A journey of whim, humor, and self-discovery along the Connecticut River.When retired CEO Ramsay Peard, 61, called his old friend David Morine, 59, and asked the longtime conservationist if he wanted to canoe the Connecticut River, Morine said hed do it under one condition: no camping. Well rely on the kindness of strangers.And thats what they did. Mooching their way down the river and staying with strangers every night, Morine and Peard got an inside look at such issues as the demise of farming, the loss of manufacturing, gay rights, and Wal-Mart versus Main Street, and they were able to delve deep into the lives of complete strangers. But Morine soon realized the one life he never dug into was Peards. After spending a month with him in a canoe, he had no idea that his friends innermost thoughts had taken a fateful course.Written in the tradition of Bill Brysons A Walk in the Woods,this book will be treasured by conservationists, canoeists, and old friends still seeking a thrill. Everyone else will be delightfully entertained.

A journey of whim, humor, and self-discovery along the Connecticut River

The best-selling conservation classic, completely expanded, revised, and updated David Morine was a briefcase conservationist specializing in human nature. During his fifteen years in charge of land acquisition for The Nature Conservancy, Morine helped protect more than three million acres of wilderness, finding plenty to laugh about and learn from along the way. Here are the stories behind the deals and the people who made them—an enlightening, entertaining, occasionally unsettling look at the dirty job of keeping America clean.

The best-selling conservation classic, completely expanded, revised, and updated

 

David Morine was a briefcase conservationist specializing in human nature. During his fifteen years in charge of land acquisition for The Nature Conservancy, Morine helped protect more than three million acres of wilderness, finding plenty to laugh about and learn from along the way. Here are the stories behind the deals and the people who made them—an enlightening, entertaining, occasionally unsettling look at the dirty job of keeping America clean.

David Morine’s long love affair with Maine began when he was a boy in 1946 and his parents rented their first lakeside cabin in Fryeburg. At first skeptical about the cost and the lack of plumbing or electricity, the Morines quickly felt right at home. There was plenty of good fishing and good company to fill the long summer days.Although David didn’t know it at the time, his career began to take shape that summer when he first splashed his feet in the pristine waters of Lovewell Pond. He went on to become an internationally recognized conservationist and served for fifteen years as the head of land acquisition for The Nature Conservancy. He is also a natural storyteller, and he recounts the fondly remembered pleasures of family vacations and reveals many adventures and misadventures he had along the way. This second edition of Vacationland includes the same wonderful, quirky personal stories as the first edition, along with four new funny and nostalgia-filled tales about summering in Maine.

A journey of whim, humor, and self-discovery along the Connecticut River When retired CEO Ramsay Peard, 61, called his old friend David Morine, 59, and asked the longtime conservationist if he wanted to canoe the Connecticut River, Morine said he'd do it under one condition: no camping. "We'll rely on the kindness of strangers." And that's what they did. Mooching their way down the river and staying with strangers every night, Morine and Peard got an inside look at such issues as the demise of farming, the loss of manufacturing, gay rights, and Wal-Mart versus Main Street, and they were able to delve deep into the lives of complete strangers. But Morine soon realized the one life he never dug into was Peard's. After spending a month with him in a canoe, he had no idea that his friend's innermost thoughts had taken a fateful course. Written in the tradition of Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods, this book will be treasured by conservationists, canoeists, and old friends still seeking a thrill. Everyone else will be delightfully entertained.

A journey of whim, humor, and self-discovery along the Connecticut River.When retired CEO Ramsay Peard, 61, called his old friend David Morine, 59, and asked the longtime conservationist if he wanted to canoe the Connecticut River, Morine said hed do it under one condition: no camping. Well rely on the kindness of strangers.And thats what they did. Mooching their way down the river and staying with strangers every night, Morine and Peard got an inside look at such issues as the demise of farming, the loss of manufacturing, gay rights, and Wal-Mart versus Main Street, and they were able to delve deep into the lives of complete strangers. But Morine soon realized the one life he never dug into was Peards. After spending a month with him in a canoe, he had no idea that his friends innermost thoughts had taken a fateful course.Written in the tradition of Bill Brysons A Walk in the Woods,this book will be treasured by conservationists, canoeists, and old friends still seeking a thrill. Everyone else will be delightfully entertained.

A journey of whim, humor, and self-discovery along the Connecticut River

The best-selling conservation classic, completely expanded, revised, and updated David Morine was a briefcase conservationist specializing in human nature. During his fifteen years in charge of land acquisition for The Nature Conservancy, Morine helped protect more than three million acres of wilderness, finding plenty to laugh about and learn from along the way. Here are the stories behind the deals and the people who made them—an enlightening, entertaining, occasionally unsettling look at the dirty job of keeping America clean.

The best-selling conservation classic, completely expanded, revised, and updated

 

David Morine was a briefcase conservationist specializing in human nature. During his fifteen years in charge of land acquisition for The Nature Conservancy, Morine helped protect more than three million acres of wilderness, finding plenty to laugh about and learn from along the way. Here are the stories behind the deals and the people who made them—an enlightening, entertaining, occasionally unsettling look at the dirty job of keeping America clean.

David Morine’s long love affair with Maine began when he was a boy in 1946 and his parents rented their first lakeside cabin in Fryeburg. At first skeptical about the cost and the lack of plumbing or electricity, the Morines quickly felt right at home. There was plenty of good fishing and good company to fill the long summer days.Although David didn’t know it at the time, his career began to take shape that summer when he first splashed his feet in the pristine waters of Lovewell Pond. He went on to become an internationally recognized conservationist and served for fifteen years as the head of land acquisition for The Nature Conservancy. He is also a natural storyteller, and he recounts the fondly remembered pleasures of family vacations and reveals many adventures and misadventures he had along the way. This second edition of Vacationland includes the same wonderful, quirky personal stories as the first edition, along with four new funny and nostalgia-filled tales about summering in Maine.

A journey of whim, humor, and self-discovery along the Connecticut River When retired CEO Ramsay Peard, 61, called his old friend David Morine, 59, and asked the longtime conservationist if he wanted to canoe the Connecticut River, Morine said he'd do it under one condition: no camping. "We'll rely on the kindness of strangers." And that's what they did. Mooching their way down the river and staying with strangers every night, Morine and Peard got an inside look at such issues as the demise of farming, the loss of manufacturing, gay rights, and Wal-Mart versus Main Street, and they were able to delve deep into the lives of complete strangers. But Morine soon realized the one life he never dug into was Peard's. After spending a month with him in a canoe, he had no idea that his friend's innermost thoughts had taken a fateful course. Written in the tradition of Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods, this book will be treasured by conservationists, canoeists, and old friends still seeking a thrill. Everyone else will be delightfully entertained.