Hi Ebbie - yes, I read that book. I remember a section (was it something about "finding what they were looking for"?) about a bizarre bureaucratic mission to see if there was a better option than Juneau for the state capital, and they finished up at a hole in the hedge near Talkeetna. (Willow?)

That book is about as fine an introduction to a region as any region could hope to have. I'd recommend it to anyone. Can't remember what he said about J, but sounds like he agreed with me. (*BG*)

But I also read that other book - "Disappearance: A Map," by the woman I mentioned to you once, Sheila Nickerson. Rest assured, Ebbie, I've got the message loud and clear, both from her book and from you, that there is much much more to appreciate in Juneau's immediate hinterland than I got to see in one brief visit. I'm aiming to get back, but maybe with my wife and daughter, and leaving the mountain bike at home.