California's National Parks: A Day Hikers Guide (Day Hiker's Guide) (Paperback)

~ John McKinney (Author) "Something in our collective national character is drawn to the superlative-the highest, deepest, widest, oldest-and our national parks collect and reflect what is extraordinary in..." (more)
Key Phrases: short connector trail, hike from the parking area, borax works, Visitor Center, John Muir, San Francisco (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Some states may have high mountains, vast deserts, or scenic coastline, but few can boast all of these features. California's glorious natural wonders are preserved in its state and national parklands, and chronicled here in this guide by John McKinney, hiking columnist for the Los Angeles Times for 18 years. In this guide, McKinney, known to his readers as "The Trailmaster," has identified the finest hikes that each parkland has to offer. California's National Parks describes over 150 walking adventures in famous national parks as well as those in federally-managed national monuments, preserves, and recreation areas. McKinney's rousing descriptions of each park will inspire both first-time California travelers to explore the state by foot, as well as California residents in search of new trails. Also included are maps of each park, fun facts and natural and human history, scenic and historic photos, and the distance and elevation gain of each hike.

About the Author

John McKinney is the author of a dozen books about walking, hiking and nature, including a series of day hiking guides to California. For 18 years he wrote a popular hiking column for the Los Angeles Times, and he now writes articles and commentaries about hiking for national publications, and promotes hiking and conservation on radio and television.

Product Details

• Paperback: 337 pages
• Publisher: Wilderness Press; 1 edition (August 12, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0899973876
• ISBN-13: 978-0899973876
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #462,257 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars California's Finest at your Fingertips, January 8, 2006

By	Fritz R. Ward "dayhiker" (Crestline, CA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

California's national parks are among the best in the United States. They are certainly among the most diverse, ranging from dramatic seashores at Point Reyes and Redwood National Park to the stunning mountain parks in the Sierra, Yosemite and Sequoia/Kings Canyon, to the desolate Mojave National Preserve. This book by McKinney is a nice introduction to these areas and also includes lesser known places such as the John Muir and Eugene O'Neill National Historic Sites. Although it is listed as a first edition, the book is actually an update of a 2000 edition published by Olympus Press.

This book has a lot to recommend it, including (like all McKinney books) lots of local history and reasonably decent trail maps. The black and white photos within are sharp and both directions to the trailhead and trail descriptions are sound. Moreover, all the hikes here are winners. I have walked about one third of the trails listed herein and every one of them is worth doing at least twice.

The reason the book only gets 4 stars is that it only offers a small sampling of all the truly impressive day hikes that are possible in the parks. McKinney lists only 14 trails in Sequoia and Kings Canyon, a number that could easily be doubled. Where is the hike to Little Baldy Summit or the King's Canyon Overlook on the Hotel Creek Trail? For that matter, where are all the stellar hikes in the newly created Sequoia National Monument? Still, most of us only have a few days of vacation a year to spend in the parks and McKinney's book is a good introduction to these spectacular places. If you have never been to one of these parks, this book is a good place to begin planning a vacation around.