"Mountaineering is the first real literature of the Sierra, and, as a book of familiar travels in unfamiliar places in America, it brooks no equal." Pacific Historian

Clarence King was an internationally renowned explorer, famous for exposing a great diamond hoax.

He was a great pioneer and highly regarded in his time.

This tale from his younger years gives some insight into the mind of this controversial figure in American history.

In his own words, hear how this troubled man and his team mapped the treacherous Sierra mountains.

Rather than a dry account of pure events, the text is imbibed with a sense of wonder and adventure.

The writing is beautiful and compelling: over an over, King finds beauty in the worst conditions.

King comes across as likeable and optimistic, which makes the perils and dangers that he undergoes seem all the more important and questions the assumptions we might have about his life.

Ascending and descending mountains, fighting wind and hail and snow, surviving terrifying storms, King was an extraordinary man.

He led a life that was radical and challenging but which has captivated the minds of historians for many years.

In this book is an incredible journey - one of great personal risk but which reveals the richness of the early American landscape.

King was a young man at the time, mapping a young America, but at times he seems to step out of his own time and address the reader, asking us to question our perceptions.

His youthful optimism is contagious and his work helps us to make more sense of the life of Clarence King.

This autobiographical account is an instant classic – beautifully written – that weaves past and present together.

"Scientifically accurate as well as charmingly descriptive of the region." James D. Hart, The Oxford Companion to American Literature

"A fine book . . . [that] will please the mountain climber and allow him to enjoy his precarious pastime within the safe confines of his armchair." New York Times

Clarence King (1842-1901) was an American geologist, mountaineer, and author. He served as the first director of the United States Geological Survey from 1879 to 1881. King was noted for his exploration of the Sierra Nevada.

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