A lyrical journey down some of America’s greatest rivers by one of the first women river guides in the West. In the tradition of America’s strong pioneer women, Rebecca Lawton was one of the first women river guides in the West. For millions of Americans and foreign visitors who have navigated America’s great rivers by raft or boat––and for those who wish they could––this book will help them understand rivers and their impact on the human emotional landscape in a deeper sense. It offers such seekers, not only the thrill rides and vacation destinations of our rivers—but also their rich ecosystems and spiritual wellsprings. As Rebecca Lawton says, "To those who come to know them well, rivers are home....It was the river that taught me instinctive responses, in an unparalleled mentorship that led me throughout the American West every day for more than a decade. Being on the river every day taught me to read water—to psyche out where rocks hid in riffles, find safe passage in inscrutable rapids, and keep moving in flatwater sections." Now, years later, she offers Reading Water and the countless lessons she learned from interpreting rivers and currents, living in the river community, and becoming part of a boater’s subculture.