Hike Pennsylvania (Hike America Series) [Paperback]

John L. Young (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2001 | Series: Hike America Series

A guide to fifty of Pennsylvania's top hiking destinations. Heavily illustrated with maps, elevation profiles, and photos, this book provides detailed directions, mile-by-mile trail descriptions, and quick-reference boxes for trail specifications and summary information. Each trail is graded by difficulty. Recommendations for accommodations and restaurants round out this exceptionally detailed guide book.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Pennsylvania's 3,000-plus miles of hiking trails lead you up, over, across, and down six distinct mountain ranges, offering up some of the most dramatic gorges, waterfalls, vistas, and rock outcrops in the East. From the shores of Lake Erie to the famed City of Brotherly Love, encounter glorious battlefields, historic canals, reminders of the state's mining past, and countless unmarked treasures.

The trails of Hike Pennsylvania run the gamut, from treks along 300-million-year-old quartzite cliffs to strolls through sand dunes to tiring grunts up desolate mountain peaks - giving you a unique look into the history and culture and incomparable beauty of the Keystone State.

This guide includes: comprehensive trail descriptions, from beginner to advanced; GPS-quality, digitally designed relief maps detailing each hike; accurate route profiles showing the ups and downs of each hike; detailed mile-by-mile directional cues, difficulty ratings, elevation gain, trail contacts, local information; advice on the equipment you'll need, plus tips on trip planning, hiking with dogs, and hiking with children. (5 1/2 X 8 1/2, 384 pages, b&w photos, maps, graphs)

About the Author

John L. Young is a veteran hiker, journalist, and freelance writer. A frequent contributor to Pennsylvania newspapers and magazines, he is the author of a previous book on Pennsylvania coal-mining history.

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Falcon; 1st edition (May 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0762709243
• ISBN-13: 978-0762709243
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,870,756 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Mostly short hikes, October 9, 2001

By 

Joseph Stead (Philadelphia, PA USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Hike Pennsylvania (Hike America Series) (Paperback)

The book is mostly on hikes of less than 10 miles. It is divided into sections of PA and each section has some hikes for wildlife, scenery and good views from ridges. I'd have liked some 50 mile hikes, though. If you've been hiking in your section for a few years, then I would look elsewhere for information (you've probably been on most of the trails mentioned).

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book for any hiker!!, August 9, 2010

By 

Tessa - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hike Pennsylvania (Hike America Series) (Paperback)

This book has been very useful and helpful!! Ive hike some of these trails and the book tells all

3.0 out of 5 stars Out of Date?, September 18, 2009

By 

ben in md (Elkton, MD USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hike Pennsylvania (Hike America Series) (Paperback)

I've used this book since 2001 & up until this past week loved it. The descriptions, distances, & landmarks were always accurate. Both my wife & I felt this was the best guide we owned. Consequently we took it as gospel. Now I'm wondering, since it's not been updated since 2001, if some of its out of date.

My wife & I hiked Trail 33 - Conemaugh Gorge last Thursday. We picked it because of the views described in the write up. But once on the trail we soon found there are no views. All of the overlooks are overgrown. It's like hiking in a green tunnel. We hiked Trail 37 - Mt. Davis Natural Area last Monday. The trail was boring and we couldn't find the last turnoff & ended up hiking back to the car on a road. So things have changed in 8 years. If the guide is updated I'll buy it as soon as it comes out. In the mean time, I'll continue to use it, but with caution.

Our qualifications: We've been hiking for over 40 years & consider ourselves very experienced. We can easily hike 12 miles a day, climb 3000 ft in elevation, and do this at or above 11,000 ft elevation.