"This volume gives a good feel for life in the back country before roads, GPS, satellite phones, and other modern inventions. It is an enjoyable read."—Stan Moore, Denver Westerners Roundup
“A classic in western forestry. Having a new edition is a gift. For those of us who live in or love visiting the northern Rockies region of the West, this volume is even more welcome, as it provides glimpses into a landscape long past and an important historical moment as the U.S. Forest Service was first getting its footing. Char Miller is equally adept at zeroing in on Koch’s life story and context and widening out to follow the evolution of conservation ideas over a century.”—Adam M. Sowards, professor of history at the University of Idaho
“Koch has an easy style, and his memoir offers an intriguing vantage point for seeing the early decades of the Forest Service. There is much here about work in the outdoors; of snowshoeing, rock-climbing, and range riding; of fires, grazing, and timber sales; and of the impact of such larger events as the First World War, the Great Depression, and the New Deal on the Forest Service.”—Mark Harvey, professor of history at North Dakota State University
