Customer Reviews

Best Coast Hikes of Northern California: A Guide to the Top Trails from Big Sur to the Oregon Border

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Original Post (2000): This book is great if you're looking for places that are off the beaten path. For example: instead of going to Muir Woods to see redwoods (and hordes of tourists), head off to Heritage Grove in La Honda for a chance to be one-on-one with the mighty trees (and check out the banana slugs as well!). I've only hiked about 4 of the 70+ trails so far, but they have all been worthwhile. Highly recommended!

Update (2003): Wow - I'm glad "13 out of 13 readers" found my review useful! :-)

Three years later, this now lovingly-worn book has accompanied me on a dozen more hikes, from Mendocino to Big Sur. Friends and visitors are always amazed at how I've been able to magically find these spectacular places! The Appendices with Suggested Hikes are quite useful -- I have yet to be disappointed with the "Grand Views" of various parts of the Bay Area, for example. I can thank this book for providing many special memories, photos, and aching limbs (hey, the author was not joking about those "strenuous" hikes!).

Oh, I also purchased another Marc Soares book, "100 Hikes in the San Francisco Bay Area". While some hikes do overlap with this book, I'd recommend as a nice companion volume -- especially if you live inland (like me) and don't always have time to head to the coast.

I recently used this book, together with "101 Hikes in Northern California" by Matt Heid and "California Hiking" by Stienstra and Brown, as a guide for a series of day hikes out of Santa Cruz. The hikes were all well chosen, and I found the descriptions accurate. My only complaint is that it is somewhat limited: only 75 hikes are included, and they are almost all beach hikes, with just a few in the coastal range. On the plus side, it is light enough to slip into a daypack and take along with you! Also, I liked the occasional photos which give a good feeling for what the hike will be like.