(Part 2) Best hiking & camping guides according to redditors
We found 322 Reddit comments discussing the best hiking & camping guides. We ranked the 178 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the products ranked 21-40. You can also go back to the previous section.
Here's all the blue-blazed trails in the state.
They also have a walk book coming out this week that you might be interested in.
Recommended reading: 60 Hikes Within 60 Miles of Portland
"Within a few hours" literally means the entirety of the Mt Hood National Forest, the entirety of the Tillamook National Forest, and a good chunk of the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. All of those are withing a 2 hour drive of downtown.
Now, what kind of hiking do you want? A simple day hike that lasts a couple hours? Something more strenuous that would take all day? Or something that would take a day or two and involve camping?
I would suggest getting 60 Hikes Within 60 Miles: Portland and reading up. I've hiked about 45-50 of those hikes at various times in my life, and aside from the urban hikes along the Springwater Corridor and such, they're all proper natural hikes.
I bought this book for a friend recently. It’s not specifically about the arches, but it has a ton of trails that go to lesser known arches.
Hinterlands 2019 https://www.amazon.com/dp/1080789553/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_uz8ODb8JZHM7H
Yep!! Can I suggest this book as well. I just purchased it and it's pretty amazing.
Look at these cards. They can take one or two per day and explore different neighborhoods
I picked up this
It's great! Every walk has 5-10 landmarks/points of interest to check out (art, restaurants, museums, etc.) A lot of the routes are close to each other so you can stack them. Last week myself and another redditor trecked from the U-District to the Fremont troll and back. A good way to spend a Saturday.
EDIT: Just noticed in your post your concerns about public transit. Each route has a connecting bus route listed from downtown.
I don't know about websites, but I bought this book: Hiking Trails of Ottawa, the National Capital Region, and Beyond from MEC, and I don't regret the purchase.
The Pacific Crest Trail - "A Hiker's Companion" by Karen Berger and Daniel Smith was written specifically with that audience in mind.
if you're interested in geology/flora/fauna, it's just what you want, and it was written by a couple that through hiked.
Publisher's page
Amazon
Not the person you replied to, but when somebody asked about that a week or two ago this book was recommended: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1581572123/ref=dp_ob_neva_mobile
I ordered a copy and only just started reading it, but I like it so far. I know next to nothing about the west coast, so it's nice to have an overview of plants and history and such.
A good general overview of BC's history, geography, etc with maps & photos.
If you plan to return and do some hiking this is great as well.
For super cool photos of what Vancouver used to look like, try to find a Fred Herzog collection book online. Modern Colour and Vancouver Photographs are my favourites.
I backpacked to Panamint City last April and it was amazing. Water is available year around from multiple springs, but there might be a dusting of snow on the ground as it is high elevation. I would definitely recommend checking out Panamint Valley, it is like a smaller Death Valley (which is HUGE, seems like all the attractions are 50 miles apart) and I think alot of it is BLM land so really no restrictions on off road use, camping, etc.
Check out Steve Halls death valley webstie, Panamintcity.com as well as the amazing book "Hiking Western Death Valley" by Michael Digonette for trip ideas.
https://www.amazon.com/Hiking-Western-Death-Valley-National/dp/0965917819
The Hiking the Wasatch book has a companion map that is pretty good for the area. I usually go to the State Map Store on N Temple just before Redwood Road. An awesome resource for all the surrounding states. They have a huge selection of 7.5 minute quads if you really want details. Good luck.
hinterlands
Or Miguel’s climb shop usually sells it
Here are some books for you to get started:
Latest "105 Hikes in SW BC"
Backroad Mapbook - SW BC
These two books should help you get started on your research.
TLDR: There's LOTS to do 'round here.
Yeah, the snow camping around here is great. I'd suggest picking up a copy of 100 Hikes in Oregon as a start. Once you hit August I recommend pretty much anywhere in the Three Sisters Wilderness for backpacking.
Honestly March is still ski season for me. If you are going to Eugene Spencer Butte wouldn't be what I would climb. I would go for Mt pisgah instead. That is going to have best views of thew mountains in that area. On a clear day you can see the three sisters.
Another thing you will be contending with is weather. It is very likely it will be cloudy and raining as well. It will be a good idea to have a backup so you can still go see something cool and not end up on a cloudy peak. You would missing quite the opportunity if you are in Salem and you don't go to silver falls state park. For the Salem area I would recommend picking up 100 hikes in the central Oregon Cascade. It has a lot of good trail suggestions plus the seasons that you are most likely able to hike them. Oregon Hikers is another fantastic resource and is pretty searchable with categories.
Another word of caution is you will legally need chains or traction tires (in your case I'm assuming chains since you are in a rental) in your car to go over passes. The snow zone requirement doesn't go away until the end of march. You can purchase a set of chains at Les Schwab and you can return them for a full refund if unused.
I can't recommend the book "Beyond Mt. Si: The Best Hikes Within 85 Miles of Seattle" enough. It's a great book and has very detailed trail descriptions, with indexes both by difficulty and geographical location. It's definitely worth getting a copy.
I just came back from Trinity and... hot damn... I'm still in shock. What a beautiful place.
First and foremost, I found my way around a weeks worth of hiking without much use of the map. I definitely studied the area intensely, so had a great base of knowledge, but didn't really have to pull the map many times. Just a comment on the nature of the area, the identifiable peaks, valleys, rivers, etc.
Next, I recommend Gaia GPS or a similar app. Allows for offline/airplane mode GPS tracking. You can preupload your tracks (aka find GPS tracks of the trails you want to do) so they are all there for you offline while hiking. The app allows you to real-time track your location over detailed topography maps.
Next, I used the guidebook: https://www.amazon.com/Hiking-Californias-Trinity-Alps-Wilderness/dp/0762741236/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500325959&sr=8-1&keywords=trinity+alps
Made copies to place in a ziplock, as well as took pics with my phone. But just like studying for a test and making a cheat sheet, I was able to navigate the area without much need for further guidance. That being said, the guidebook contains essential information if you're new to the area, such as water sources, where to camp, how to approach when scrambling off trail...
The conditions are perfect there right now!!! Have a great time! I'm still reeling from my experience
These are your best bets for "on the map" places in rough order of increasing distance from Morgantown. You can google any of them.
And these are all a bit further away:
Of these, Otter Creek Wilderness is, in my opinion, the best place you could go within 1.5 hrs of Morgantown for a hike. Bring good maps and a compass, because there is no signage. I recommend scanning this book's maps from the WVU library if you can.
For the Sods the best resource is - http://www.wvhighlands.org/ (but their site seems to be down).
Alternatively there's a map from the forest service: http://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb5152038.pdf
This site looks like they might have maps: http://www.jtphillips.com/DollySodsMaps/
As does this if you ahve GPS device: http://www.trailgraphics.com/mnf-trail-network-kml-for-google-earth/
As far as a general guide for the area, you can't beat: http://www.amazon.com/Monongahela-National-Forest-Hiking-Guide/dp/0961655321
There is a trail path from the bottom of the Luskville Falls to Chelsea welcome center, it is about 24km ~ 26km, I did it in 5 hours with few blisters in my toes, but it was so fun :)
Your legs will be jell-o right after the luskville Falls hike, then the fun begins.
For more info, check out this book, it has all the hiking trails in the Gat/Ott region
http://www.amazon.com/Hiking-Trails-Ottawa-National-Capital/dp/0864924844/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1377652900&sr=8-1&keywords=ottawa+hiking+trail
I found I was able to walk, bike, or take lyft/bus most anywhere and ended up driving only once or twice a month. There's so many great places to find and explore just by moving a little slower. Enjoy living in the city.
Loved walking up and down the hills, there's hidden stairs everywhere. Walnut Hills, Prospect and Mt. Auburn, Mt. Adams, all have great places to check out. Loved walking across the bridges, so much beauty to see from above the river. Don't forget to walk around Covington and Newport too, they're right there and have super cool neighborhoods in their own right.
Like someone else said, there's events and parades all the time down there, so there's always something to do.
