Customer Reviews

Day Hikes Around Santa Barbara, California: 46 of the Best

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As a long time resident of SB, I found this book to be both educational and entertaining. Most of the hikes in this book are hikes I've been on before, but with reading this book, they became new and exciting. In addition, several of these hikes I had never heard before, and found those to be very enjoyable. I would recommend this book to anyone who hasn't been in SB before, as well as to anyone who has.

This is a well-organized and nicely written hiking guide and would be great for beginning hikers. However, if you're experienced and want some strenuous, long treks, this is definitely not the best guide for you. I was looking for some serious high mileage hikes in the mountains, but all of the trips described here are not hikes at all, they are walks. Incredibly, the author includes many little city strolls on pavement, and several one mile jaunts on the beach. Now I love Santa Barbara as much as anyone, and strolling on State Street and the beaches is fantastic. But that is simply not hiking and I was very disappointed to see these included in what is marketed as a hiking book.

If you're a beginning hiker or have children, or just aren't up to 20 mile hikes, this is a nifty little book, and perfectly adequate for your needs. But if you want a serious workout, you'd best look for another guide. There's nothing longer than a 7 mile "hike" with minimal elevation gain. I'm not knocking the book for novices, but if you're not a beginner, this is not recommended.

There are several books out there about SB hikes, and this is one of the better for all around ones available in the county. the drawback is that some of them are not really "hikes" persee, but rather "walks". For instance there are several walks that are about a mile long, on flat terrain, near the city. These are OK to explore, but by no means worthy of an afternoon's hike. However it does have some new takes on some of the old classic hikes such as Seven Falls, Rattlesnake Trail, etc. It is very detailed on how to get to the trails, and how to make the proper turns on the trial. It even throws in some historical or natural facts that are interesting. All in all, a good guide, and very well rounded, but not neccesarily for the regular SB hiker. If you are new or a visitor, it is perfect.