8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
OK if you don't ask much, May 24, 2005
This review is from: National Geographic Grand Canyon National Park Arizona, USA: Trails Illustrated (Trails Illustrated - Topo Maps USA) (Paperback)
I bought this map on the strength of multiple recommendations but was disappointed in it.
First, the shading that's been washed over the map only serves to obscure the contours. Quite a problem when you've got three to six thousand feet of elevation change over only a few miles, or just one mile. I don't know what they meant to do with the shading. Impress the user with the idea that this is mountainous country? People, this is a topographic map! We know how, or don't know how, to read the elevation intervals. Using shading appropriate to a desk atlas of countries and continents is NOT appropriate here.
There are no trail mileages printed along the trails. Or elsewhere on the map. NG indicates the mileages on their more recent maps.
There is a real paucity of benchmarks here, and in fact of labelling on the contours. You see the elevations in feet on the Rim points, and on the buttes, etc. in the Canyon. Not much help for hikers who are wondering how much climbing or descent they're in for on a given route.
A lot of the data in the incidental parts on the product is not really that helpful. There are a list of "recommended hikes", depending on the user's fitness, time etc. No one needs that sort of thing on their trail map, they need hard data. Opinions about the nature of a trail should be supplied by authors of trail guidebooks or by rangers and locally experienced hikers who've had time to size YOU up.
The whole thing's a bit surprising. I've used NG's T.I. maps elsewhere, in the Guadalupe Mountains NP, etc, and none of these inadequacies were present. They were pretty good, in fact.
I think this is an old product. NG should get going and revise it. In the meantime I would recommend Ken Schulte's map or the standard USGS topo quadrangles. Under NO circumstances would I suggest using this map for off trail travel or even on the less well maintained trails.
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8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Great Planning Tool, January 7, 2001
This review is from: National Geographic Grand Canyon National Park Arizona, USA: Trails Illustrated (Trails Illustrated - Topo Maps USA) (Paperback)
This Trails Illustrated map is a great tool for initial planning of your adventure into the Grand Canyon's spectacular backcountry. The map covers Grand Canyon National Park backcountry in its entirety. Almost. But close enough for most. The 1:73,530 scale and 80' contour interval make this map of limited use for on trail use, but make useful for getting an overview of the canyon and a sense of your options.
This map is also packed with information useful for planning your Grand Canyon trip. Backcountry use areas, necessary for making a permit request, are designated on the map. So are camp sites, campgrounds, and water sources in the GC's backcountry.
Very handy.
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2.0 out of 5 stars
A Fair Trail Map, July 28, 2007
This review is from: National Geographic Grand Canyon National Park Arizona, USA: Trails Illustrated (Trails Illustrated - Topo Maps USA) (Paperback)
There's nothing particularly wrong with this map, it's just hard to make sense of. I much prefer the
Grand Canyon Trail Map. Se my review of the other map
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