How Delicate These Arches: Footnotes from the Four Corners

This is how so many travelers pass through the desert Southwest: Their instinctual GPS steers them clear of any complex community encounters and heads them straight toward Utah's Canyonlands, or parks them at the Four Corners Monument to take a photograph with their loved ones standing on the only point in the continental US where four state borders converge, then nudges them on toward that great dip in the road, the Grand Canyon. If you follow this itinerary, you may see the sights but, sadly, you'll miss the experience. This book isn't a destination guide. It's like an outfitter's guarantee to his customers that you paid good money for more than just a tour.