This book is so accurate and descriptive it made hiking the Tahoe Desolation Wilderness a pleasure. The authors describe the trails in detail, steep, vertical, not for beginners etc. The map included in the back is an assest, the detailed book a must for anyone heading into the wilderness of Tahoe.

This is the best book to get for hiking around Lake Tahoe - it is written clearly with step by step descriptions of each hike, the flora and fauna of the area and the difficulty level for each hike. Definitely a must when visiting the Tahoe basin area.

I used this guide to hike the Oregon section of the PCT in 1993 and found it very user-friendly, highly practical while on the trail and full of interesting background information. Among the most important aspect of the guide for me was the quality and reliability of the topographic maps, thoughtfully place by the Publishers so I could take the pages out and use them in a waterproof cover for each stage as I walked it. The hints on water supplies and campsites were essential and I was able to plan my route, timings, food drops and campsites for the entire trail; this was especially important for me as my budget and time free were limited. As far as I remember, the only thing that was incorrect was that there was no longer a bus from Bridge of the Gods into Portland. Not bad. I would recommend this guide to anybody planning to hike the PCT.

The fourth edition of this book is a vast improvement on the initial release (3 editions ago). If you are looking for a complete trail guide to the Tahoe Basin, this is the one you want.

I bought this book & another book, kept this one and returned the other. I haven't seen a better guide to the PCT.

This book, along with its Oregon-Washington Second Volume, is a MUST-read for anyone planning their own trip along all or part of the Pacific Crest Trail. This trail guide provides a wealth of information such as mileage, water-stops, trail conditions, tips, maps, and even locations (including addresses!) of post-offices and other along-the trail stop-overs for re-supply. PCT hikers often carry this book with them in their packs and reference it often. More weight-conscious thru-hikers will cut or tear the book apart into sections (it's conveniently divided into a long series of trail sections between stop-overs) and ship the abbreviated guides back to themselves at towns along the journey.

Combining years of research and tens of thousands of miles of first-hand trail experience, the authors have done an outstanding job in allowing future backpackers access to the information they need to plan their own epic adventures. The book usually comes with an pamphlet included to keep you posted on any updates and changes to the trail since the book's latest release (which I believe there have been six such releases since its initial publication in '73).

I'm planning my own thru-hike of the Pacific Crest Trail, and after much of my own extensive research through countless other books and guides, I still come back to this one for the information I need to plan my own greatest adventure to date. Be sure the check the Oregon & Washington volume of the guide as well, written by the same authors in the exact same format.

I have used this book since 1980 to hike all or part of the PCT. It can make or break your trip. The most important info is where to find water. Some souces are difficult to find, but this book will lead you to it. The amount of info,maps, water, landmarks, milage,trail conditions, suppy points, etc., make this book a must on any hike along the PCT. If you don't have it with you, you're a lost soul.

We tried to use this book to help guide our trip and find some great hiking during our first time to Yosemite. While the book is a wealth of knowledge and information (if difficult to read in parts), it was overwhelming for us to figure out what we should do and what we should save for our next trip - which we definitely plan to take! More specifics about what is worth it and what is not as well as more trail maps would be extremely valuable. Even a basic overall map of Yosemite Valley or the Tioga pass would have made a big difference. For example, the map given by the park as you enter Yosemite is excellent.

Perhaps this book will be more valuable as we become regular visitors to and hikers in the park, but if you are planning your first trip, I would start with a different book - or better yet, follow the advice of locals and previous visitors. Some obvious suggestions: Glacier Point, Mirror Lake (great view of Half Dome), Bridalveil Falls, somewhere along Tioga pass (e.g. Lake May, Tenaya Lake, Tuolumne Meadows), Mariposa Grove.

Have fun in Yosemite!

I bought this book to prepare for an upcoming return to Yosemite and found its contents adequate, but I wouldn't go beyond that. For me, a good trail guidebook is a must when exploring the national parks, and as far as this book is concerned, I've seen better. First, although the topographic map included is a nice freebee, I think most people would rather have a detailed map for each trail- or even close-up maps covering multiple hikes in the same vicinity- if forced to choose, similar to what you find in the Falcon Guide series. I was disappointed to see there were no maps included in the book proper- the topo is all you get, and since it spans the entire park, you may need a magnifying lens to see the individual hikes, and sometimes it seems locating the roads requires microscopic vision.

