Day Hiking, Olympic Peninsula (Done in a Day) (Paperback)

~ Craig Romano (Author) "Entering Washington's northeast corner and exiting through its southwest corner, the mighty Columbia River snakes across the Evergreen State and threads two-thirds of its land..." (more)
Key Phrases: first top, notch pass, yellow trail, Olympic National Park, Olympic National Forest, State Route (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Romano is one of the better guidebook writers around... there's a lot to like about this book." -- Seattle PI

"The most comprehensive guide to day hiking on the Olympic Peninsula." -- WowWeather.com

"The newest, Craig Romano's Day Hiking: Olympic Peninsula is easily the best of the lot.." -- Voice of the Wild Olympics

"The series has a new look, with clear graphics, detailed maps, elevation profiles and plenty of informative sidebars." -- Washington Trails magazine

Product Description

Introducing next-generation trail guides for the Northwest. We asked hikers what they want in a trail guide today and this is what they said: more day hikes, with options for extending the trip; hike selection conveniently arranged by highway and travel corridors; more hikes close to urban centers; more year-round hikes at low elevation; clear driving directions; a portable size; and more use of color.

To meet the needs of the modern hiker, The Mountaineers Books introduces its new Day Hiking guidebook series, written by Northwest residents with impressive hiking resumes. These guides provide accurate information in attractive, high-quality packaging and are infused with the environmental ethic that distinguishes The Mountaineers Books from other outdoor publishers.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 354 pages
• Publisher: Mountaineers Books (April 30, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 159485047X
• ISBN-13: 978-1594850479
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 4.7 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #34,121 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #1 in	Books > Travel > United States > States > Washington > Olympic Peninsula
  #17 in	Books > Outdoors & Nature > Hiking & Camping > Walking
  #32 in	Books > Outdoors & Nature > Hiking & Camping > Excursion Guides

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great start to the new series!, May 1, 2007

By	J. Mullene (Seattle) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I picked up this book yesterday at the mountaineers bookstore after patiently waiting for it for weeks and I'm happy to say the wait was most definitely worth the wait.

This title is a great revision of the classic '100 hikes' series perfectly geared for the modern hiker. The text is much more concise and direct with much clearer maps and directions. Gone are the Harvey Manning style trail reviews that often turned into personal meditations where meaning and fact had to be gleaned with much care. As is evident by the title, the focus is also entirely on Day Hiking, with a scant minority of the hikes exceeding 10 miles round trip. This is in sharp contrast to the classic hikes series in which most volumes were heavily slanted toward multi-day backpacking treks. This probably bodes well for the old series staying in print as it will still have a definitive niche. There is also a much greater emphasis given to year round hikes with many low elevation destinations included in the whopping 125 hikes listed in the book.

My one complaint would be that the snazzy 'hike overview chart' at the beginning of the book misses out on a few helpful details that would make finding a desirable hike quickly easier, specifically these details would be elevation gain, specific months accessible and the subjective star rating of the hike's overall quality that. All these details are of course available for each hike in the meat of the book. What is included in the overview chart are things such as whether or not the hike is accessible year round, what scenic features each possesses, and subjective difficulty level on a 1-6 scale. Amusingly only one hike rates a 6 for difficulty which translates to "beyond strenuous".

Overall a great launch to a new series. I'm highly looking forward to the Snoqualmie & South Cascades editions (both written by a different author) and hopefully many more to come after that!

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Exceeds Expectations!, April 30, 2007

By	Zachary Oliver "Day Hike Connoisseur" (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I have been patiently waiting for this book to release ever since Father's Day of 2006. I met author Craig Romano on the trail and he featured individual pictures of me and my dad in two areas of this guide. At first, I wanted to pick up the book for its sentimental value but as I began to look through the pages I realized that there were a plethora of trails to choose from. I came across trails I have never seen written up in any guide book including the Theler Wetlands in Belfair, Twanoh State Park near Union and Penrose Point State Park. The driving directions and trail descriptions are highly accurate and there is a quick breakdown of each hike outlining the difficulty, open seasons, corresponding maps and accessibility. Each hike has been meticulously researched and it is evident that a great amount of time and effort went in to making this book as accurate and descriptive as possible. Out of all of the Olympic Peninsula trail guides I have read, this is quite possibly the best out there.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excelent day hike book, April 4, 2009

By	Chicago girl - See all my reviews

I purchased this book before a 10 day hiking trip to the Olympic Peninsula and it is great. All of the hikes we did in the book were good (even hikes he only gave 1 star - if it is in the book at all, it is an enjoyable hike) and the write-ups give you a surprisingly good idea of what the hike will be like. The book is also more current that others that I purchased. For planning, it has a map in front that tells you what is near to what and what sort of terrain trails will cover.

Each section contains a summary (rating of 1 star to 5 stars, difficulty, length, elevation gain and maximum altitude, and the suggested season); maps; how to drive to the trail; and an "Extending your trip" section with suggestions for add-ons to make the hike a little longer or a little more interesting.

Overall an excellent book, and the only guide you need to plan your trip. I highly recommend it.