# The desert

Author: Van Dyke, John C., 1856-1932

Genre: Category: Travel Writing

Language: English

License: Public domain

Source: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/73778

Amazon editions: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=The+desert+Van+Dyke&tag=cyberlibrar00-20

## Summary

morning approach--Air illusions--Sand forms--The winds--Sun-shafts--Sunlight--Desert life--Antelope--The Lost Mountains--The ascent--Deer trails--Footprints--The stone path--Defensive walls--The summit--The fortified camp--Nature’s reclamations--The mountain dwellers--Invading hosts--Water and food supplies--The aborigines--Historic periods--The open desert--Perception of beauty--Sense of beauty--Mountain “view” of the desert--Desert colors--The land of fire--Drouth and heat--Sand and gypsum--Sand-whirls--Desert storms--Drift of sands--Winter cold in the basin--Snow on desert--Sea and sand--Grim desolation--Love for the desert--The descent--The Padres in the desert--The light of the cross...

## Chapters

- [CHAPTER IX](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/21/index.md)
- [CHAPTER VIII](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/20/index.md)
- [CHAPTER XII](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/24/index.md)
- [CHAPTER I](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/13/index.md)
- [CHAPTER II](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/14/index.md)
- [CHAPTER X](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/22/index.md)
- [CHAPTER XI](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/23/index.md)
- [CHAPTER III](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/15/index.md)
- [CHAPTER VII](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/19/index.md)
- [CHAPTER V](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/17/index.md)
- [CHAPTER IV](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/16/index.md)
- [CHAPTER VI](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/18/index.md)
- [CHAPTER XII. _Mountain Barriers._--The western mountains--Saddles](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/12/index.md)
- [CHAPTER VIII. _Cactus and Grease Wood._--Views of Nature--Growth](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/8/index.md)
- [CHAPTER IX. _Desert Animals._--Meeting desert requirements--Peculiar](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/9/index.md)
- [CHAPTER III. _The Bottom of the Bowl._--Early geological days--The](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/3/index.md)
- [CHAPTER XI. _Mesas and Foot-Hills._--Flat steps of the desert--Across](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/11/index.md)
- [CHAPTER X. _Winged Life._--First day’s walk--Tracks in the](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/10/index.md)
- [CHAPTER VII. _Illusions._--Reality and appearance--Preconceived](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/7/index.md)
- [CHAPTER V. _Light, Air, and Color._--Popular ideas--Sunlight on](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/5/index.md)
- [CHAPTER I. _The Approach._--Desert mountain ranges--Early](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/1/index.md)
- [CHAPTER II. _The Make of the Desert._--The sea of sand--Mountain](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/2/index.md)
- [CHAPTER IV. _The Silent River._--Rise of the Colorado--In the](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/4/index.md)
- [CHAPTER VI. _Desert Sky and Clouds._--Commonplace things of](https://www.cyberlibrary.org/en/books/the-desert-73778/chapters/6/index.md)