Cruisin' the Fossil Coastline: The Travels of an Artist and a Scientist along the Shores of the Prehistoric Pacific

by Kirk R. Johnson, Ray Troll

In this long-awaited sequel Kirk Johnson and Ray Troll are back on a road trip—driving, flying, and boating their way from Baja, California to northern Alaska in search of the fossil secrets of North America’s Pacific coast.

They hunt for fossils, visit museums, meet scientists and paleonerds, and sleuth out untold stories of extinct worlds. As one of the oldest coasts on earth, the west coast is a rich ground for fossil discovery. Its wonders include extinct marine mammals, pygmy mammoths, oyster bears, immense ammonites, shark-bitten camels, polar dinosaurs, Alaskan palms, California walruses, and a lava-baked rhinoceros. Join in for a fossil journey through deep time and discover how the west coast became the place it is today.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, Art, Natural History, Nature, Palaeontology

290 pages, Paperback

Published September 1, 2018

About the author

Kirk R. Johnson is vice president and chief curator at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. He received his PhD in geology and paleobotany from Yale University in 1989, and did postdoctoral research in the rainforests of northern Australia before coming to Denver in 1991, where he directed the installation of the museum's Prehistoric Journey exhibit. His research focuses on fossil plants, the environmental effects of the dinosaur-smiting asteroid, and the birth and death of biomes. Johnson also works with artists to create accurate and plausible paintings, murals, and dioramas of prehistoric landscapes, several of which are on display in the Colorado Convention Center. Johnson is the author of Prehistoric Journey: A History of Life on Earth and Ancient Denvers: Scenes from the Past 300 Million Years of the Colorado Front Range. Johnson lives in Denver, Colorado.

Reviews

[Heman · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I leafed through this book at a Barns & Nobel I got an urge that I had very successfully suppressed on many similar occasions; I really wanted to buy the book at its full price. This time I gave in to the urge. Ray Troll's dreamlike and beautiful drawings (in those color hues reminiscent of the late 80's posters) sucked me in. More than that it is the paleontologist Kirk Johnson's delicious descriptions of fossil finds and history of a coast so dear and near to my heart that swooned me. The subject of the book is the unlikely pair of paleontologist and artist interviewing other paleontologists and museum curators as well as 'fossil hounds' up and down the pacific coast of Northern America.

Fossils awaken a child-like amazement and obsession in me as I am sure they do the same for many other people. There is something so strange and magical to see a once living creature staring out of a rock. So it was a triple whammy of playing on my obsessions with wanderlust, the Pacific coast, science, maps (so quirky and beautiful) and art work that got me this time and forced me to cough up the $40 (cheap for all the thrill and full color book!).
Well played guys!

[Dan Trefethen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Man, what a fun book. Paleontologist Kirk Johnson has a friendly, breezy style of writing that perfectly matches Ray Troll's humorous drawings of ancient dinosaurs and marine creatures. This book makes me want to charge out to the nearest beach cliff and start looking for fossils. The discoveries of fossils that prove that Alaska was a tropical environment once, and the existence of the Bering Land Bridge in dinosaur times, not just Ice Age times, are illuminating.

While any adult would enjoy this book, I recommend putting it into the hands of any 12-year-old who likes fossils, dinosaurs, old bones, or fish. The way to steer a youngster into a profession is to make it look fun, and this book does that in spades, as Kirk and Ray gleefully scramble over rock formations and beaches to make more startling discoveries.

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been a huge fan of Ray Troll and Kirk R. Johnson since catching their "Cruisin' the Fossil Highway" exhibit at the Newport Bay Aquarium (Oregon Coast Aquarium) in 2009-ish. I'm always on the lookout for Ray Troll artwork and puns. My husband surprised me for my birthday last year with Cruisin' the Fossil Coastline book. I've been leisurely working my way through it since then wishing that I could follow their fossil exploring path. As a middle school teacher, I've opted for following along vicariously, but seriously, this would be an excellent road trip!

I was more than halfway through when Science Friday launched their May Book Club read - The Last Days of the Dinosaurs by Riley Black. These two books made for great companion reads. Then, NOVA aired a two part series "Dinosaur Apocalypse: The Last Day" during May as well. THEN, Kirk shows up hosting another NOVA episode "Polar Extremes."

Needless to say, I've been immersed in fossils, paleontology, historic climate change, dinosaurs, extinct mammals and marine creatures, and ancient flora fossils. Yeah, I re-watched the original Jurassic Park too because it brings my childhood-self such joy.

Kirk and Ray - keep your collaboration going! You definitely inspire one another and the results are a win for the rest of us. Science and art belong together because you make all these discoveries accessible to the rest of us! Thanks for introducing us to the fossil movers and shakers all along the coast.

PS. Ray - I have a student who is going to be a paleo-artist. He is 13 and amazing. I've introduced him to your work. You have a new fan who is amazed to discover he can make a career out of this passion.

[J Katz · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have to give 3 stars even though did not finish. What I expected was more detail on the science but a lot of it seemed about the places/museums and people they visited to find the fossils. I don't think I am enough of a paleontology buff to appreciate it. Of course the art work is fantastic and I loved thinking about the animals that once lived on the west coast-quite amazing!

[Rickeclectic · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is sort of the sequel to Cruisin' the Fossil Freeway (read that one first) and its a long time coming (2018). It is not quite as good as the first book but just almost as good. Great pictures, great info.

[Laura Madsen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Johnson & Troll’s books—the perfect combination of science, art, and road trip.

[Phillip · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 / 5.0

Interesting but more of a travelogue than first book. Still entertaining if less scientific.