Walking San Diego: Where to Go to Get Away from It All, 2nd Edition

I've been looking for some new destinations to hike or walk, and this book has some great ideas. San Diego has so many scenic places to go, I almost hate to go to the same place twice. This book will help me pick new destinations that are winners.

Sparse deserts, pine clad forests, and a lovely coast means that San Diego County just about has it all (to paraphrase another author, Ann Marie Brown) when it comes to outdoor recreation. Throw in a mild climate and lots of sunny days and this is the perfect place for a quick vacation. Indeed, on the recent three day Martin Luther King weekend, my wife and I stayed on Point Loma and explored the San Diego coast. We had a lovely weekend, and if you would like to do the same, this revised edition of a Mountaineers Press classic is a good place to start. After almost 20 years in various printings, 'Walking San Diego' still comes with numerous hikes along the coast and inland, but close by the major population centers in the county. Nature preserves, state parks and beaches, and some federal lands make up the bulk of this book. At each location, the authors describe one or more short hikes, some of the wildlife to be found, and other interesting natural history features. Readers will learn about the discovery and preservation of the world's rarest pine tree, the Torrey Pine, and where to see such hard to spot birds as the Least Tern and Snowy Plover (think Tijuana River Estuary). They also include walks in botanical gardens and along paved multi-use walkways such as the paths around Mission Bay. On the whole, I think this is a solid guidebook to one of my favorite off season recreation areas in California. The appendix on native chapparel plants will certainly help readers to appreciate this part of the county. I also liked the emphasis the authors put on birding opportunities in San Diego. On the other hand, they do not do justice to the mountain areas in the county and they ignore Anza Borrego Desert State Park altogether. Perhaps the latter was simply out of the scope they wanted for this book, but I am truly confused by their decision to discuss Cuyamaca Rancho State Park, while at the same time ignoring the nearby Laguna Mountains, especially since the latter pretty much escaped fire damage and the former will probably never (in my lifetime) return to its previous splendor. Still, this is a solid guide to San Diego outdoor hiking opportunities, and should not be missed.