Pete McBride kicks off nonfiction book tour at The Wheeler

The Wheeler Opera House will host acclaimed local photographer, filmmaker and author Pete McBride for “Witness to Water: A Photographer’s Lifelong Journey” at 6 p.m. on March 21.

McBride will share photos, a slideshow and videos from his decades of work, followed by a Q&A and book signing. 

“It’s going to be a fun night. I’m going to celebrate old Aspen. I’ll talk about my family and my parents who came in the 1960s and how this story evolved,” he said.

Released March 17,  “Witness to Water” is his first nonfiction book. 

As far as the title, “It’s a metaphor because we’re running out of water, and we don’t have any snow this winter. There are also amazing success stories that few people know about.”

McBride tracked the Colorado River from its source in the Rocky Mountains to its transformed and threatened end in the Sonoran Desert. He also followed its side rivers, including the Roaring Fork and the Gila.

For his latest work, he also brings in Indigenous and local perspectives to add depth to his research. 

“I’ll talk about my work with the Navajo, the Havasupai Tribe and the Cocopah Tribe,” he said. 

He will also talk about deeply personal stories, with a visual component.

“The slideshow will take you from the Amazon to the Himalayas and all the way down to the Colorado — source to sea,” McBride said.

He envisions his presentation as “an elegy and a call to action,” focusing on what he describes as “earned hope.”

“The book took four years to write, and it compiles 20-plus years of work,” he said.

New York Times best-selling author and journalist Kevin Fedarko wrote the foreword. He and McBride previously hiked the whole length of the Grand Canyon together, approximately 750 miles.

Len Necefer wrote the epilogue — McBride’s friend and Indigenous advocate from the Navajo Nation. McBride and Necefer had worked together at Lake Powell, in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area_, and on the Yampa River.

McBride originally graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Environmental Studies from Dartmouth College. He then worked at a number of newspapers, including The Aspen Times. Following that, he became a renowned photographer after National Geographic picked up a story he shot in Africa. 

Despite focusing on photography, he continues to write articles for outlets like National Geographic and others. In February, he wrote, “How to Save the Colorado River” for Time magazine.

McBride has also produced three films and two photography books on the Colorado River, including the photography book “The Colorado River: Chasing Water” in 2024.

In the process of his river work, he also believed to be the last person to paddle the Colorado River to the sea.

“We’re running out of water. And we take our river systems for granted. This issue on the Colorado River is not a downstream problem,” McBride reiterated. “It’s affecting everybody in all seven states that rely on this river and beyond. Water managers need to find a way to work together. They’re in a stalemate. They are not talking to each other. They need to find solutions to their differences.”

This is the first event on his book tour. Next, he heads to to Paonia, Colo., on March 25, followed by the Glenwood Springs Branch Library on March 27.

For more information and tickets, visit wheeleroperahouse.com/event/mountainfilm-on-tour-the-medley. Tickets are free for youth 18 years and under. Use the promo code YOUTH at ASPENSHOWTIX.com.