This is a story about a park ranger, Randy Morgenstern...The one they always turn to for help with search and rescue when someone is lost or hurt. Everyone considers him one of the best. An expert on the land and an expert in wilderness survival. And then he goes missing himself. I couldn't believe how the author kept me on the edge of my seat! Reading detailed descriptions of Morgenstern's life and personality had me wondering if he could have made a fatal error in judgement that cost him his life? Could he have finally gotten so "done" with society and his own personal problems that he could have ended his life? Could he have been cruel enough to disappear in to the wilderness? He was a somewhat sympathetic character, I couldn't help but admire his philosophy; "Be quiet and still and the mountains will reveal their secrets", however I spent much of my time reading about him alternately not trusting him or really disliking him.

I save five stars for life-changing books. This one hit close enough to home to give me nightmares. Five stars for that.
I liked the part where he and Judi were able to reconcile their individual needs and come up with a lifestyle that suited them both, but it seemed to me that as the years went on, Randy became more and more unable and unwilling to compromise his own ideals for her. If he had left her for the mountains forever, that would have been one thing; finally choosing his one true love. But his affair with Lo seems unforgivable to me. He keeps wanting Judi to join him in the mountains, becoming more and more hermit-like as the years go by. He seems selfish and unbalanced and those things scare me.

I loved the way that these characters love their country. Having spent some time in the Sierra-Nevadas, I had a good mental picture of the granite mountains, the meadows and the foliage described in the book. From journals of several of the people involved came some of the most heartbreakingly beautiful place descriptions that I have ever read. The people who live there and care for them really capture the magic and the mystery of the mountains.

I liked this book a lot. At first, I was skeptical. It seemed too ghoulish, and too unoriginal – too much like Into The Wild or The Perfect Storm. Gradually, I found myself transfixed, and looking forward to getting a little more time with the book..

It’s the story of a long term (28 years) seasonal backcountry ranger in the Eastern Sierra, Randy Mortenson, who one day goes out on patrol and never returns. The book shifts back and forth from the search (which was extremely extensive) and Morteneson’s life. Both are very interesting. A big part of it for me is that I’m somewhat familiar with the terrain he worked in and loved. Also, Morteneson is a like minded soul (of sorts). Very into the environment, in love with the mountains, anti-materialist. He led an interesting life, lots of great adventures, photographer, an unconvential marriage in which he spent months away from his wife.

Adding an additional layer of interest were M’s deep flaws. As sympathetic a character as he was in many ways, he was also something of a curmudgeon and had a deceitful relationship with his wife.

A book this engaging and well written deserved a better subject. As I continued into the book, I found myself becoming uninterested in Randy and more drawn to those around him, intrigued by what was driving them in their search for a man that, beyond their normal duties, seemed to think so little of people. Randy's ecological conservatism seemed to be as much about protecting his personal enjoyment of the land as much as the land itself. I found myself wishing the book were about his father Dana Morgenson. Dana, from what is presented here, had a clear desire to conserve the land and spread love of it to others showing a definite understanding about how to relate to people that his son lacked. The heaps of praises from visitors (which Blehm oddly presented about the time my mind had been made up regarding Randy), for me, can't overshadow a man who to fix his problems relating to people sought the ultimate solitude. This was a good book, I just can't let go of wishing it had been about something else.

If you are familiar with SEKI backcountry you will thoroughly enjoy this book. It is a fascinating portrayal of a man who loved the High Sierra so much it consumed him. It also delves into larger philosophical issues, like what is wilderness for and how should it be managed? The writing was a bit portentous at times - deleting a sentence or paragraph here & there would have made it less overwrought. Also, I think the author should have put the more detailed map in the back. Having said this, I was obsessed and didn't want to go to work so I could stay home and read it.

Bonus for me: summer 2011 I spent time with one of the characters - now the LeConte Canyon backcountry ranger - when he accompanied me on my bird surveys. He was a lovely man whose knowledge of and enthusiasm for the Sierra Nevada was such a joy. I was humbled that he actually wanted to spend time with me so he could increase his knowledge (!) ... about Sierran birds. Rick Sanger, you carry on the spirit of Randy Morgenson, I am sure.

