This Land: A Guide to Eastern National Forests by Robert Mohlenbrock

This Land is a comprehensive field guide that introduces readers to all 155 national forests across the United States. The book is divided into three volumes, with this particular volume focusing on the eastern national forests.

The guidebook describes the natural features, wildernesses, scenic drives, campgrounds, and hiking trails of our national forests, many of which are little known and sparsely visited but boast features as spectacular as those found in our national parks and monuments.

Each entry includes logistical information about size and location, facilities, attractions, and associated wilderness areas. For about half of the forests, Robert H. Mohlenbrock has provided sidebars on the biological or geological highlights, drawn from the “This Land” column that he has written for Natural History magazine since 1984.

What I Liked

I love that this book exists. I think that our National Forests are underrated, underfunded, and underpromoted. They are a national (and world) treasure. This book does a good job cataloging the what, where, and why of each unit.

What I Did Not Like

It’s a a reference-style book, so don’t expect a sit down, narrative style book.