Down the Colorado: Diary of the First Trip Through the Grand Canyon

by John Wesley Powell, Eliot Porter (Photographer)

"One hundred years ago John Wesley Powell set out to explore the Grand Canyon of the Colorado - something no man had attempted before. His official report of the voyage remains one of the great adventure stories in all the literature of the American West."

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Science, Natural History

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1969

About the author

John Wesley Powell (1834-1902) was a U. S. soldier, geologist, and explorer of the American West. He is famous for the 1869 Powell Geographic Expedition, a three-month river trip down the Green and Colorado rivers that included the first passage through the Grand Canyon. He studied at Illinois College, Wheaton College, and Oberlin College, acquiring a knowledge of Ancient Greek and Latin but never graduating. He was elected to the Illinois Natural History Society in 1859. Due to his deep Protestant beliefs, and his social commitments, his loyalties remained with the Union, and the cause of abolishing slavery. He enlisted in the Union army as a topographer and military engineer. In 1881 he became the second director of the U. S. Geological Survey, a post he held until 1894. He was also the director of the Bureau of Ethnology at the Smithsonian Institution until his death.

Reviews

[John Anderson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disappointing, I picked this up for Eliot Porter's photos as I have already read JWP's book. While there were some very nice photos, most were pedestrian and there were not enough of them, Not recommended.

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Revisit of Powell's account which I read previously.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating journal entries. If you want to learn more about Glen Canyon prior to it becoming Lake Powell this is a good book to start with.

[Sandra Munger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Powell's diary of his trip down the Colorado River from Wyoming on. His was the first known party to boat the Grand Canyon. It's a coffee table book with beautiful pictures of the trip including those taken in Glen Canyon that no longer exist because of the dam. An afterword talks about the contemporary canyon.

[Cera · Rating 3 out of 5]

John Wesley Powell's diary of his first trip down the Colorado river is an interesting piece of writing that details not only the hardships of exploration but also the breathtaking scenery he encountered. I think my favourite bits were his encounters with various ruined cliff-dwellings (which today are known to be Anasazi) and his speculation as to who had lived there & what had happened to them. This isn't the sort of thing I usually read, but I enjoyed it, especially in this edition which has beautiful full-colour photographs of the area.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting read that combines the subtle yet beautiful photographs of Eliot Porter with John Wesley Powell's diary. There are also line drawings and photos from the two Powell expeditions down the Colorado River.

Its a great reminder of what was lost when the dam was built and Glen Canyon flooded.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Powell was incredibly arrogant but his contributions are not to be denies. I wrote my history thesis on his journey down the Grand Canyon.

[Ctazelaar · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing was great, but the photos were not very impactful. I think nature photography has come a long way since '69.