50 Hikes In Western Pennsylvania 3e [Paperback]

This book is by far the best trail guide I've ever used. (a) The directions to the trailhead are accurate to the tenth of a mile; (b) the directions on the trail are also very accurate; (c) each trail description has its own topo map; (d) the trails feature what the book says they'll feature; (e) the trails are fun!

The trail lengths in the book vary between 1-hour hikes to all-day affairs, with plenty of all types; also, the directions usually suggest other places to go or variations to shorter or lengthen the hike.

If you live in Pittsburgh or the area, buy this book.

This book describes 50 hikes in western Pennsylvania, which for this author means west of US 219. The hikes range in difficulty from a 1.8 mile stroll through a sculpture park in Johnstown to a 12.8 mile trek around Lake Wilhelm. Since 32 of the 50 hikes are drawn from the Laurel Highlands and the Allegheny National Forest, western Pennsylvania's premier hiking destinations, this book presents the best hiking western Pennsylvania has to offer. Several hikes are also drawn from greater Pittsburgh, so Thwaites does a good job of diversifying (geographically and in terms of difficulty) his hike selection.

Each hike contains an excellent trail map copied from a USGS topo map. The trail descriptions themselves are some of the best I have ever read. In addition to being thorough and frank, Thwaites frequently finds clever and humorous ways to communicate information about the trails, a quality you won't find in most hiking guides. I found myself saying several times, "I can't believe the editors actually let him write that!" The trails described here are excellent as well. In the trail summary at the front of this and most good hiking guides, I have a habit of drawing a star beside trails I really liked and might want to hike someday. Usually I have 5 or 6 stars after I am through reading, but for this guide I had 16: the hikes are just that good.

Despite all of these great features, this guide has one significant flaw: the driving directions to the trailhead. Most authors separate the driving directions from the trail descriptions so you can follow them easily as you drive: not here. The driving directions in this guide are presented as part of the trail descriptions, usually taking up a paragraph in the middle of the main text. This could present a real problem for someone who is relying on these directions to get to the trailhead. Because the driving directions blend in with the rest of the writing, you will either want to highlight the directions and/or have a really good idea where you are going before you leave home. Thus, having a good road map is essential to using this trail guide. Since many of these trailheads are located in rural, mountainous areas, you will need a detailed map showing the backroads: a Rand McNally USA road atlas or even a free Mapquest or other internet map simply won't do. The best backcountry map on the market is the Pennsylvania Atlas and Gazetteer published by De Lorme, and I highly recommend you buy that guide if you choose to purchase this one.

In summary, I had to think long and hard about how to rank this guide. While the contents themselves are easily worth five stars, a five star guide, in my opinion, should be excellent in every significant respect. Due to the issue with the driving directions, this one falls short of that mark. Having said that, there is a lot of good information in this guide, and this guide is fun to read. So if you are interested in Pennsylvania hiking, this guide probably belongs in your library.

The book edition is getting a little dated so some of the items mentioned by the author have changed a bit but overall the descriptions and maps are pretty decent. There was one hike in particular that i had trouble following but again, it was because the terrain had changed slightly due to some construction in the area as well as the trail overgrowing.

Overall i would suggest this book to anyone interested in some pretty decent hiking loops in Western PA. Most of the hikes in the book are loops and do not require a car shuttle. This i really liked. The author did his homework on some of the trails as well.

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