What is the theme in Desert Solitaire by Edward Abbey?

Natural beauty is a theme in the book. The author describes the natural beauty of the desert as can only be experienced through living there over an extended period and observing closely on foot or from the back of a horse. Most visitors to the desert miss the details and consider it a barren wasteland, worthless and without merit. Abbey's sharp and poetic descriptions bring the reader as close as possible without actually being there.