Customer Reviews

60 Hikes within 60 Miles: San Francisco

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I've tried to like this guide, I really have. The author seems a nice fellow. The hikes are diverse and interesting. The writeups include a nice dollop of history. And it's got 60 hikes -- that's a lot of hikes. But it is not 'above average.' Why? First, it's occasionally unreliable. Take hike #7, on and near Catholic University. The author sends you behind the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center to 'savor the view' from a grassy knoll. A parking lot and air compressors are what you savor. (Related warning: the depiction of the trails in the northeast section of the hike #35 map, Mason Neck, is seriously flawed.) Second, I have a dog. Can I take my dog on these hikes? I can't tell. You won't find the words 'pet', 'dog', 'leash' anywhere. Finally, the directions are just a little sloppy at times. For instance, hike #14 (Black Hill Regional Park) tells you to go "right" at an orange pole that has a number of trails eminating from it. It took me half a mile to realize I was heading too far south for it to be the right trail. The best guides often organize hikes around mileage - they mark notable features always starting with the mileage the hiker has gone from the start and then describe what you should do or what you will find there. "60 Hikes" is written up more as a travel log. The mileage is often there, but its thrown in at different spots. Sometimes the directions have too much detail and other times not enough. In short, it's just harder to follow if you are trying to use it on the trail. Are these big problems? Not really, but that's what separates the good guides from the great guides.

This is a great book for the beginner hiker to know what's out there. However my main gripe is that in the front of the book he lists which hikes are metro accessible. But when you go to the hike, no where does it actually say which metro to get off at. Also some of the "hikes" in DC are made up. I don't consider walking on city blocks an actual hike. Some color pictures would have been nice, but there are plenty of nice b&w pictures though.

I got the book three months ago and have used it a lot since then. It provides pretty accurate information for my hiking trips in the area. I would recommend it to hiking enthusiasts.

The hikes look great, but unfortunately the majority of them are on trails where dogs are not permitted.

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Just the ticket into the woods or over the mountain if you feel trapped in Silicon Valley. Good details about the trails and tips on where the flowers are blooming.