Eric Blehm, from North County and a SDSU journalism and recreation major, was told to solo the John Muir trail for background and he did.

The life of Randy Morgenson was one of idealism and love for his beloved Sierra as a seasonal back country ranger. This hardy breed of outdoorsman and woman "safeguard the Sierra from people and the people from the Sierra. Patient educators, first aid and body recovery, they do it all with virtually no benefits and low pay.

Randy grew up in the beauty of Yosemite and traveled to the high worlds of Nepal to sample the vast steepness of the vertical world in which he was comfortable. When he turns up missing after some mid life dead ends, most thought that it was suicide. The story unfolds almost as a mystery, with a surprise ending. Great read.

Having been a SAR member was my driving reason to read this book as it’s all about Ranger Randy Morgenson who went missing in the Sierras in the ‘90s. I was fascinated to learn about this search and saw it as a mystery. As it happened, having insider knowledge made so much seem familiar. And it was kind of thrilling to recognize so much I’m the way of search tactics and terminology. I could feel the experience on that level.
But I didn’t want to read it when I saw how long it was and understood it was going to go deep into the ranger experience, which I didn’t think I cared about, and only a portion into the search itself. Still, I kept on reading, feeling compelled by some aspect to stick with it. Maybe it was getting into the heads of people for whom the great outdoors is life and meaning. Maybe it just was Randy himself, a bit of an enigma despite it seeming that he was a man of singular focus.
I would rate this between 3 and 4. It loses points for being a bit rambly and jumpy. The writing was passable but not exceptional. But there is something there that elevates it to a book I will remember for awhile.

Fantastic commentary on nature, human nature and life in the outdoors. I can’t recommend this book enough if you appreciate outdoor novels. Reminiscent of Edward Abbey with an added mystery. 10/10.

When a ranger, experienced in finding people in the wilderness of the Sierra Nevada disappears himself, There is a lot of question as to what actually happened to him.

I found it a bit creepy.

"The Last Season" is based on a true story about National Park Service ranger Randy Morgenson, who went missing on July 21, 1996. He was a dedicated steward of the High Sierras (Bench Lake is the area he patrolled for 28 years). Growing up in the High Sierras, and scaling Mt. Whitney with his father when he was just eight years old, Morgenson became a movement for environmentalism, and he also revolutionized how NPS rangers did their jobs. What a coincidence that I finished this book a day after the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service.

Even though most people who pick up this book will know something of the story, Blehm manages to preserve the much of the mystery involving Randy Morgenson's disappearance. Blehm creates suspense, and he delivers. By the end of the book, I felt like I knew what happened. I was, also, impressed by not only the amount of research that Blehm did but, moreover, how he used it to paint a compelling portrait of Randy. The Last Season met all of my expectations. I would highly recommend it.

“What is this infatuation with ‘est’? Why are we beating our brains on a hard surface to be fastest, biggest, richest, on and on ad infinitum ad nauseam? I asked how many Audubon’s warblers he’d seen or hermit thrushes he’d heard and he grinned sheepishly, looking down at his bootlaces. But this was an unfair question. Such a hiker has probably never slowed enough to notice, but I continued: ‘Have you tried meadow sitting or cloud watching?’ ‘Anyone can do that,’ was his response. There it is again. Machismo. This fellow is going to achieve, be a first, do things not everyone does or even can do. That becomes his goal. We’re a restless breed, we moderns. Hardest it is to sit still and be attentive to our surroundings. Boredom comes to most of us very quickly.”

While a flawed man with immense privilege, Randy’s immersion in the wilderness and his curmudgeony, misanthropic backcountry ways were relatable, his passion for natural spaces poignant, while Blehm’s visualization of the ranger’s story was beautifully and meticulously rendered. The Last Season is a captivating yet bleak story, maybe most for the superhuman qualities and virtuousness that many of Randy’s fellow rangers and friends attributed to a man who in reality was simply human.

My fascination with these perilous tales of great adventure coupled with great tragedy continues.

This man's life shows how perfectly imperfect we can be. So dial in on one part of our life, but struggling through the other. Leaning in where we fell safe, but not using it as a hiding place.