Gary Ferguson

Gary Ferguson is an American nature writer and the author of more than two dozen books on the natural world, wilderness, and the relationship between wild places and the human spirit. Based in Montana, Ferguson has devoted his career to exploring the landscapes of the American West — particularly Wyoming, the Rockies, and the Greater Yellowstone region — and writing about them with a combination of scientific knowledge, lyrical prose, and deep personal engagement.

Among his most celebrated books is Shouting at the Sky: Troubled Teens and the Promise of the Wild (1999), which examines a wilderness therapy program that uses extended time in nature to help at-risk adolescents find direction and healing. The book was widely praised for its compassionate reporting and its argument that wild landscapes can provide what no institution or therapy can fully replicate: the transformative experience of genuine challenge and solitude. Ferguson has long been an advocate for the therapeutic and spiritual dimensions of time spent in wilderness.

His other notable works include The Great Divide: A Walk Through America Along the Continental Divide, a narrative account of a 3,100-mile journey along the Continental Divide Trail, and Hawks Rest: A Season in the Remote Heart of Yellowstone, which chronicles a summer spent in one of the most isolated corners of Yellowstone National Park. He has also written extensively about wolves, grizzly bears, and the science of wildfire in the context of the American West.

Ferguson’s prose is characterized by its careful observation, its grounding in ecological science, and its belief that stories about wild places serve an essential cultural function — keeping alive our collective sense of wonder and our sense of responsibility toward the living world. He remains one of the most prolific and respected voices in American nature writing.