Kathleen Norris Cook
Listed in the Western Reflections author directory.
Kathleen Norris Cook is a photographer whose best known book is Spirit of the San Juans, a photo collection of southwestern Colorado published by Western Reflections in 1998. Our author directory lists her name, but that book is not yet in our online library, so this page draws on a bookseller's listing for it.
About Kathleen Norris Cook
The bookseller's biography says Cook was born in Louisiana and earned a Fine Arts degree from Mississippi College. She worked as a commercial artist for thirteen years before becoming a photographer in 1977 while living in Arizona. Her photograph of Toroweap Overlook was published in Arizona Highways in 1978.
She went on to freelance in landscape and commercial photography, with clients that included Eastman Kodak and the National Park Service. The same biography names Yosemite, Valley of Thunder, Exploring Mountain Highways and The Million Dollar Highway among her other books. It gives a studio in Laguna Hills, California, and a permanent residence in Ouray, Colorado. The listing is a seller's description, not an interview, and we have not confirmed it elsewhere.
Kathleen Norris Cook is listed in the Western Reflections author directory and the books under this name are not yet on the site. If this is your page, send us the details and we will add them. In the meantime, the library carries the rest of the catalogue, from regional history to memoir and fiction.
What the books share
Spirit of the San Juans pairs landscapes of Colorado's San Juan Mountains with portraits of people who live in that remote, rugged country, according to the listing. That mix of land and residents is the one thread we can document from what we read. The biography also names Yosemite, Valley of Thunder and The Million Dollar Highway among her other books, but we have not read those books and say nothing about their contents. Her photograph of Toroweap Overlook ran in Arizona Highways in 1978, early in her photography career.
Next steps for readers of this author
Planning a photo trip
Pick one byway from the CDOT list, check the national forest page for maps and permits, and leave time for stops. Late light on high peaks rewards patience more than a long itinerary.
Finding an out of print edition
Photo books from the 1990s turn up used. Ask a bookseller for the exact year and edition, and compare condition notes before paying, since print quality matters more in a picture book.
Go deeper
Spirit of the San Juans looks at the mountains and the people of southwestern Colorado. These resources help a reader plan to see that country for themselves, along a famous highway and through public land.
Million Dollar Highway, Visit Ouray
A visitor page on U.S. Route 550 through the San Juan Mountains, which it calls scenic and treacherous, with narrow lanes, hairpin turns and steep cliffs.
Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests
The Forest Service says these lands span over 3 million acres with 3,000 miles of trails and four scenic byways.
Colorado Scenic and Historic Byways
CDOT's list of byways in each part of the state, including the San Juan Skyway and the Alpine Loop in the southwest.
Good to know
What is Kathleen Norris Cook's book with Western Reflections?
Where does she live?
Writers like this one are how the list was built
We have published Colorado and Western writers since 1996, and every submission is still read by a person. Send yours, finished or half written.