This 384-page work, which has all the hallmarks of a guidebook, showcases the best natural wonders of the geographical unit once known as the Wild West. Just as the national parks are well-organized homes to unique geographical and cultural formations, the short stories are structured around information about these places. These true tales are realistic, but often astonishing or even thought-provoking, and provide a glimpse of what a visitor can see and experience in this open exhibition hall of geological wonders. Those storiettes make this book a travel memoir instead of travel guide. The work is the first in a 3-part series taking you to sites within the Grand Circle. Dozens of parks are presented, with photographs and maps by the author providing a practical guide to the impossible task of taking in the beauty of the region, glimpsing the lives of the people who live there, making a home for 2-3 weeks in places where we have always longed to be, but where we are—and remain—mere guests. In the introduction, the author uses images from past decades to show where our hike in any of the Garand Circle's national parks actually begins. The answer lies in the genes we carry with us, in the values we hold, and in the recognition that the world can be known if we have the desire, determination and dedication to know it. The inner arc of the book is a spatially imaginary circle drawn around the common meeting point of Nevada, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona. The timeline is essentially marked by the stories of the journeys between 1997 and 2022. Although the grey daily routine of our fast-paced world allows few to recognise the fact that in our ever-changing world we are extras and witnesses of change and history. Notable eras in the Earth's history can be traced in the parks of the Colorado Plateau, a unique landscape of forms that for centuries have provided a human challenge and a seemingly inexhaustible source of close-up experiences with nature. The book takes the events of over 20 trips and turns them into one big voyage. The starting point is Las Vegas, the adults’ playground. It takes the reader from first superficial impressions to a coherent overall picture, giving the reader a glimpse into a world very different from the national parks. Heading north to the southernmost part of Utah, the Colorado Plateau at its highest elevation, we are introduced to the fascinating results of millions of years of erosion. Heading east, Moab and its environs enchant you, before Grand Junction and the Rocky Mountains take over. Along the way, of course, we become part of everyday life as characters on an adventure, looking out the window at the movie of our lives, the backdrop for which we have seen so many times in widescreen movies. Colorado —the river, state, or plateau—could be synonymous with friendship in this work—showing the power and value of human relationships. With our backs now turned to the cougars of Boulder City, our faces are tanned by the sun’s glow from the Arizona sky, the Sun King holding court over the Grand Canyon. Then on to the mother of all roads. Route 66 winds beneath our wheels to complete the circle and give us time to take in the man-made wonders. The people who first came here were perhaps heroes or tenacious, skilled, or merely enthusiastic leaders, or just simply determined. They made their way into the unknown, then built dams, erected fairytale cities, protected and preserved their history and natural treasures—and finally helped us (the guests) to experience all this wonder This book is a tribute to the sacrifices, the examples, and the work of these great men and women.. Tom H Cooper (registered pen name of Tamás PINTÉR)