Belknap's Waterproof Grand Canyon River Guide

There just isn't any other river guide map and book than the Belknap guide. The pages are truly waterproof and survived the many rapids soaking in fine condition. The maps are very helpful for navigation and exploration, allowing you to know if a small riffle is coming up or a class V Lava Falls type of rapids. They also point out other noteworthy river items and tell some great historical stories. Worth every penny. You will not regret the purchase. It will enhance your trip, on-river learning, and overall rafting experience.

This book is great for background stories, history, and geology of the Colorado River from the Glen Canyon Dam down through the Grand Canyon and on to Lake Mead. If you expect "river guide" details about camping spots, what line to take through rapids, and so forth, then keep looking. But if you're taking a guided trip, then your river guides already know all that, so this book is fine. In fact, most of their stories come right out of this book.The river maps are beautiful and can be used to track your progress. I've seen a version with a spiral binding at the top instead of the solid "Perfect" binding. That would be more useful in the field.

The seller does a great job answering questions. I had bought this several months ago and finally got around to looking at it as my trip got closer. I noted that the book was used. As I hadn't recalled buying a used copy, I was a bit surprised. I couldn't sort out things in my Amazon order history, so I reached out to the seller. He promptly responded with info that it WAS listed as used. This helped a lotThe book WAS exactely as listed in the original listing and the seller responded VERY quickly to answer my question.The book is also GREAT. Very detailed and will be super fun to have on the river while I raft "the big ditch!"

I can't imagine a trip down the Grand Canyon without this beautiful book. The natural history section will be so helpful with its clear photos and descriptions of the flora and fauna of the Canyon. The sections on geology, history, and archaeology & native peoples are fascinating and well-told, even if you you're not taking a trip but just want to learn about the area. For those who will be going down the river, the whitewater and photography workshops will answer a lot of your questions beforehand and prepare you for your grand adventure. And then there are the maps! What a wonder! They give an aerial view of the whole trip, including side canyons and mile markers, and are filled with photos and historical, biographical, geographic, and practical tidbits, and much more. I think you will find yourself referring to the book often, and that it will make you feel much more a part of the history and magic of the area, even as you are creating your own experiences and becoming part of the Canyon's vast history yourself. The book is beautiful and colorful, but also functional, with waterproof pages and a user-friendly format. You can tell that years, even generations, of experience, love, and research have gone into it. It really is a treasure.

This book/guide was recommended for a trip I took this summer. It is full of information and I found it very useful.

This book has everything I need for a raft trip down the Grand Canyon (which is what I'm using it for). It is well organized and printed on waterproof paper. There are seven sections - Geology, Whitewater Workshop, History, River Maps, Archaeology & Native Peoples, Natural History, and Bill Belknap's Photo Workshop. Each section has a color code on each page which helps you quickly determine where you are in the book. As a geologist, I especially appreciated the section on the canyon's geology. It's numerous colorful maps, photos, diagrams, and stratigraphic columns provide a clear and complete description of the geologic history and present geologic exposures in the canyon. The numerous photos of key parts of the canyon where the authors have traced and labeled the rock formations make it easy for any non-geologist to recognize and learn the canyon geology. The heart of the book is the River Maps. Each map includes river miles, topographic contours, and notes and photos of key features on that map. The other sections of this book are chocked full of photos and information of interest to anyone traveling in the southwest and make this book a good addition to your collection whether or not you have the opportunity to raft the Colorado.

Good quality with lots of good info.. Wish I read it before the trip but can really appreciate it after.

The waterproof paper on these Belknap Guides is a must for every river runner. We always purchase one Belknap guide and one RiverMaps guide for every new river. RiverMaps tend to have way better information about camps, and Belknaps generally have better advice for the rapids. Between the two, it's a slam dunk.

Great map!!