Rating: 
Summary: Fascinating morbidity
Review: ...
Authors Ghiglieri and Myers are Grand Canyon experts first and writers second. This book is a little overlong and choppy at some points. But, that can be quickly overlooked because this book is a gem!
Gathered here are logs with selected anecdotes of every person who has fallen, drowned, been murdered or otherwise perished in the Grand Canyon. The authors know of what they speak because they personally assisted in rescues and treatment of some of the persons about whom they write.
In this age of OSHA and fail-safe amusement park rides, humans have become too disrespectful of the power of nature. The Grand Canyon is nature at its most beautiful, but unlike the props at Universal Studios, the rocks here are hard ; and unlike the pools at Sea World, the water here is fast and furious.
This should be required reading for anyone visiting the Grand Canyon for the first time. It lets the reader learn from the fatal errors other have made. The final chapter on murder is full of mystery and intrigue. I will never look at the Grand Canyon the same way again.
Rating: 
Summary: DON'T GO UNLESS YOU'VE READ THIS BOOK!!!!
Review: Absolutely nothing can prepare your mind for a trek into the Grand Canyon like this book can. Read it and heed it and you will never be caught unaware or unprepared for the very real dangers you WILL run into there! Outstanding reading!! The authors clearly have common canyon sense in spades...and no wonder, you should read what they have had to deal with down there in that hole. Myers and Ghiglieri are 100% qualified to tell you what you should know before you go.
Rating:
Summary: DON'T GO UNLESS YOU'VE READ THIS BOOK!!!!
Review: Absolutely nothing can prepare your mind for a trek into the Grand Canyon like this book can. Read it and heed it and you will never be caught unaware or unprepared for the very real dangers you WILL run into there! Outstanding reading!! The authors clearly have common canyon sense in spades...and no wonder, you should read what they have had to deal with down there in that hole. Myers and Ghiglieri are 100% qualified to tell you what you should know before you go.
Rating:
Summary: Important Book to read before you hike
Review: Anyone considering hiking the Canyon should read this book several times before going. The Canyon is a very dangerous place. I live in Arizona and have hiked the canyon many times. I know two different people, that when hiking the Canyon, have come across hikers who have died of exposure. I know someone who found a woman in the inner canyon, alone, with a broken ankle. I have come across an unconscience hiker. My wife and I where below a rock fall on the North Kaibab trail, knocked off by a careless hiker above. Being exerienced climbers we knew what to do, but rock fall is a killer, it sounded like gun fire as it slammed down the canyon. This is a very dangerous place, once you step off the rim the canyon is definitely in charge. This book is not alarmist, it is for the intelligent hiker who would measure the risk, against the considerable reward, before attempting The Canyon. Never under estimate The Canyon.
Rating:
Summary: I highly recommend this book for canyon aficionados/addicts!
Review: As a former Grand Canyon backcountry ranger, field guide and author of the information website, Hit the Trail, the single most-often asked question was and still is, "How many people die here a year?" It's almost a morbid fascination but definitely understandable when you stand at the edge of the gorge looking down the distance of nearly a vertical mile to the river! Yes, people do die here, but mostly from careless behavior. This book intelligently lists each known death in recorded history without being morbid and grim. Many of the deaths extenuating circumstances are described and a discussion of why it happened and how it could have been prevented are included. You'll learn about Glen and Bessie Hyde, a honeymoon couple who disappeared without a trace in 1928 while running the Colorado River. The river runners still tell the story on river trips, and the TV program, "In Search Of.." did a special investigation and program on the couple. And those who have children that are boy scouts may want to read this to make sure you coach them before they do something foolish on a canyon trip. In spite of it's topic, Over the Edge is very easy and enjoyable to read. I sat down and read it cover to cover within a short period of time because it was so interesting and well-written. I highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in Grand Canyon, history, and human behavior. The book is very new, haaving been published in March 2001, and unfortunately quite a few deaths have occurred since then that will have to be added in the next edition. The sad thing is that due mostly to poor judgement, this book will have to be updated regularly.
Rating:
Summary: I highly recommend this book for canyon aficionados/addicts!
