"M.R. Montgomery journeys from the headwaters of the Columbia River and Hoodoo Creek in the interior of the Crow Reservation, to eastern Oregon and to Rosebud Creek, where General Custer's reinforcements camped and went fishing instead of joining the battle at Little Bighorn. Along the way, he makes stops at Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks, and traces the steps of Lewis and Clark (each of whom had a species of trout - Salmo lewisi and Salmo clarki - named after him during the nineteenth century); visiting landscapes in danger of vanishing under the tracks of tourists, land developers, and even grazing cows." "Montgomery guides us through overlooked locations in Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, New Mexico, Arizona, and Oregon - all of the last best places - narrating his travels with luminous descriptions of territory, peculiarly Western characters, and uncommon history. All of this is sharply observed with dry humor, as in his explanation of why it is handiest to be in Utah when one is having problems away from home, or in describing the inherent hilarity of mud volcanos. And there is, of course, the ever-present quest for trout, from the Bonneville cutthroat to the rare Apache trout, all of which are ever harder to find in their natural state. Like the landscape, native trout are disappearing, overwhelmed by introduced stock."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved