Hiking the Southwest's Canyon Country

The best characteristic of this hiking book is that it is more focused on the day hiker than the backpacker, describing an abundance of shorter and easier hikes than the average hiking guide catering to the young and strong. Longer hikes are here; but there's plenty also for the duffer, i.e. yours truly. Hinchman describes 160 hikes in the deserts and canyons of the Four Corners region of New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, and Utah, including the Grand Canyon and several magnificient National Parks in Utah. Along the way she also points in the direction of other lesser known walks. For example, despite my familiarity with New Mexico, I never knew that Petroglyph National monument just outside Albuquerque had good short hikes. I'll visit there next trip. Along with all the good, I have a complaint that the guide is somewhat difficult to use, divided as it is into six different, sometimes overlapping "tours." I had to search for a while to find hikes in Mesa Verde which were placed in Chapter IV rather than Chapter V which seemed a equally logical place to find them. Once you get the hang of the author's methods and madness, however, the guide is easily usable. An improvement would be a map showing the location of hikes described and a less complex numbering system. Smallchief

This guide is excellent in many respects: the maps are well-drawn without drowning in detail, the multi-day itineraries are useful (but by no means necessary and can be broken into day trips), and the descriptions of the trails and the many photos let you know that you are on track. (Never underestimate the utility of a good photo to help you get your bearings.) This is a hiker's guidebook--thick paper and glossy covers ensure it can handle occasional moisture and repeated stuffings into packs. The book's strengths are is comprehensiveness and its detail. The focus is on the southwest canyon country--a large area indeed, but nearly every worthy hike is discussed and each with enough detail to ensure no highlights are missed. Finally, the author provides a good summary of the archaeological finds--including the amazing, ancient petroglyphs and pictographs--you will see along the way. If you are going to be hiking in the canyon country of the southwest, this is the book to have.

This is an unusual guidebook, in that the author lays out a series of suggested itineraries for the Colorado Plateau country, sized for a 2-3 week vacation. This would be an ideal guidebook for a first-time hiker-visitor to the US Southwest. But old hands won't feel left out, or condescended to -- Hinchman writes clearly and directly, and knows her stuff. She notes that her guidebook is directed towards the "non-jock" reader. I've been to many of the places and specific hikes that she recommends, and I saw no errors, though I haven't yet used her guidebook in the field. The cartography, by Hannah Hinchman, is unusually good for a small-format guidebook. About the only flaw I noted was that about half of the color photos are poorly reproduced. The text index is sketchy, but the index maps are excellent. Previous Mountaineers guidebooks have been sturdily-bound and hold up well in the field. Highly recommended. Happy hiking-- Peter D. Tillman Desert Rat

If you hike and tour: good for size of area covered. Small page maps of scenic byways and trails in planometric. If you want representative area hikes with road/tour route/itinerary this will work for you. Add atleast Trails Illustrated and AAA Maps and you should have a nice trip.

The Mountaineers Books may just be the best publisher of guidebooks for the Southwest currently being published. I realize this is a strong statement, but I have had occasion to use Southwest related guidebooks for years and have found theirs to be absolutely the most informative, accurate and user-friendly of the lot. This third edition of a classic is no exception. The 150-plus hikes, 35 new to this edition, are described in seven chapters ranging from Desert Reef and River Tours, Mesa and Pueblo Tours, to Painted Desert and Canyon Tours and will take the reader from the Colorado Plateau to the Grand Canyon, from Zion and Bryce Canyon National parks to the banks of the Rio Grande, and just about every nook and cranny in between. If it's in the Four Corners region and remotely worth visiting, the chances are it's mentioned in this book. The newly added material on the San Rafael Swell area, as well as the Canyons of the Ancients, indicates the up-to-date status of the material. I was pleasantly surprised to see a suggested hike in the newly designated Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument in New Mexico. I visited the area this past summer and can vouch for the accuracy of the information. Along with the hiking information there is background material on the region's geology, archeology, climate, flora and fauna there is an index, maps, color and black and white photos, a handy Contact information section for federal, state and local agencies and a suggested Further Readion section. This is a comprehensive guidebook and trustworthy companion for hikers, backpackers, explorers and adventures of all skill levels seeking to experience the Four Corners region.