine (filled, in the past, with logging camps), the valleys of western Pennsylvania (somewhat settled until the French-Indian Wars issues), the high desert ranching country of eastern Oregon (as settled now as it ever was - not much) and the Gila Wilderness of New Mexico (currently home to the Very Large Array eye to the stars). In each of these locations, he goes on a camping expedition, usually accompanied by his wife and two kids (the best!) and weaves together his own observations and the history of the place.
He's a delightful writer, with a talent for making history as immediate as the present. Here's his summation on the degree of success of Coronado's expedition to discover the Seven Cities of Gold.
He went away in a great parade of hundreds of eager gentlemen soldiers and powerful horses and wearing a suit of golden armor with a feathery plume en route to discover the Seven Cities of Gold, went away on a mission from the king himself, and he returned, two years later, exhausted, trailed by only a few stragglers who didn't really obey him anyway, having found not heaps of gold and fabulous cities in Unknown Lands but a place were nothing exists but grass and sky, having found . . . . Kansas.
There was a lesson to be learned.
Indeed.
Stark used night satellite aerial shots to find locations within the continental United States that were the darkest. They had to be areas that were plausibly habitable (Great Alkaline Desert of northern Nevada, I'm giving you the side-eye) but are not currently. He came up with the woods of western Maine (filled, in the past, with logging camps), the valleys of western Pennsylvania (somewhat settled until the French-Indian Wars issues), the high desert ranching country of eastern Oregon (as settled now as it ever was - not much) and the Gila Wilderness of New Mexico (currently home to the Very Large Array eye to the stars). In each of these locations, he goes on a camping expedition, usually accompanied by his wife and two kids (the best!) and weaves together his own observations and the history of the place.
He's a delightful writer, with a talent for making history as immediate as the present. Here's his summation on the degree of success of Coronado's expedition to discover the Seven Cities of Gold.
He went away in a great parade of hundreds of eager gentlemen soldiers and powerful horses and wearing a suit of golden armor with a feathery plume en route to discover the Seven Cities of Gold, went away on a mission from the king himself, and he returned, two years later, exhausted, trailed by only a few stragglers who didn't really obey him anyway, having found not heaps of gold and fabulous cities in Unknown Lands but a place were nothing exists but grass and sky, having found . . . . Kansas.
There was a lesson to be learned.
Indeed.
November 29, 2019
I was expecting some kind of nature memoir. It has a little of that in each chapter, but it's got just as much (if not more) history of each area he goes to and famous naturalist philosophers of yore. I think this book is better than the one I was expecting. The memoirish parts were fine, but I enjoyed the history and philosophizing parts more.
July 16, 2013
I picked up this book as I wanted to read about the author's experience in the Gila Wilderness, where I lived and worked for about 1.5 years. I got what I wanted to read out of that section, mostly, which was a reminder of a place that I love and appreciate and to see how other people would 'rate it', so to speak.
There were four sections in the book, each exploring a different 'empty place' in the United States: Acadia, western Pennsylvania (hah!), southeastern Oregon, and southwestern New Mexico. None of these places are actually empty, nor were they historically; mainstream America just views them as such because they are not centers of population and have not been for many decades. This was probably the most interesting aspect of the book, and it tied in with certain things I have seen in various parts of the country: we tend to forget that a place was inhabited by more than a handful of people several decades after the area was depopulated for one reason or another. For example, in the Olympic National Park I've seen old telephone wires absorbed into the bulk of old trees, flat meadows that were cleared of trees and farmed that still persist today, and old farming equipment being slowly buried by the growing biological morass. Nature reclaims her lands slowly as one human might see it, but very fast under the lens of non-human time.
The sections I most recommend for reading - if one were to skip over one or two of the four - would be the Gila Wilderness (of course) and Southeastern Oregon sections. Acadia was fine and I was glad to read about history I hadn't known before, and perhaps this is a slight bias against the eastern part of our nation, but I found the Acadia and Pennsylvania sections far less interesting than the other two. (this could also be because I live/have lived closer to the other two and thus have a more immediate connection to them).