Second, while I am aware that this book was written with geology as a focal point, I found the extensive geologic information strewn all through the trail descriptions distracting. Some people enjoy reading such things as they hike, I suppose, but I prefer having the background in the background, in its own chapter, leaving my trail guides uncluttered. If you're like me, you'll just get annoyed with continually having to skim and skip through the hike descriptions to find the pertinent information you're really seeking. So if you're not particularly interested in wading through DETAILED coverage of Yosemite's geology and prefer concise, straightforward descriptions of what to expect along your hikes, choose another guidebook (which is what I would have done had I had the option).

In general, the book is useful and covers a substantial number of hikes in Yosemite. It will help you to choose your treks and plan for your trip. But I wouldn't want to lug it around with me on the trail. Unless you're interested in all the extra details (excepting practical ones, such as useable trail maps), look for something a little less studious.

I have to disagree with the two previous reviewers. First, as someone with no previous knowledge of the park, I did not have too much difficulty using this book. The excellent topo map that is included helps to locate the trails in the book (in contrast to Falcon Guides, which to my disappointment, don't include topo maps). There is also a very nice table at the beginning that summarizes the different trails (organized by location in the park) - trail length, difficulty rating, whether it is "exceptionally scenic", how likely you would see other people on the trail, whether there is water/swimming/fishing, and number of days to travel route - very useful for planning a backpacking trip!

Second, the details about the landmarks along the trail route proved to be useful for confirming whereabouts and distance travelled, especially when searching for potential campsite locations. I disagree with one of the reviewers about the detail - more is better than less, especially if you've lost the trail (which we did at one point - but thanks to the description of the flora and fauna, we knew that we were in the wrong place!).

I've used this book successfully and without any major problems for a 5-day backpacking trip in one of the lesser traveled loops of Tuolumne Meadows - which by the way was certainly "exceptionally scenic" and a must-see for anyone going to Yosemite. The only complaint that my husband and I have is that the estimated trail lengths might sometimes be inaccurate by a mile or so, because occasionally the numbers differed from those on the trail signs.

I just finished a weekend hike in the Ventana wilderness. Granted, I did a lot of stupid things. But I got 18 hours of rain! I was trapped between two rivers that had risen over 6 feet in 24 hours. My down sleeping bag was soaked. Temperatures were dropping into the 40s at night. I thought I was going to die. Did this book give me any hint that there was this kind of danger? No. It makes no mention of radical changes in the environment due to weather. It mentions steady-state danger conditions for other rivers (Carmel, Big Sur and Little Sur. These the are the same ones that the Forest Service mentions, btw. Here it says that they can be impassable in the winter) but nothing about other ones. At least *some* of the narrative is correct.

But for a place as rugged as the Ventana Wilderness, a book without discussion of the dangers is simply inexcusable. If this is our only source, it's no wonder there's such a high number of plaques to a "Loving husband and father" on some of the trails.

I first purchased Mr. Shaffer's book back in '94 and have jokingly referred to it as "The Liar's Guide to Hiking the Ventana Wilderness". I found the book fairly accurate for the more popular trails (Carmel River Trail, Pine Ridge Trail, Skinner's Ridge), but somewhat misleading for the lesser-traveled trails. The book is in SEVERE need of updating to correct some of the inaccuracies and mainly, because over 100,000 acres in the heart of Ventana were scorched in the Kirk Complex/Tassajarra fires of 1999. The fires resulted in many of the trails being burnt almost out of existence or severly damaged. Despite its shortcomings, however, the book is worth it for first-timers wishing to hike Ventana.

Having made about thirty different trips into the Ventana wilderness over the last several years using this great guide book, I've come to appreciate the authors maps. Regular topographic maps from the USGS do not show many trails in the Ventana or inaccuratly shown. The author has plotted the trails in detail onto USGS topos (shrunk to book size which means you must look closely, but you can still discern every contour clearly). The trail descriptions are as detailed and informative as one can expect for a book this old. Fires, El Nino's and withdrawal of funds for trail maintenance inevitably change the accuracy of Schaeffers descriptions. Nevertheless there are still many useful descriptions and comments. If you are serious about exploring this rugged widerness, the book would be well worth it for its maps alone.

I was very disappointed in the overall format and descriptive narrative of this book. If you are a rock hound or a naturalist that is concerned with all of the Latin names of every plant species in the Lassen area, this review may not apply. However, if you plan on using this book to help plan a multi-day backpacking/hiking trip through Lassen you should look elsewhere.

No doubt the author is very knowledgeable about the area, but the format is not for trip planning, but more for reference to read as you are walking the trails. The trails are not linked in loops, or connected for round-trip hikes in any discernable way which is a necessity for trip planning in my opinion. Overall, this book is great if you want to catalogue volcanic rock and plants, but if you are planning a backcountry trek look for another hiking guide.

