Kindle Price: $14.99

Promotions apply when you purchase

These promotions will be applied to this item:

Some promotions may be combined; others are not eligible to be combined with other offers. For details, please see the Terms & Conditions associated with these promotions.

Read with our free app
You've subscribed to ! We will preorder your items within 24 hours of when they become available. When new books are released, we'll charge your default payment method for the lowest price available during the pre-order period.
Update your device or payment method, cancel individual pre-orders or your subscription at
Your Memberships & Subscriptions

Buy for others

Give as a gift or purchase for a team or group.
Learn more

Buying and sending eBooks to others

  1. Select quantity
  2. Buy and send eBooks
  3. Recipients can read on any device

These ebooks can only be redeemed by recipients in the US. Redemption links and eBooks cannot be resold.
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

Amazon book clubs early access
Loading your book clubs
There was a problem loading your book clubs. Please try again.
Not in a club? Learn more
Amazon book clubs early access

Join or create book clubs

Choose books together

Track your books
Bring your club to Amazon Book Clubs, start a new book club and invite your friends to join, or find a club that’s right for you for free.
Explore Amazon Book Clubs

Follow the author

Daniel Arnold
+ Follow
More books from this author
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

Early Days in the Range of Light: Encounters with Legendary Mountaineers Kindle Edition

by Daniel Arnold (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 46 ratings
See all formats and editions
“A splendid chronicle of early climbing in the Sierra Nevada.” —Royal Robbins

It’s 1873. Gore–Tex shells and aluminum climbing gear are a century away, but the high mountains still call to those with a spirit of adventure. Imagine the stone in your hands and thousands of feet of open air below you, with only a wool jacket to weather a storm and no rope to catch a fall.

Daniel Arnold did more than imagine—he spent three years retracing the steps of his climbing forefathers, and in Early Days in the Range of Light, he tells their riveting stories. From 1864 to 1931, the Sierra Nevada witnessed some of the most audacious climbing of all time. In the spirit of his predecessors, Arnold carried only rudimentary equipment: no ropes, no harness, no specialized climbing shoes. Sometimes he left his backpack and sleeping bag behind as well, and, like John Muir, traveled for days with only a few pounds of food rolled into a sack slung over his shoulder. In an artful blend of history, biography, nature, and adventure writing, Arnold brings to life the journeys and the terrain traveled. In the process he uncovers the motivations that drove an extraordinary group of individuals to risk so much for airy summits and close contact with bare stone and snow.

“Ever wish you could travel back to climbing’s early days and follow the earliest first–ascent visionaries? This fantasy comes to life . . . in this elegant narrative.” —Climbing Magazine
Read more Read less
Previous page
  1. Print length
    434 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Counterpoint
  5. Publication date
    September 9, 2009
  6. File size
    3748 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  10. See all details
Next page
Add a debit or credit card to save time when you check out
Convenient and secure with 2 clicks. Add your card

Editorial Reviews

Review


Dan has done something unique in climbing histories he went back in time first, by ferreting out and suffusing himself with ancient lore, then by forgoing modern equipment, and finally by retracing the finger-and-footholds used by the first climbers. His approach, as wackily original as the colorful characters he introduces, worked. This book’ is really a Technicolor time machine to the earliest explorations of American high peaks.” Peter Croft

About the Author

At fifteen, Daniel Arnold began climbing the Pacific Rim volcanoes and local basalt crags of his native Portland and went on to climb throughout North and South America. He lives in southern California, and Early Days in the Range of Light is his first book.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0044XUIEW
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Counterpoint (September 9, 2009)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ September 9, 2009
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 3748 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 434 pages
  • Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 1582436169
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 46 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Daniel Arnold

