Ranger's Guide to Yellowstone Day Hikes, A (Paperback)

by Roger Anderson (Author), Carol Shively Anderson (Author), Roger, Anderson (Author), Carol Shively Anderson (Author) "Yellowstone was established as the world's first national park, primarily due to its many geothermal features..." (more)
Key Phrases: junction with the loop trail, recent bear sightings, geyser basin, Yellowstone Lake, Bunsen Peak, Pebble Creek (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
A Ranger's Guide to Yellowstone Day Hikes is a handy tool for those considering a walk in the woods. This guide describes each hike concisely, with information about length, difficulty, and what you'll be seeing. ---Star Tribune, Minneapolis-St. Paul

After 25 years of directing tourists and explaining the wonders of Yellowstone National Park, Roger and Carol Shively Anderson have learned a few things about the world's first national park. Now they're sharing a big portion of that knowledge in a new guidebook, one that will help even seasoned park visitors enjoy and appreciate the place. The book is compact enough to slip inside a pocket of a daypack. Doing so could add a lot of entertainment and education to a day in the park. ---Scott McMillion, Bozeman Daily Chronicle

This is my favorite book of day hikes. The authors, husband and wife rangers, don't just tell you where to go, they help you understand what you are seeing. ---from Lost in My Own Backyard: A Walk in Yellowstone National Park by Tim Cahill, founding editor of Outside magazine

Product Description
Two park rangers invite you off the beaten path and into the heart of Yellowstone. No matter your age or abilities, the park has hikes to suit your interests.

Features 29 day hikes of different lengths and levels of difficulty. Each hike in the book has a contour map, color photograph, narrative about natural and human history, botany, geology, and other highlights along the trail.

Visit FarcountryPress.com for more information.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 152 pages
• Publisher: Farcountry Press; Updated Edition edition (April 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1560371579
• ISBN-13: 978-1560371571
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #6,055 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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

  #2 in	Books > Travel > United States > States > Wyoming > Yellowstone
  #2 in	Books > Outdoors & Nature > Hiking & Camping > Excursion Guides
  #3 in	Books > Travel > Reference & Tips > Food & Lodging > Parks & Campgrounds

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

58 of 61 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally, a 1st Class true "Day Hiking" book for Yellowstone, November 30, 2003

By	adamgator "adamgator" (Gainesville, FL United States) - See all my reviews

This guide was an invaluable resource for making the best of a week at Yellowstone. It was like carrying a park ranger in your pocket (just much less weight). First of all, the first few pages have trails listed by both (1) location in the park (Yellowstone is LARGE) and by difficulty. These lists include highlights of each trail. Approximately 30 trails are described in detail. For each trail, roundtrip distance, elevation change, difficulty level, and expected duration (hours) is listed along with a brief description, potential hazards, direction to the trailhead, and best times of year to hike. Subsequently, a detailed naturalist's description of the trail is provided. These notes are perfect for planning your hikes of using as a step-by-step guide for reading as you hike. The authors provide details about wildlife, flora & fauna, geology, history, and scenery along each trail. Each trails has a full-page easy-to-read contour map that provides the hiker with information on elevation changes and other useful details. As if the trail descriptions didn't already make you want to hike every trail, the guide provides a color photo from each trail making me wish I had time to hike the entire guide. The Anderson book also provides lists of what to bring on day hikes as well as tips for hiking in grizzly country. If a day hike for you is 15-20 miles or more, consider the Marschall book on Yellowstone trails (keep in mind, the first description of a trail often comes 5-10 miles into it). Trails you don't want to miss: Mt. Washburn, Storm Point, Avalanche Peak, Yellowstone Grand Canyon Rim (either or both), Pelican Creek, Trout Lake. We had the pleasure of meeting Ranger Carol Anderson (co-author) at the Lake Visitor Center - she spent an hour reviewing hikes with us. These folks know their stuff - I highly recommend this book for the average day hiker.

35 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best guide to Yellowstone day hikes, October 26, 2004

By	Arthur Digbee (Indianapolis, IN, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This guide includes 29 day hikes, well organized by park region. Its 28 pictures also provide a nice glimpse into some of the terrain you'll see on those hikes. It's small and easy to carry in your pack, but it covers a relatively small number of hikes in the park.

Each hike listing provides the usual driving and hiking directions found in guide books. Unlike the other guidebooks here, each hike also includes a topographical map of the hike. (The Falcon Guide includes elevation information on a separate chart but I still find the topo easier to use.) This makes the book very useful for armchair planners who haven't yet taken my advice to buy the Trails Illustrated map.

In addition, each hike includes a brief "special attention" section that is surprisingly helpful. For example, if a given trail is closed in early summer for bear management, you'll see that fact highlighted here instead of being hidden in the text.

The best part of the book is the "naturalist notes," however. The selling point of this book is that it is written by two rangers who are used to sharing their knowledge along a trail. That's exactly what they do here. As a result, it is easier to visualize the trail experience from this book than from any of the other guides I've seen.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars See the Real Yellowstone With Only Moderate Exertion, October 27, 2007

By	Steve Horstmeyer (Cincinnati, OH) - See all my reviews

As a veteran of more than 35 years of wilderness backpacking in all kinds of weather and every season of the year my brother-in-law and I decided to shoot HD video in Yellowstone.

We did not want to do a wilderness trek on the first time out with all new video gear so decided day hikes were best. We did 20 of 29 of the hikes in "A Ranger's Guide to Yellowstone Day Hikes" in 7 days and covered 70 miles on foot.

This is a great book, one of the best I have seen in my years of hiking and backpacking. Each trail is unique and amazing. Some are tough but even the steepest trail was not so bad for a 54 year old with 35 pounds of video gear on his back. Trail ratings are true, so you will NOT be surprised by a gargantuan climb that is rated as moderate. Strenuous ratings wisely reflect both length and elevation change.

If you have room for only one day hike book in your travel gear this IS the book. If you are a seasoned backcountry expert or a beginner you will not be dissapointed.