This book is an encyclopedic guide to the Lassen Volcanic National Park area, including Lassen itself, the Caribou and Thousand Lakes Wildernesses, Hat Creek Valley, and McArthur-Burney Falls State Park.

While the book covers its main focus - hiking trails - more than adequately, it also includes more than one hundred pages about the natural history of the area, road logs for driving in the National Park, descriptions of nature trails, and a decent, removable map of the area. Although the main text is somewhat dated (1981), a helpful six-page update from 1999 is included. All this information does make the book a little bulky for hiking or backpacking, so photocopy the pages you'll need before you hit the trail. (And remember that big guidebooks with lots of information are better than those that don't have enough!)

The only criticism I have to offer is that Schaffer tends to ramble off-track in some of his trail descriptions, but this is a minor complaint. All in all, a good, comprehensive guidebook to the area.

The Lassen book is great with good trail descriptons. I recomend Schaffer's books to any one who enjoys hikeing. Most of his books come with a map.

This book is a real disappointment. My impression is that the author is speaking to someone who already knows the trails and the area well. It may be better than nothing, but it could have been much more.

In fact, I have been unable to find a Yosemite backpacking guide that wasn't a disappointment. There must be one somewhere. I am spoiled on excellent guides such as Hiking New Mexico (I don't recall the author), and particularly the Arkansas guides by Tim Ernst. All backpacking guides should be as thorough and thoughtful.

The small format High Sierra Hiking Guide Series is clearly an on-the-trail refresher series. For day hikers and 'packers alike one of these and the appropriate 7.5 topos will get you there and back. Most of the lyricism we expect from a Wilderness Press guide is present, though in an abreviated form due to size constraints: for the full treatment and as a home reference volume for picking potential trips (or reliving past ones) Sierra North, Sierra South and Yosemite National Park - A Natural History Guide to Yosemite and Its Trails are the way to go.
These are full decription tomes where you can smell the duff and here the crunch of the granite under your boots. Imagine my horror when I got back east and found their idea of a trail guide was more a mileage marker list, I guess the complexity of the trails is an issue but I've worn my second edition Sierra South to tatters from all the rereading and my East Coast guides (White Mountains, Vermont High Trail etc.) get read to keep me from getting lost and quickly reshelved as they have no feeling. FalconGuides are a bit better but where they overlap as with Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada the Wilderness Press are far superior a read tho if all you want is distance and elevation they'll do.

I haven't read this book but this is for the person who rated this book earlier. There is a great backpacking guide "Yosemite Natl Park, A Natural Guide to Yosemite and Its Trails" by the same author. Unfortunately it is out of print. When it is reprinted (and it will be) this is the best book about the park that I have found. It has any trail mentioned that you would want to know about. Check it out if you get a chance.

This book is a real disappointment. My impression is that the author is speaking to someone who already knows the trails and the area well. It may be better than nothing, but it could have been much more.

In fact, I have been unable to find a Yosemite backpacking guide that wasn't a disappointment. There must be one somewhere. I am spoiled on excellent guides such as Hiking New Mexico (I don't recall the author), and particularly the Arkansas guides by Tim Ernst. All backpacking guides should be as thorough and thoughtful.

THIS is the one you slip in the daypack or backpack for the walk you've been evangelized to take after reading his Yosemite National Park guide (there's a new edition), the classics Sierra North and Sierra South or one of the others. Sure some people even carry The Complete Walker (! ) but for those less robust the Hiking Guide series offers compact, area specific guides that are perfect for on-the-trail reference. As for prose I've never encountered any backbacking guide that surpassed the wonderful descriptions Wilderness Press has established as it's standard. I only wish there were guides of that caliber for here on the East coast to replace the souless mileage lists that pass for "trail guides" here. My first edition Sierra South has fallen quite apart I've read through it so many times just to enjoy the words: I've been there and those books bring the Sierra to life as you read.

People interested in purchasing this book should be aware that Schaffer's ideas presented here have yet to pass muster in scientific peer review, and that most past and active researchers in the Sierra Nevada do not support many of his conclusions. For a more detailed review, see P. W. Birkeland's review of the book in the journal Quaternary Research (Academic Press), v. 50, no. 2, p. 200-201. In essence, the great quantity of qualitative observations and inferences presented in the book do not subsitute for calm, careful, directed research. Also, there are too many straw men in the text, in which Schaffer misrepresents the works of other scientists before dismissing them. The highly negative references to other scientists are particularly inappropriate. Bottom line: the book covers a lot of ground, but the final conclusions remain scientifically hollow.