Guidebook for time-pressured, Boston-based hikers

books:

	• AMC's Best Day Hikes Near Boston: Four-Season Guide to 50 of the Best Trails in Eastern Massachusetts (Amc ... Michael Tougias Appalachian Mountain Club Books, 2006 - 240 pages average customer review:based on 3 reviews view larger image
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Guidebook for time-pressured, Boston-based hikers

This guidebook is a good choice for busy professionals who like to hike but have little free time. This book features 50 good hiking spots, all within an hour and a half drive from Boston. The book opens with a map showing all fifty locations, followed by a table comparing the length of the trails, rating their difficulty and highlighting the special features of the hiking spots. There is a 4 to 6 page entry for each location, featuring directions to the location, information concerning the hours of operation, fees (if any), park or reservation contact information, a detailed trail map, a detailed narrative of what to look for (osprey's nest pole, solstice stones, eskers, drumlins, waterfalls, etc.) and photographs and descriptions of the flora and fauna.

Boston is surrounded by a ring of parks and nature preserves known as the Emerald Necklace. Although some of the Boston parks are included, this book features much more than just the Emerald Necklace. The parks, preserves and reservations included in this book range from the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge near Newburyport to Lowell Holly Reservation in southern Massachusetts to the Mount Pisgah Conservation Area in central Massachusetts. Private hiking spots such as Audubon's Broadmoor Wildlife Sanctuary are included in this book as well as national, state, county and municipal parks and reservations. I consider myself an avid hiker/nature lover, but I had no idea there were so many wonderful hiking trails so close to my home base.

My one criticism is that some of the driving directions are outdated and incomplete. For example, the directions for Great Esker Park tell you to take Exit 285 off of Route 3. There is no Exit 285 on Route 3 (the correct exit turned out to be 16B). The same set of directions go on to omit the final turn and street leading to the park. We eventually got there, and the esker and salt marsh were worth the stop we had to make for better directions. The hike turned out to be all that the book had described and more.

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This is a great book by a respected local author.

Great book. The AMC guides are so thorough, but this is thorough and readable. Enjoy New England with this book.

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Many great hikes

This is one of my favorite hiking guides for the Boston area -- varied hikes, easy maps, mostly accurate. Crane Beach and Halibut Point are two of the prettiest places in New England & shouldn't be missed.

Discover fifty pockets of wilderness bursting with flora and fauna on scenic trails within an hour of Boston. Ideal for families, nature lovers, and hiking enthusiasts, AMC's Best Day Hikes Near Boston leads explorers to the area's most intersting woodlands, reservations, and nature preserves from the North Shore to Concord and the Lincoln Woods, from the Middlesex Fells to the Blue Hills Reservation, and south to the Cape. This handy guide includes directions, trail maps, photos, and Nature Notes that highlight the natural history of the area, including rare bird species and ancient trees. Each trip description includes a summary of the trip time, distance, and difficulty, plus an icon indicating whether the trail is also good for snowshoeing or cross-country. The guide features appendices covering winter recreation, such as cross-country skiing and snowshoeing, as well as local rock climbing and other opportunities for outdoor adventure in the region, making this guide an essential four-season reference for locals and visitors alike.

Special features include:
>Fifty day hikes for all ability levels, ranging from one to eight miles long
>Detailed and accurate trail descriptions
>Locator map and "At-A-Glance" highlights chart for easy trip comparison and planning
>Hiking and safety tips
>Detailed maps showing parking areas, trails, and natural highlights
>Nature Notes about prominent species and unique natural features of each hike
>Photographs of plant and animal life reflecting each trip's hidden wonders

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