On the Trail - Malibu to Santa Barbara [Paperback]

Cathy Philipp (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 30, 1997

ON THE TRAIL -Malibu to Santa Barbara is the only hiking and mountain biking guide of Southern California that was written for outdoor family adventure. The book features ninety easy to moderate hike and bike rides from the mountains to the sea. A compilation of Ms. Philipp's weekly "On the Trail" column, started in 1992, featured in the Ventura County Star Newspaper; the book provides detailed maps, directions, hiking and first aid tips as well as a unique: Kid Appeal rating for each hike or ride. Featured outdoor recreation areas: Santa Monica and Santa Susana Mountains, Channel Islands, Conejo and Ojai Valleys as well as coastal Santa Barbara and Ventura.

Editorial Reviews

Review

...Although I have hiked the Santa Monicas for years, I found hikes listed that I did not know about, or had heard about but didn't know the access route. Cathy not only provides the details of how to get there but reports on features of interest to nature lovers, children and view lovers. -- Southern Sierran/ LA Sierra Club Newsletter

...The maps, the directions, the descriptions of each trek are suberb-clear and friendly. Philipp is a hiking and biking mom who writes with a sure hand of the author who cares about kids and cares about activities for the whole family. Bright with fine detail and hardheaded explorations. -- The Book Reader

Want to know the main difference between adults and kids? "Adult hikers tend to like a physical challenge and views. Kids, however, prefer crossing streams on stepping stones or natural log bridges, climbing trees, exploring caves..." So Cathy Philipp, who writes a regular hiking column in newspapers, is especially careful to have a Kid Appeal ranking with each hiking entry. The maps, the directions, the descriptions of each trek are superb - clear and friendly. And this field guide of the Southern California coastal area takes us step by step through each hike, the outings are arranged geographically, and there's a helpful glossary of terms. Useful hints about hiking with children. Forget the soccer mom. Philipp is a hiking and biking mom who writes with the sure hand of an author who cares about kids and cares about activities for the whole family. Bright with fine detail and hardheaded explorations. (The Book Reader, Spring 1998).

Hikers and explorers of the Southern California coastal area will appreciate this 1997 hiking guide especially families with children. Although I have hiked the Santa Monica Mountains for years, I found hikes listed in this book that I did not know about, or had heard of but didn't know the access route. Cathy not only provides details of how to get there, where to park, signs to look for, but reports on features of interest to nature buffs, children and view lovers. Her book has a unique feature families will find useful; "Kid Appeal". Each hike has a rating for difficulty, length, elevation and type of trail, and in addition a rating for Kid Appeal, with five stars being the highest. A trail with five star kid appeal can contain waterfalls, grottos, animal tracks, ponds and creeks, and possibly even a pirate's cave (Aggi Raeder, Southern Sierran, December 1997). -- Publisher Comments

From the Author

"When our children were just babies, my husband and I lived in West Los Angeles. We were very interested in sharing our love of nature with the girls, but having grown up in rural, upstate New York we were at a loss as how to accomplish our goal in Southern California. Local hiking guides were of little help as they were all written with adults in mind. On several outings, trails that were described as easy reduced the kids to tears within a 100 yards of the trailhead.

Frustrated after striking out on our own, I joined Nursery Nature Walks, which is a docent group made up of families leading other families on nature walks throughout the Los Angeles area. Hiking with NNW helped me to appreciate Southern California's Mediterranean climate. As my knowledge of the area grew, hie sites that at first seemed inhospitable, if not downright threatening, began to pique my curiosity as well as my family's. Since that time I have worked as a naturalist for a number of outdoor recreation organizations from the Las Virgenes area north to the City of Ventura. Coming into daily contact with school children and their parents, I met many people who were interested in hiking with their children but simply didn't know where to go.

This bit of knowledge was the impetus for my weekly column in the then Thousand Oaks News Chronicle.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 252 pages
• Publisher: Cathy Philip Pub (May 30, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0965584801
• ISBN-13: 978-0965584807
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,651,445 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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