Haunted Hikes: Spine-Tingling Tales and Trails from North America's National Parks [Paperback]

Andrea Lankford (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2006

Combining the popularity of ghost stories with the traditional aspects of a park trail guide, these creepy hikes lead courageous climbers and armchair adventurers through some of the scariest, most mysterious places in North America. Thoroughly investigated, yet often tongue-in-cheek, these tales behind the trails include the chupacabra that roams the swamps inside the Big Thicket National Preserve, the execution-style shooting of two General Motors executives at Crater Lake, and the pair of disembodied legs that have been seen running around inside the Mammoth Cave Visitor Center. A fright factor rating is listed for each hike, along with information on trailhead access, maps, and hike difficulty levels. From the wheelchair accessible to multi-day treks into the wilderness, the included trails cover a wide range of hiking abilities and even feature a haunted Louisiana bayou best reached by canoe or kayak.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Andrea Lankford raises the hair on your neck in this book of spooky spots and ghostly grottoes."  —National Geographic Traveler

"Lifts up Smokey the Bear's hat and introduces us to the bats in his belfry."  —Deanne Stillman, author, Twentynine Palms

"The X-Files meets National Geographic. It's the ideal book for anyone who believes that 'the truth' is out there.'"  —Tom DeSanto, producer and writer, X-Men

"I'll never look at the Grand Canyon the same way again. From now on, I'm sleeping with the lights on!"  —Chuck Sypher, Grand Canyon park ranger

About the Author

Andrea Lankford is the author of Biking the Arizona Trail and Biking the Grand Canyon Area, and she has written for Adventure Cyclist, Backpacker, Canoe & Kayak, EcoFlorida, and Paddler. She is a former National Park Service ranger, where she won several awards for her work as a criminal investigator and implemented the "Heat Kills. Hike Smart" public education program that is credited with preventing heat-related deaths at the Grand Canyon. She lives in Oxnard, California.

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Santa Monica Press (April 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1595800093
• ISBN-13: 978-1595800091
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #323,637 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Andrea Lankford, a former National Park Ranger, has performed firefighting, law enforcement, and life-saving wilderness medicine in Cape Hatteras, Zion, Yosemite, and the Grand Canyon. Her masochistic adevntures include thru-hiking the entire Appalachian Trail, kayaking from Miami to Key West, cycling from Fairbanks to the Artic Ocean, and being the first to mountain bike the 800-mile Arizon Trail.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars WOW! EVERYTHING I THOUGHT IT'D BE ~ and MORE!!, June 20, 2006

By 

www.hauntedcolorado.net "Pisces" (Colorado, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Haunted Hikes: Spine-Tingling Tales and Trails from North America's National Parks (Paperback)

I have been waiting a long time for this book to come out. As soon as it was released I bought it right away.

I LOVE THIS BOOK! It is absolutely fascinating!!!

This book includes: Ghosts, mysteries, Bigfoot, the unexplained, the hangman's noose in an old cabin at Skidoo Ghost Town (California), Haunted Old Faithfull Inn (Yellowstone), the haunted Stanley Hotel (in Estes Park- right outside of Rocky Mountain National Park), Mt. Rainier, Grand Canyon Lodge, Mesa Verde NP in Colorado, Crater Lake (Oregon), Smoky Mountains, Oregon Caves Chalet ghost, Channel Islands, Everglades, Cape Hatteras, missing persons, mysterious deaths, murders, curses, and much more!

This book was extremely well-researched. The author (a former national park ranger)- has so much knowledge and is an expert in her field.

A really neat addition is the "fright factor" skeleton icons next to each haunted hike around these bizarre, mysterious and haunted locations:

4 icons = "Gave me nightmares, and I'd rather not discuss them."
3 icons = "I get chills just thinking about it."
2 icons = "Very disturbing, but clowns are scarier."
1 icon = "Makes 7-year-olds giggle."


I HIGHLY recommend this book!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Once you open it up and start reading --- you won't be able to put it down!

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Horror!, September 3, 2006

By 

David A. Smith - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Haunted Hikes: Spine-Tingling Tales and Trails from North America's National Parks (Paperback)

When you read Ms. Lankford's book, be prepared to get goosebumps or the chills, have the hair on your neck stand up, face one of your childhood fears or just plain get creeped out. She creeped me out with her very first story. It reminded me of two rules I have about bodies of water. One, if I can't see the bottom then I probably don't belong there and shouldn't go in. And two, if I don't heed my own advice and still go in then it's only to waist deep. No dangling legs for this boy.

With her exhaustive research and brash writing style, there is something enjoyable for everyone in this book. Even if you never plan to go to one of these park areas and walk the trails, it's still good to give yourself a good scare every now and again. And with tales of ghosts, grisly murders, strange creatures and unexplained phenomena, it's almost guranteed that something in her book will provide that good scare. If you're a fan of The X-Files or The Night Stalker or if you love a good short story by Ambrose Bierce, you'll enjoy this book.

Ms. Lankford, with her tales of the afterlife and death, has brought more life to these park areas and trails than any stodgy, NPS lifer could ever dream of doing.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Take nothing but pictures and leave nothing but ectoplasm, March 22, 2007

By 

beamis (Florida Panhandle) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Haunted Hikes: Spine-Tingling Tales and Trails from North America's National Parks (Paperback)

This is a unique book because it combines the utility of a trail guide with the fun and entertainment of a well written history book. The quirky offbeat stories of ghosts, spooky legends, disasters and untimely deaths is followed up with concise directions on how to go out and actually experience the areas where these otherworldly phenomenons occurred.

The writer has spiced this book with her acerbic wit and keen insights into being a park ranger (which she was for many years). She has portrayed the rangers and park service in a realistic light, instead of the hagiographic view of selfless sainthood so often seen in other books dealing with the NPS. They are real people working in a large and impersonal bureaucracy. The story dealing with the last Miwok Indian to leave Yosemite due to government regulations and the resulting castrophe was a real scream to read.

This is a great trail guide that covers a lot of interesting historical material that you won't find anywhere else. It kept me, the reader, intrigued and excited about going out to see many of these places for myself. I can't wait to visit to Yosemite later this summer so I can go explore some of the places I read about in this book.