Also, I found the author to be pretentious. This was a major negative aspect for me, and the main reason I rated the book a 3. Much of his sentiments and musings seemed taken from a very well-defined socio-political-economic aspect of our society and did not really diverge, so reading it was not, for me, very enlightening. Take what you will from that, as it is certainly opinion and will differ from person to person.
I rarely read a book seeking gratification that I know I will find, but this time I did. Also learned a few interesting things along the way. This book is good to read if you lack a wide variety of options but isn't chock-full of actual new ideas.
MOSTLY NEUTRAL/DISINTERESTED WAS MY MAIN EMOTION UPON COMPLETING THE BOOK. SO THERE YOU GO.
There were four sections in the book, each exploring a different 'empty place' in the United States: Acadia, western Pennsylvania (hah!), southeastern Oregon, and southwestern New Mexico. None of these places are actually empty, nor were they historically; mainstream America just views them as such because they are not centers of population and have not been for many decades. This was probably the most interesting aspect of the book, and it tied in with certain things I have seen in various parts of the country: we tend to forget that a place was inhabited by more than a handful of people several decades after the area was depopulated for one reason or another. For example, in the Olympic National Park I've seen old telephone wires absorbed into the bulk of old trees, flat meadows that were cleared of trees and farmed that still persist today, and old farming equipment being slowly buried by the growing biological morass. Nature reclaims her lands slowly as one human might see it, but very fast under the lens of non-human time.
The sections I most recommend for reading - if one were to skip over one or two of the four - would be the Gila Wilderness (of course) and Southeastern Oregon sections. Acadia was fine and I was glad to read about history I hadn't known before, and perhaps this is a slight bias against the eastern part of our nation, but I found the Acadia and Pennsylvania sections far less interesting than the other two. (this could also be because I live/have lived closer to the other two and thus have a more immediate connection to them).
Also, I found the author to be pretentious. This was a major negative aspect for me, and the main reason I rated the book a 3. Much of his sentiments and musings seemed taken from a very well-defined socio-political-economic aspect of our society and did not really diverge, so reading it was not, for me, very enlightening. Take what you will from that, as it is certainly opinion and will differ from person to person.
I rarely read a book seeking gratification that I know I will find, but this time I did. Also learned a few interesting things along the way. This book is good to read if you lack a wide variety of options but isn't chock-full of actual new ideas.
MOSTLY NEUTRAL/DISINTERESTED WAS MY MAIN EMOTION UPON COMPLETING THE BOOK. SO THERE YOU GO.
September 9, 2016
Loved this book about traveling to the dark spots on the nighttime map of the United States. Stark chose four regions that are uninhabited, untrammeled and off the grid, then he hiked and boated through them to tell us about the wilderness experience firsthand. I liked his approach to the poetry of the open land and how he wove in the stories of other explorers such as John Muir or Aldo Leopold. I wasn’t as crazy about the way he dragged his small children into perilous situations canoeing the rapids or hiking twenty miles with heavy packs, but I know his type. I was politically active in the wilderness debate in Utah during the 1980s and I know the self-satisfied air of those who want it kept pristine for only the ultra-physically-fit. Quoting Aldo Leopold he writes, “Wilderness areas are first of all a series of sanctuaries for the primitive arts of wilderness travel, especially canoeing and packing. I suppose some will wish to debate whether it is important to keep these primitive arts alive. I shall not debate it. Either you know it in your bones, or you are very, very old.” Never mind. He also tells the natural and anthropological history of each region, so I felt more educated as well as inspired. AND he visits the Very Large Array near the Gila River Wilderness. This was worth waiting for. I want to know more about that! One of my favorite things to do is to drive to an empty place – the Utah salt flats or the southwestern deserts – and feel small and quiet. I think Stark gets some of that exactly right.
