Paddling The Guadalupe (River Books (Texas A&M University Press))

With the expertise of a life and career immersed in nature, he introduces readers to the places, people, plants, and animals--large and small, aquatic and terrestrial--that depend on the Guadalupe for either their livelihoods or their existence. With affection and humor (and sometimes aggravation), he wryly comments on the development and human activity along the river's course, from the headwaters west of Kerrville to its mouth near Tivoli, just east of Refugio.

For the traveler, either on the river or along its course, McAlister's knowledge of the grists, sawmills, dams, bridges, swimming holes, and reservoirs bring the history of familiar towns--Comfort, Canyon Lake, New Braunfels, Seguin, Gonzales, Cuero, and Victoria among them--to life. His love of the natural world, which shares the river's bounty, will inspire and enhance anyone's experience of the Guadalupe, from the serious canoer to the family vacationer.

Photographs taken over many years provide an intimate perspective, and sixteen maps help orient those interested in getting to know the river on a more personal basis.