Daniel Arnold

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

Customer reviews

4.8 out of 5 stars
4.8 out of 5
46 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Inga's Adventures
5.0 out of 5 stars One of my favorite books
Reviewed in the United States on February 22, 2017
Verified Purchase
This is one of my all-time favorite books about hiking and adventure, especially in the Sierra. The book is heavily researched and the writing is lyrical. It's packed with historical tidbits but never dry and the author is clearly a talented mountaineer in his own right. Whenever people ask me for book recommendations, this is tops on my list.
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Sam
5.0 out of 5 stars Next Best Thing to being There.
Reviewed in the United States on October 6, 2012
Verified Purchase
If you love to hike, and love the mountains, this is a book for you. The history isn't bad either. Every paragraph painted a picture in my brain, and the characters were as stunning as the scenery. Arnold has an incredible way with words. Wish I had the same gift to convey how much I love this author and this book.
Helpful
 Report
David M. Townsend
4.0 out of 5 stars Intriguing glimpse into the High Sierra Peaks
Reviewed in the United States on May 24, 2010
Verified Purchase
I listened to the author at a Sierra Club meeting and was intrigued by his plan to retrace the first ascents of the High Peaks of the Sierras. I thought that the book was well written both from a reaearch point of view and from the way the author put the climbs into their hitorical perspectives and personalized the ascents by giving biographocal details on the summiteers.

I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in climbing and also to anyone who is researching vacation time in the Sierras.
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Larryw
5.0 out of 5 stars A really good book.
Reviewed in the United States on September 15, 2010
Verified Purchase
If you climb and love the Sierras then this book (as well as Norman Clyde: Legendary Mountaineer of California's Sierra Nevada by Robert C. Pavlik) are must reads. Daniel Arnold really does a great job in his research and writing, but more importantly (and uniquely) he actually duplicates each of the first ascents he writes about. Daniel Arnold personally makes each of these climbs copying the same styles + using the same gear, etc as those who made the first climbs. Then Arnold weaves his experiences in with the historical stories. It is unique and beautifully done. A really good book and an incredible effort by Daniel Arnold. Thanks Daniel, your work is appreciated.
Helpful
 Report
Laura Manina
5.0 out of 5 stars THE best mountaineering biography I have ever read about the sierras.
Reviewed in the United States on May 12, 2017
Verified Purchase
I have been fascinated with the original mountaineers of the Sierras for many years and have spent a lot of time reading about them. Daniel Arnold brought these legends together and connected their relationships with the mountains and each other with such detail and poetry I was in heaven. The fact that he followed in their footsteps made it all the more fascinating! I admire the appreciation Arnold has for that era of the original bad asses and the incredible awe of the Sierras. You don't have to be a mountaineer to get wrapped up in this book. It is truly an amazing read for anyone!! Thank you for all your efforts putting this together, Mr. Arnold.
Helpful
 Report
SB
5.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable and informative
Reviewed in the United States on August 27, 2011
Verified Purchase
If you love the Sierras or just like to read adventure stories, this book will entertain and inform you. I enjoyed reading about the author's attempts to duplicate the climbs of some of the most famous mountain climbers in Sierra Mountain history. Reading about the exploits of men like John Muir and Norman Clyde was fascinating. I read this book in between trips to the Sierra and it inspired me to try to get to the top of some of the peaks he writes about.
Helpful
 Report
JH
5.0 out of 5 stars This is a fantastic read. Daniel Arnold obviously has a passion for ...
Reviewed in the United States on November 10, 2017
Verified Purchase
This is a fantastic read. Daniel Arnold obviously has a passion for the history of Sierra Nevada mountaineering and is a brilliant writer as well. Didn't want the book to end. One of the best books you will ever read about mountaineering or the Sierra Nevada.
Helpful
 Report
Guide62
5.0 out of 5 stars Early Sierra Mountaineering with a twist
Reviewed in the United States on May 18, 2015
Verified Purchase
Outstanding, well written book. The author retraces the historical first ascents by some of the great early Sierra Mountaineers. Fun to read and very well done.
Helpful
 Report
Report an issue

Does this item contain inappropriate content?
Report
Do you believe that this item violates a copyright?
Report
Does this item contain quality or formatting issues?
Report