California Swimming Holes
Posted on June 12, 2011
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Part of the Cool Books Series - Previous in series
Norman Rockwell's Swimming Hole (1920)
One of the great things about being a library book sale addict is that I get to handle about 1,000 books a week and I come across some really cool stuff. The latest example is Swimming Holes of California: Day Trips With a Splash
Every swimmin’ hole is given three or four paragraphs of editorial content including detailed directions, GPS coordinates, and a copy of the USGS 7.5-minute topographic map of the area. But that is just the beginning. What makes this guidebook even more useful is his wonderful categorical icons. Each entry includes icons for: The Approach, The Season, The Company, and Overall Rating. Looking to go skinny dipping with your sweetie? Just flip through the region nearest you for the bare bottom icon. Want to take the kids to their first real swimmin’ hole? Find a black circle approach and a baby face icon.
Although eminently enjoyable to read, don’t take Pancho’s easy style and light-hearted descriptions to mean that he isn’t serious about his swimming holes. Here’s the last couple paragraphs of his Introduction to show just how serious he takes this age old tradition-
I’d even argue that swimming holes are the most complete trip to the mountains. Hiking alone isn’t. There is always space between the hiker and the trees, always a separation between us the ground we travel over. But water touches every part of the body with the perfect contact of immersion. People form attachments to these places. Several times I met parents and children at a swimming hole that the parents themselves had been coming to since childhood.
Beyond fun, there’s a metaphor here. Think of the stream as the work week, all noise and repeated motion. The swimming hole is the weekend, a place where the pace slackens, the issue gets broader and the water grow quiet enough to show a reflection.
So, whether you’re a swimming hole aficionado, a hiker, an adventurer, a lover of the outdoors, or just someone looking for something different to do this weekend, your first source of info should be Pancho Doll’s Swimming Holes of California: Day Trips With a Splash
Part of the Cool Books Series - Previous in series
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it’s a good thing that i have come across this article! really got something from here! hoping to read more of your articles. hope i can read that book too
I’d love to take the kids to actual honest swimming hole. When I was a little thats exactly what we used to do. Thanks for the find!
It’s been soooo hot lately, you are really making me want to go for a swim! Finding a swmimming hole is becoming harder now.