SCENIC ICONS TRAVELER'S GUIDE TO THE SOUTHWEST - A Literary Travelogue of National Parks, National Monuments, State Parks, and Archeological Ruins is the sequel to the author's "Scenic Icons Of The Southwest: Exposition of National Parks & Monuments, Tribal & State Parks, & Archeological Ruins." The main difference between the two reference and self-guided tour books is specialized ancillary topics that round out this publication's replete index. (See following for more details.)
Abstract: "Traveler's Guide" sets its primary focus on germane subject matter on the following topics: Archeology, the Pecos Classification System (i.e., explanation of the archeological timeline), a Geologic Analysis of the Earth), a Geologic Lexicon, Plate Tectonics, Archaeoastronomy (i.e., Chaco Canyon), "Dinosauria" (i.e., the study of dinosaurs and the Earth's primal history), Ethnobotany, Desert Ecology, "Rock Art" (i.e., "glyphs" as in the study of petroglyphs and pictographs), Pottery of the Anasazi and Puebloans, the Colorado Plateau Province due west of the Rockies, Acclaimed tourist-minded metropolises in the Southwest (i.e., Albuquerque, Phoenix, and Tucson), Popular Tourist Town Meccas in the Southwest (i.e., Jerome, Sedona, Taos, Cortez, and Moab, among numerous others), the History of the Navajo, Slot Canyons, Hiking Icons and Popular Trails throughout the Four Corners region, The Art of Backpacking, newly added National Parks and Monuments in this sequel (i.e., Saguaro NP, Bears Ears NM, Chiricahua NM, and others). Other incidental topics include the Glen Canyon-Lake Powell's damaging environmental story, Durango & Silverton Railroad excursion, a History of Route 66, Old Tucson Movie Studio, and Tucson's Pima Air Museum, Kitt Peak Observatory, and the Very Large Array, among other featured attractions and topics. "Traveler's Guide," like its companion "Scenic Icons of the Southwest," can be read cover to cover or piecemeal. Therefore, engaging topics and destinations appeal to the reader's interest.
(470 pages 8 x 10 Format)
About the Author: After being Honorably Discharged from the Navy (submarine service), Rich has lived in the West and Southwest for over four decades. Earning three academic degrees in Eastern and Western Philosophy, for nearly 30 years he has made a living as an outdoors educator and interpreter teaching a variety of geosciences, human, and natural history geared to the Colorado Plateau Province. Additionally, he was a professional studio and stage musician and taught guitar and music theory, including composing two soundtracks for the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone National Parks; a high school Educational Assistant and Substitute Teacher; a commercial pilot flying a variety of aircraft; a professional photographer; a GPS surveyor and topographical mapper for the U. S. Forest Service; a planetarium control room operator; a museum docent; and the Coconino County Sheriff's Office. What Rich is more enthused about, however, is serving in the role of an interpretive guide and educator for the Grand Canyon Field Institute (a National Park Service endorsed outreach program (http: //bit.ly/1D6YS1u). He was also an instructor at Northern Arizona University and Yavapai College (respectively, Flagstaff and Prescott), as well as the owner of a Southwest eco and cultural tourism enterprise. Since 2010, he became the Executive Director of a think tank in Albuquerque, based on astronautics and aerospace S.T.E.M. classroom projects (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics), including the co-author of a math-lab book based on rocketry. (www.stemfortheclassroom.com) For more of RICH HOLTZIN'S backstory, peruse his website: www.richholtzin.com