September 12, 2010
I would have finished this book in half the time, but I kept looking up these fascinating locations on Google Maps. "Empty Places" is a skillful combination of travelogue, history, and geography. The connecting theme: visiting places in America that are largely untouched by modern civilization.
Inspired by a satellite photo of the United States at night, Peter Stark sets out to visit the "dark spots"...parts of the country where development is minimal and the nighttime skies are unpolluted by electirc light. Stark choose four locations, and wirtes extensively of his modern travels in each. His wife and two shool-age children accompany him on two of the trips -- to Northern Maine and the Gila Wilderness in New Mexico. The modern travel diary is accompanied by histories of the regions, and the histories are mulitlayered: a description of early American history (e.g. the Arcadians in Maine) and the more recent American history of the preservation effort that "saved" the area. These three lines are woven together in each of the chapters.
While I might have preferred slightly shorter chapters in exchange for including more "Empty Places", this book meets an important criteria for me: I learned a lot of new things.
Inspired by a satellite photo of the United States at night, Peter Stark sets out to visit the "dark spots"...parts of the country where development is minimal and the nighttime skies are unpolluted by electirc light. Stark choose four locations, and wirtes extensively of his modern travels in each. His wife and two shool-age children accompany him on two of the trips -- to Northern Maine and the Gila Wilderness in New Mexico. The modern travel diary is accompanied by histories of the regions, and the histories are mulitlayered: a description of early American history (e.g. the Arcadians in Maine) and the more recent American history of the preservation effort that "saved" the area. These three lines are woven together in each of the chapters.
While I might have preferred slightly shorter chapters in exchange for including more "Empty Places", this book meets an important criteria for me: I learned a lot of new things.
April 2, 2021
A really interesting tale about some of the many places in America that are so disconnected with the rest of us---some of them in very unexpected places. Stark shares reactions and deep thoughts on the people he encounters in these places.
April 3, 2018
“In the wilderness—in Wild Nature—humans wearied by corrupt society, disillusioned humans such as Lescarbot, Rousseau, and Thoreau, could find redemption and purity. It shimmered out there, beckoning them. It was a fantasy, a mirage, a promise hovering beyond the ocean or just over the woodsy horizon.
I know this mirage very well, for I’ve chased after it my whole life. The promise of something undefinable, ineffable, waits in those blank spots on the map-those wild places-as it did for these disillusioned men. What? What is it? I don’t know the answer. I don’t think they knew the answer. It’s less an answer than an expectation, a hope, or rather the hope of an answer. But an answer to what? To the ills of a corrupt society. To ennui. To disillusionment. To a sense of spiritual emptiness. It’s the answer to purposelessness. To rejection. To sadness. It somehow contains the answer to all these things. In the wild places, in the blank spots, what exists, we hope, is meaning.”
“Solitude is a sublime mistress, Emerson had warmed him, but an intolerable wife.”
I know this mirage very well, for I’ve chased after it my whole life. The promise of something undefinable, ineffable, waits in those blank spots on the map-those wild places-as it did for these disillusioned men. What? What is it? I don’t know the answer. I don’t think they knew the answer. It’s less an answer than an expectation, a hope, or rather the hope of an answer. But an answer to what? To the ills of a corrupt society. To ennui. To disillusionment. To a sense of spiritual emptiness. It’s the answer to purposelessness. To rejection. To sadness. It somehow contains the answer to all these things. In the wild places, in the blank spots, what exists, we hope, is meaning.”
“Solitude is a sublime mistress, Emerson had warmed him, but an intolerable wife.”
September 28, 2019
I remember learning to rattle off all the counties in Pennsylvania when I took PA History in eighth grade. But we never learned the unique background and history of our own area, deep in the Pennsylvania Wilds. I appreciated the focus on the original inhabitants—their politics, and above all, how they were done out of all their lands by the steamroller that was western settlement.