Edit: Check out this great book
Just know that your drive to Painted Hills and to Crater Lake is about 4+ to 5 hours. Might help to plan when you want to do this. If you are going very soon, could have significant snow to slow you down for both. These would be tough 1 day trips, so an overnight might help for these.
Gorge and Hood are easy day trips. If you are in summer, try the Oneonta Gorge hike near Multnomah Falls. You have to wade through water through a small canyon. Very worth it, and very quick. You can easily work that in to Multnomah falls and other gorge options...up farther is Hood River (nice places to eat), the Dalles, Maryhill museum across the river in WA with Stonehenge. You can google all of those. Crown Point in the gorge too. The Sullivan link to the Oneonta hike has lots of others too.
Haystack will take you 90 min or 2 hours to get too...but you can work your way up and down the coast to see some other things too.
As for hiking references, I always think these books are solid.
Also, you can search online for vegan options...there are a million so I won't list them all here.
Have fun!
**Edit for shit formatting.
FWIW, I moved here about a year ago and snagged the Connecticut Walk Book (yes, an actual book with paper pages). It has something like 860 miles of blue-blazed trail maps and descriptions. For me it was totally worth the $27. I've been surprised how many quality trails are out there.
https://www.amazon.com/Connecticut-Walk-Book-Connecticuts-Blue-Blazed/dp/0819577146/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=connecticut+walk+book&qid=1570184039&sr=8-1
Ive got several but the falcon guide for hiking georgia is the one I use the most. https://www.amazon.com/Hiking-Georgia-States-Greatest-Adventures/dp/0762782439/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1526937705&sr=8-1&keywords=Falcon+guide+georgia
I used this one and found it very helpful: https://www.amazon.com/Northern-Caminos-Primitivo-Ingl%C3%A9s-Cicerone/dp/185284681X
Not off the top of my head as I'm fairly new here and plan to get more into hiking the area this summer season. However, I find www.localhikes.com to be a good resource for finding hikes to do subsequent research on. Also, the ADK Trails (Forest Preserve Series) are good guides (e.g., Amazon Link).
A very short hike would be Vroman's Nose a little SE of Albany. A fairly nice (but flat) trail is around Peeble's Island NE of Albany. Otherwise, the Lake George area ADKs would be a good bet for day hikes.
Good luck and hopefully someone more knowledgeable than I comes along.
O shoot, Is this the one you mean? I've been using this one to plan it out ahead of time. That being said I still am about a month and change out from the trip so plenty of time to re-adjust plans.
I'm planning on starting in San Sebastian although we might start at Gernika depending on the other member or my party's schedule.
Not sure whether I'll be making it all the way to Finisterre although I'd like to. I'm starting the trip on the 13th of June and have my flight booked back from Madrid (Barajas) on the 20th I actually have family in Oviedo and my old man lived there/ my grandfather is from there (or a town right on the outskirts, Pravia)I might be avoiding Oviedo altogether and sticking to the coast through Gijon as it's one of my favorite cities in Spain.
There are no clean water sources along the way. There are a few brooks but the water is not 100% safe (we didn't risk drinking from them)...its really a nonissue if you just plan it out a little better than we did.
Edit: I should add that we didn't see any clean water sources and there were none indicated on the map I had, but I could still be mistaken.
Edit2: Its an awesome hike and the views are spectacular!
Edit3: If you don't have it already, I think the ADK Mountain Club High Peaks guide is worth the money. Available on Amazon
I found out about these sand dunes from Michel Digonnet's book called "Hiking Western Death Valley National Park" It's got a treasure trove of hikes that are off the beaten track. It's a pretty accessible day hike but I did an overnight trip with two others. We were basically the only ones there the entire stay. The hike is also completely flat so it's not very strenuous.
http://www.amazon.com/Hiking-Western-Death-Valley-National/dp/0965917819
My blog post about it: http://www.lonelyspeck.com/hidden-dunes/
Steve Hall's informative post about Hidden Dunes: http://www.panamintcity.com/sanddunes/hiddendunes.html
The photograph was made at at sunset in March, 2013.
