The Wild West is perhaps the most enduring of American myths, but the reality is even more compelling. It's a magical place of extraordinary people, exciting events, and stunning scenery--big sky, wide-open spaces, epic grandeur, and pristine wilderness. National Geographic brings together award-winning photographers to capture this outsized land of majestic dimensions and emotive power. Unparalled images--some iconic, some rarely or never-before-seen--speak to the powerful forces of nature and culture at work in the West and showcase the region as never before. <br><br>Divided into four chapters--Legends, Encounters, Boundaries, and Visions--renowned National Geographic photography, past and present, brings the magic and the mystery of the American West alive through the best of its collection. From red-rock waves of stone to rugged snow-capped mountains, from ghost towns to prairie dog towns, from cowboys to wild horses, <i>National Geographic Greatest Photographs of the American West</i> captures it all in spectacular color photography augmented by periodic archival photographs. The photographs weave together a visual tapestry--complemented by informative captions--of this rich, varied, and enduring landscape that is the American West.