I love, love, love this book! It's a touching, enthusiastic meditation on geology, hiking, and how landscapes can shape your psyche.

It's 2025, and people are still out here panning for gold. The San Gabriel Mountains have a thriving community of present-day panners. Some live in the mountains full-time. Most are recreational. All of them violate federal prohibitions on gold prospecting, and for some reason, rangers look the other way. I learned about this bizarre subcutlure accidentally, on a dayhike where I saw 10 (!!) gold prospectors.

Off the coast of California, a small archipelago peeks out of the Pacific. 'The Galapagos of North America'. The Channel Islands. It's home to 150 endemic species, including the Island Fox, which you won't find anywhere else in the world. These foxes are unbelievably precious. They evolved in isolation and developed 'island dwarfism'. An adult is ~4 pounds, or the size of a small cat. The indigenous Chumash loved them, kept them as pets, and generally considered them sacred. Centuries of pampering and coexistence made them docile and unafraid of humans. They are the islands' 'top predator', which speaks to how gentle the land is. About 20 years ago, there were only 15 foxes left and now you're sure to see at least 2 or 3 every time you visit. It's awful to think of them going extinct. I hope we die long before they do.