Climbing Mount Rainer: The Essentials Guide

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: At first glance, a Rainier climbing guide by the legendary Fred Beckey and a veteran RMI guide sounds like a can't miss. How disappointed I was. The book looks thrown together. The route descriptions are good, but referencing the routes on the photos is difficult at best. Many of the photos are clearly the same ones found in Beckey's CAG. There's nice photos of Alex and Fred's friends climbing the routes, but I'd like to see more comprehensive views and overlays of the routes than of people climbing or camping. The introductory information is hurried. It reads somewhat like a promo packet for a guide service trying to get you psyched about climbing the mountain without telling you too much. It ends up being aimed either at completely competent climbers (and presuming that they already know plenty about Rainier), or at total novices who are intent on hiring the guide service. It fails to speak to the market of novice to intermediate-experience climbers looking to climb Rainier independent of a guide or looking to move beyond the standard routes. This "Essential Guide" is missing a lot of essential information. I found it to be frustratingly disorganized.

Rating:
Summary: The title says it all - Essential!
Review: In the past 2 years I've summited Cotopaxi and Aconcagua with Alex and have come to respect and trust his mountaineering judgment and attention to detail. That care is reflected in this book. There is generous use of maps and photgraphs that bring the route descriptions alive. It's almost as if you are "right there" on the mountain. Using red tracings for the routes on top of the photographs really highlights the routes. I especially liked the little tidbits from other climbers and extra "safety tips" about what to watch out for on certain routes. It goes well beyond the standard guide book. I have several guide books that include Rainier, but this is far and away the most complete. It is a welcome and valued addition to my library.

Rating:
Summary: Not too exciting
Review: The book had little juicy content of what it is like to climb Rainier. If you've already climbed it and are looking for more challenging routes, that this is your book. If you are a first time climber, this book will probably fall short of your expectations.