Book Description

A Field Guide to Custer's Camps: On the March to the Little Bighorn is an easy-to-use guide to understanding the route followed by George Armstrong Custer and his troops as they marched to their most famous battle. Maps, driving directions, and brief descriptions of each campsite allow the most casual travelers, the more serious hikers, bikers, historians, and history buffs to better appreciate the challenges faced by US soldiers serving on the northern plains in 1876.Much has been written about the battle, but little has been said about the route taken by the Dakota Column (including the 7th Cavalry) from Fort Abraham Lincoln to the Little Bighorn battlefield. By experiencing the landscape of western North Dakota and eastern Montana-much of it little changed since Custer's last days-a wider understanding of the battlefield decisions is revealed.A Field Guide to Custer's Camps reveals the logistical problems faced by a large column of troops moving across the northern plains, demonstrating how weather, distance, and individual personalities influence and often alter logistical plans. Many of the campsites are within just a few miles of Interstate 94 and offer the chance for a closer look at the North Dakota and Montana landscape.Don Weinell, a long-distance bicyclist, biked the trail described herein, keeping a log of his experiences and GPS locations, which inform the travel narrative for A Field Guide to Custer's Camps. Weinell's on-the-ground method of exploring history puts him in contact with the elements, the terrain, and the physical demands of cross-country travel. For readers not quite ready to don rain jackets, cold- and hot-weather wear, or snakebite kits, this field guide is the next best thing to following the trail in person.Featuring 2 fold-out maps, 77 full color maps and photographs, GPS coordinates, detailed instructions, and narrative sketches, this field guide takes you on the ground and back in history.