A couple quibbles. The Seneca land leases in Salamanca NY expired in the early 1990s, not 1999. And the author purports that he grew up in a wilderness area. Actually, he grew up in a semi-rural part of the Milwaukee suburbs.
A couple quibbles. The Seneca land leases in Salamanca NY expired in the early 1990s, not 1999. And the author purports that he grew up in a wilderness area. Actually, he grew up in a semi-rural part of the Milwaukee suburbs.
February 26, 2019
Stark does an excellent accounting of the natural and human history of each place. I could have used a bit more info on the flora and fauna, but he gives just enough info to give you a sense of the place, the sights, sounds, and even smells. I am no doubt inspired to travel, and might just have to visit these places to learn more about the ecology of each place. Especially enjoyable and inspiring were the introductions to the writers who began and built the ecological movement that we now know as conservationism.
August 6, 2023
I very much enjoyed this book. I tend to approach this type of book with more than a measure of trepidation because in many cases they just end up with over blown environmental/post colonial screeds about the evils of Western Civilization and capitalism. But I was very impressed that this book stayed pretty clear of any politics, which I appreciate. It's just a wonderful mix of history, modern geography and a wonderful love of wilderness and family.
June 9, 2017
There are many empty places in America and he chose four. On that list would be southeastern OR, western Pennsylvania, Maine and last but not least "the haunted desert of New Mexico".
Stark visits these areas with his growing family which personalizes it. And intersperses the four stories with poignant quotations and the early occupants of these areas. He is a fine writer.
Stark visits these areas with his growing family which personalizes it. And intersperses the four stories with poignant quotations and the early occupants of these areas. He is a fine writer.
September 1, 2024
Say blank spot one more time…. Did not get off to a good start with this, was actually infuriating to read. Thought it should have remained a personal journal— Starks seemed as surprised that these places could have history as that that history could include women. The Oregon chapter turned things around, but not enough to save the work.
June 6, 2025
I absolutely loved this book. The writing was moving and entertaining, and the history the author folds into his own story about visiting these empty places was done perfectly. This book makes one want to ditch the 9 to 5, grab a pair of hiking boots and a pack and head into the wild. beautifully done!
May 21, 2023
Peter Stark's "Astoria" is one of my favorite books. "The Last Empty Places" is equally as good. It reminds me I should be grateful that I've been to places in the book that are pretty close to those empty Pendleton OR, Salamanca, NY, and Sliver City, NM
June 20, 2023
Very enjoyable read with a mix of historical stories and his family’s adventures. Better than I thought it would be after it started slow and thought it would be another book to talk about Muir and Thoreau just to sell copies, but it did better than that.
December 29, 2025
The parts about the history and his personal experiences in the empty places were good, I didn’t enjoy how he jammed in the stories of the poets and writers who mainly never experienced the places he’s highlighting.
April 30, 2018
guess it's finally time to read Aldo Leopold
August 25, 2020
An excellent mix of travel writing and history that shows the importance of wilderness and our unique American connection to it.
December 6, 2020
3 1/2 stars.
June 29, 2021
Slow start getting into it, but ended up enjoying it - particularly the last half.
September 6, 2024
Very enjoyable book. Part history/part travelogue
November 24, 2024
This book is a good exploration of places around the world that merit a visit. The author describes locations all over.
January 19, 2025
DNF page 125
Read
March 15, 2025Enjoyed but think a physical book would be better than the audio book
March 15, 2025
Beautifully written account of Stark's travels to remote areas in the US. It combines history with evocative nature writing.
September 29, 2025
Ugh. Not sure why I picked this up? But I was definitely hoping for something else. It was way too much history for me. No thanks. Did not finish once I realized I wasn’t even listening
Want to read
November 21, 202511/16/25 found it browsing at Dudleys in Bend
December 3, 2025
3.5 stars. An interesting premise with some terrific history.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 60 reviews