Hiking the Wasatch has been an indispensable guide for me.
My favorite local hike, step for step, is Mt. Raymond. It's long and meandering rather than straight up, you get to climb on the rocks near the peak, and you don't see a single ski lift. Just nature. In the next couple of weeks, the fall color should be great. I love Mt. Raymond from Butler Fork (Big Cottonwood Canyon) or Bowman Fork (Millcreek Canyon).
Lake Blanch (BCC) and The Pfeifferhorn (Little Cottonwood Canyon) are staggeringly beautiful. Silver Fork up to the ridgeline (BCC) and White Pine Lake (LCC) are pretty impressive, too.
For short hikes, I'd suggest Catherine Pass and Cecret Lake in Albion Basin (LCC); Doughnut Falls in BCC; Silver Lake in American Fork; Stewarts Falls near Sundance; Alexander Basin in Millcreek; and Killyon Canyon in Emigration for a little stroll after class.
For backpacking, I've mostly gone to the Uintas. If I were backpacking here, I'd probably do something in the mountains between American Fork & Little Cottonwood. Someday I'll finally do the beloved Timpanogos. Maybe an easy overnight on the mountains between Millcreek & Big Cottonwood Canyon. The meadow atop Neff's Canyon would be a nice camping spot, I think.
The sunny, town-adjacent hikes you dislike are quite nice in the fall and spring. I did Mt. Olympus one October, and it was a great day. The foothills have a haunting beauty during the "dead" months. They also have little surprises. The old cars, the Living Room, Jack's Mountain Mailboxes, the Pencil Peak fort. Explore the hills that are closest to you, and you will find your own secrets.
Here's a good book about stair walks with a fair bit of history included:
https://www.amazon.com/Walking-Steps-Cincinnati-Mary-Dusablon/dp/082142081X/ref=dp_ob_title_bk
This is what I use whenever I plan a camping trip. I picked it up at Barnes and Noble. http://www.amazon.com/Hiking-Georgia-States-Greatest-Adventures/dp/0762782439/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1416792209&sr=8-1&keywords=falcon+hiking+georgia
The Sykes Hot Springs in the Ventana Wilderness (Big Sur) you can backpack to. It's about 20 miles out and back or you can drop your car off on the backside and walk from the ocean through China Camp if you're feeling adventurous. My only advice is to go on a weekday if possible. The trail has gotten really popular over the years and gets really crowded. Water is still hot but often too many people to accommodate.
http://www.bigsurcalifornia.org/hotsprings.html[1]
Here's a quick map from the parking lot to the springs if you're interested here
Also, this book is worth picking up if natural hot springs are your thing
There's a loop NE of the Stuart Fork that would probably be a different experience. It's more up and down, but you get a bit higher and look down into some of the big canyons. It's probably harder than it looks on the map, but with a few days you could probably do it. Not sure how the dog would do, some of it is trails graded for stock and some of it is basically no trail.
http://caltopo.com/m/5FN0
I originially found it here: https://amzn.com/0762741236
Here are some of my recommendations, taking into account that some of the mountain parks (Rainier, St Helens, and Crater Lake) will still be partially closed due to snow:
Columbia River Gorge - Just east of Portland, full of spectacular waterfalls and trails, some nice small-ish towns, and some hot springs (Bonneville, Carson, Wind River)
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument - and undervisited gem in Central Oregon, home of the beautiful Painted Hills, and you may even time it right to catch the spring wildflower bloom there
Oregon Caves National Monument - it's in far SW Oregon, and one of the few, if not only, limestone caves in the PNW.
Olympic NP - Beautiful coastline, rain forests, alpine scenery (still snow in the higher elevations, though)
A few other cave recommendations are Ape Cave near Mt St Helens, Craters of the Moon NM in Idaho, Lava River Cave near Bend, OR, and Lava Beds NM just over the Oregon Border in California.
For hot springs, I'd highly recommend this guidebook
There's probably no way you could even do all of these in 4 days, so you might want to pick an area and focus in on that. Or fly to Portland or Seattle and rent a car, the extra days might be worth the extra expense.