Review: As a former Grand Canyon backcountry ranger, field guide and author of the information website, Hit the Trail, the single most-often asked question was and still is, "How many people die here a year?" It's almost a morbid fascination but definitely understandable when you stand at the edge of the gorge looking down the distance of nearly a vertical mile to the river! Yes, people do die here, but mostly from careless behavior. This book intelligently lists each known death in recorded history without being morbid and grim. Many of the deaths extenuating circumstances are described and a discussion of why it happened and how it could have been prevented are included. You'll learn about Glen and Bessie Hyde, a honeymoon couple who disappeared without a trace in 1928 while running the Colorado River. The river runners still tell the story on river trips, and the TV program, "In Search Of.." did a special investigation and program on the couple. And those who have children that are boy scouts may want to read this to make sure you coach them before they do something foolish on a canyon trip. In spite of it's topic, Over the Edge is very easy and enjoyable to read. I sat down and read it cover to cover within a short period of time because it was so interesting and well-written. I highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in Grand Canyon, history, and human behavior. The book is very new, haaving been published in March 2001, and unfortunately quite a few deaths have occurred since then that will have to be added in the next edition. The sad thing is that due mostly to poor judgement, this book will have to be updated regularly.
Rating:
Summary: Fabulous reading!
Review: Born and raised in Tucson, Arizona, I have visited the Canyon numerous times throughout my life. And the one question that has always been with me when I see the Canyon is "How many people fall off each year?". In the gift shop of El Tovar, I discovered this book, however, was stuck paying the gift shop price!! The book not only answered my rather morbid question; it took me on a complete journey of stories of those with poor judgement, freak accidents, and those who were just innocent victims of the unknown in such a tremendous place. It is such an eye opener to all of those who have been to the Canyon...and also for those planning to someday visit! I would even be as to so bold so say that those who haven't been to the Canyon SHOULD read this book before entering...it could possibly save your life. This is one of the greatest books I have ever read...and will recommend it to all who are interested in learning a completely different, if not macabre version of what should be a fun, relaxing, family vacation spot!
Rating:
Summary: Fascinating!
Review: Call me sick, but I was completely enthralled by this book. It is well-written and informative - a must-read for anyone planning to visit the Canyon - and a great offering for those who enjoy books of the paring-the-idiots-from-the-gene-pool variety.
Rating:
Summary: Preserve your Life; read this book!
Review: Having just returned from my second cross-canyon hike, and my third trip to the bottom of Grand Canyon, I say this simply: BUY AND READ THIS BOOK BEFORE YOU PLAN YOUR TRIP! I was somewhat surprised to find that the book contains much, much more than just tales of death. The two authors are supremely qualified to write about the canyon: One is a former ranger there, and the other is a former doctor there, and both have hiked extensively for years there. The advice they give is some of the best I've ever read in any source, and their explanations of phenomena like flash floods, for example, are the best I've ever seen. I wish I had read this book before my first trip, which was done with an overweight pack and too little knowledge. My last trip was better, with a pack that weighed 33 pounds (vs the 65 of the first one).
BUY and READ this book!!!!!
Rating:
Summary: Highly entertaining and well written
Review: I came to this book with fairly low expectations, but I was bowled over by the information and the well-written style. This reads like a fictional thriller, yet every story is true. I think if you enjoy the Grand Canyon, you'll love this book! I visit the Grand Canyon several times a year to do rim-to-rim-to-rim hikes in successive days. That's 48 miles and 12,000 verticial feet elevation gain, so it's a brute. Being on the trail for 10 hours in one day lets me see hundreds of people on the Kaibab and Bright Angel Trails. It never ceases to amaze me to see the amount of unbelievably unprepared people trying to hike in this grandest of canyons. When you hike in the Grand Canyon, you cross six distinct climactic zones. You have to have a lot of physical and mental endurance to truly appreciate the wonders of the canyon. It can kill you if you don't, please heed the warnings here and on the signs in the canyon itself! So many people venture down on a lark in high heels. They suffer on the way back up. Don't let this happen to you. This book is simply superb, each chapter is divded up into various dangers, whether white-water rafting, hiking, and especially, the heat. If you're looking forward to a Grand Canyon adventure, you won't find a better book. I've read it twice because it's just riveting. Enjoy!
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