John Robert Soennichsen

I was born in Los Angeles and lived there for a few decades before gravitating north to Oregon, and then to eastern Washington state. While in Southern California, I developed my interest in the Mojave Desert and, especially, Death Valley. On foot and by four-wheel drive in my trusty 1972 Toyota Landcruiser, I roamed all around the Death Valley region for a dozen years or more. Here, I discovered the magical qualities found in its arid, saline atmosphere and quickly learned both the benefits and pitfalls of isolation and desert travel.

My college degrees are in journalism and creative writing and I keep busy by writing all sorts of things for all sorts of people, some of whom even pay me for it!

I live in eastern Washington with my wife and youngest son. My older son lives in Alaska and my daughter and her husband live in Idaho. Also considering themselves part of the family are several dogs, two cats, a host of squirrels, quail and pheasants, and last but not least, an occasional moose who lumbers onto our property now and then to dine on mountain ash berries.