HikeArizona.COM

Grand Obsession: Harvey Butchart and the Exploration of Grand Canyon. It's available in Phx at REI, also online at pumapress.org or amazon.

It's taken a combined total of 17 years between Elias Butler and Tom Myers (who co-wrote the book Death in Grand Canyon) to produce the history of Harvey Butchart, Grand Canyon's accomplished explorer. The authors wrapped Butchart's story around the history of foot exploration in the Canyon and it's a big book - 460 pages, 170 images.

Included are chapters on Colin Fletcher, Butchart's air mattress floats on the Colorado (through both Glen and Grand Canyons), butte-climbing, rim-to-river routes, the fallout of Butchart's obsession within his family, and profiles and stories of other extreme hikers such as Robert Eschka, who hiked from Moab to Lake Mead and back along the Colorado in 1983 before committing suicide, and others such as George Steck.

Butler and Myers appear at Burton Barr LIbrary in downtown Phx on April 8, 2008, 7pm.

Good luck Elias, looks intriguing!

there's an amazon link at
http://hikearizona.com/books.php?REV=1&ID=77

nice job on your recent work too!
http://www.eliasbutler.com/pub_cover.htm

Hi Joe,

Thanks much for your kind words. I appreciate the link posting! Hope to see you at REI next month.

- Elias

I must be dreaming! I can't wait to get this book! I have read and re-read Harvey Butchart's Grand Canyon Treks book about a million times. I pick it up everytime I'm about to go to the canyon and again when I get home just make sure I didn't miss anything. I can't wait to read more about him and some of the other notable people that you have mentioned. Consider a copy sold to me for sure! Thank you!

Hoffmaster,

Glad to hear you are a Butchart fan! I think you'll be into Grand Obsession - it's pretty much for the die-hard canyon junkies out there. We wrote it to fill in the gap created by all those river running books and comparatively few hiking books, and we consequently found a gold mine of stories and photos that hadn't been published.

Thanks in advance for buying a copy!

- Elias

Excellent cover to cover!
review is on Amazon

Joe - thanks!! That's quite a recommendation you wrote on Amazon! Glad to hear you enjoyed it enough to give the thumbs-up.

If you happen to make it to REI on the 25th (Phx) or 26th (Tempe), be sure to say hi.

The presentation at REI tonight was awesome! Standing room only. I can't wait to read the book, and it was nice to meet you (and your mom - who knows my husband, how random is that) and chat about posting pictures on this site.

I can't wait to read this book! I have a big collection of Canyon literature, plus a cherished postcard sent to me by Michael Ghiglieri after I wrote him a letter. But you're right, it's mostly river-running stuff on my shelves.

Good luck with your sales! Are you working on another book yet?

Elizabeth

Hi CrAZy4AZ - Thanks, I really appreciate that. My mom has a good story about the doctor visit.

Nice to meet you too.

AZBackpackr - gracias and yes on the book. Thanks for attending the slide show.

- EB

AZNATIVE,

A little off the thread topic . . . but congrats on your condor photo for the Hike of the Month in Feb issue of AZ Highways!

Thanks! It was a lucky meeting, what can I say?

If interested, I'll be giving free photography lectures and book slideshows in phoenix soon. Please come and introduce yourself. Here's the schedule:

Book slideshows:

Tuesday, April 1, 2008
AZ Outdoor and Travel Club
Hotel Scottsdale, 5101 North Scottsdale Road
Located just north of Chaparral Road on the east side of Scottsdale Road
7 pm

Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Burton Barr Library
Phoenix, AZ
Burton Barr is located on Central Avenue just south of McDowell road.
7 pm

PHOTOGRAPHY LECTURES

Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2008
REI Paradise Valley, AZ
6:30 pm
Free

Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2008
REI Tempe, AZ
6:30 pm
Free

I'll definitely try and make it to one of those photography lectures.

AZNATIVE wrote: If interested, I'll be giving free photography lectures and book slideshows in phoenix soon. Please come and introduce yourself. Here's the schedule:

PHOTOGRAPHY LECTURES
Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2008
REI Paradise Valley, AZ
6:30 pm
Free
Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2008
REI Tempe, AZ
6:30 pm
Free

I went tonight and really enjoyed your talk and obviously the photos too. It was a nice mix of basic and advanced photography tips with some philosophy thrown in there too.

I just got this book on Saturday, I was trying my ______ to make it to REI tonight, of course work just got in the way and now I am not able to make it. However can't wait to crack open this book.

Just a reminder to AZ hikers that I'll be presenting another slide show on Grand Obsession this coming Tuesday, April 8 at 7pm at the burton barr library in downtown phoenix. It's free and from what I hear, the burton barr is a great space.

Hope you can make it!

Crzy4AZ - thanks for coming to the photo lecture!

I'm putting this on my calendar! I was at your photo lecture at REI Tempe and I really enjoyed it.

Hey, AZNative, check your private messages, if you haven't already!

The photo lecture tonight was awesome! There was a decent crowd there, mostly "older" people (older than me). I didn't see anyone that I recognized; you guys missed out!

I got my copy of the Harvey Butchart bio signed by Elias Butler. Can you say "collector's item?" ;-)

Very cool that Dale attended! The presentation certainly rekindled how much I love the book.