9" X 11"
176 pages
169 colour photographs
1 colour map
Hardcover
October 2015
Photography-Outdoor-Adventure
ISBN 978-1-55017-735-0
$36.95
Harbour Publishing
SOUL OF WILDERNESS
Mountain Journeys in Western BC and AlaskaJohn Baldwin and Linda Bily
A lavish volume of photos and essays featuring the wild beauty of western British Columbia and Alaska.
In this modern world, where it is estimated that three-quarters of the earth's ice-free land mass has been altered by humans, how many people have ever been somewhere they could truly experience pristine wilderness?
Few mountain ranges in the world are as wild or beautiful as BC and Alaska's Coast Mountains. From remote fjords to soaring summits, North America's westernmost mountains offer innumerable challenges and sublime delights. And yet they remain relatively unexplored.
Partners, co-authors and photographers John Baldwin and Linda Bily have ventured into the magical landscapes of the Coast Mountains. Travelling by foot and ski, their goal was simply to experience and document as much of these remote places as possible, to wander across the high meadows, ski from mountaintops and revel in the artful patterns of new-fallen snow. This stunning coffee-table book is sure to inspire readers to discover and connect with the intense beauty of this mountain wilderness.
Excerpt from the Introduction:
"We are fortunate to live near the western mountains of British Columbia, which contain some of the last wilderness in North America outside of the Arctic. The mountains are home to grizzly bears and wolves, and where salmon run wild and mountain goats and wolverines roam through terrain that has not changed since the arrival of Europeans to North America. This book is a look at those wilderness areas: their beauty, their essence, their soul."
Awards:
Short-listed: INDIEFAB Book of the Year Award (adventure/recreation category) (2016)
Reviews
"Due to the quality of the writing and the photos, in my view this is one of the best 'ski touring' oriented books ever. It's a book you'll probably find yourself leaving off the shelf, for a quick mood lift and smile any time that humdrum non-wilderness life gets you down." Lou Dawson, WildSnow.com
"The wordsmith of a text and exquisite photographs evoke and draw the curious and keen reader into both the form and soul of the mountains. John and Linda should be heartily congratulated for a pure diamond of a book that, simply put, has no competitors and would be hard to surpass---it is truly the west coast mountaineering book of 2015 to purchase, read and inwardly and meditatively digest. " Ron Dart
"The authors succeed so tremendously in conveying their curiosity and passion for 'untamed wilderness' that reading Soul of Wilderness made me want to drop everything... What really struck me about this book, above all else, were the photographs. It's an amazing feeling, opening a book and seeing a picture of a stunning landscape completely devoid of human influence. The vast majority of us do not experience such pristine wilderness on a regular basis; reading this book is a way to do just that." Tasha Olekshy, Nexus Newspaper
Interviews
Interview on Global TV Morning Show Interview with Joseph Planta on thecommentary.ca Interview in The Squamish Chief Interview in The Pique Interview in The Whistler QuestionInterview with Jordan Manley
Check out the new video by Jordan Manley that was partly inspired by our book Soul of Wilderness. It features a ski trip across the Homathko Icefield.
Crossing Home: A Skier's Journey | Series Finale from Jordan Manley on Vimeo.