Day Hiking North Cascades: Mount Baker, Mountain Loop Highway, San Juan Islands Paperback – March 11, 2008

I have another guide,  Exploring Washington's Wild Areas: A Guide for Hikers, Backpackers, Climbers, Cross-Country Skiers, Paddlers , which is another excellent reference for hikers. That book is more comprehensive and a bit larger than this  Day Hiking North Cascades: Mount Baker, Mountain Loop Highway, San Juan Islands  book. The former, albeit a bit dated (first published in the 90's) covers longer backpacking treks as well as the shorter day hikes that are in the latter (first published in 2008). I just wanted to contrast the two, as they are both excellent guides for different applications.I needed a more portable book to lug around in my backpack featuring shorter day hikes, as I'm lucky if I get one day off per week. I live in Skagit County, right smack in the middle of the hikes featured in this book, and based on others' reviews, I decided to buy this one. I'm glad I did! It is extremely thorough and well-written. The author, Craig Romano, clearly has an appreciation for the area and does a wonderful job of classifying each one of the hikes based on rating, difficulty, distance, elevation, and what season the specific hike is open. There are also other features outlined, such as dog-friendly, bike-friendly, camp locale, etc. There are many photo's showcasing the highlights to each one of these hikes.I have "dogeared" many pages of this book, highlighted the points of interest of hikes that I am interested in, and I have already explored a couple hikes nearby my home (I've owned this book for about two weeks). Mr. Romano's poetic description and insight into all of the 125 featured trails motivates me to want to see most of them. The author also features a segment for many (if not most) of the hikes entitled "Extending Your Trip," which references alternative routes branching off from the main trail.One minor concern one may have with this book is that the map/s showcasing the hikes are zoomed into the hike itself, not mapping directions in detail to the trailheads. That is a small concern, not worthy of removing a star from this review, because in this day and age we have so many other ways to find a destination. Besides, there is a small segment for each hike titled "How to Get There," with written instructions that are both accurate and comprehensive enough to locate the hike. Also, there are GPS coordinates for the technologically advanced.Enjoy this book, I would recommend it to anyone who lives within the area who has a limited amount of time (one-day) off to explore their own backyard. And on a side note, please respect our wilderness and it's habitat. If you see garbage, pick it up. If you see wildlife, don't disturb it. Stay on the trails and tread lightly. I hope my great-grandchildren, and yours, can enjoy and appreciate the privileges we have today!

I own a LOT of hiking books for the Pacific Northwest, specifically Washington State (and even more specifically, Eastern WA - but that's another story that some people seem to have a problem with). This is one book I bought especially because the author, Craig Romano, recommended it to me for a hike I was looking to have concerning hiking to a glacier. It doesn't get better than having the author hook you up! Kudos to Craig for being interested in not only hiking Washington but his readers.Like the another book I own,  Backpacking Washington: Overnight and Multi-Day Routes , each hike is loaded with information about difficulty, distance, elevation gain or loss, when the trail is open, directions to get there, etc.Romano's clearly written descriptions keep the reader both entertained and educated. His use of topographic maps allow you to see before getting there what you'll be up against. This surely is one of the best parts of the book.You keep writing 'em, Craig, and I'll keep buying 'em.

If you want to find out more about your local hikes grab one of these. Everything in here can be looked up on the internet but there is just a little more to this then what you may find online. I've never seen one of these books in person and I was expecting like a normal size book, bout 10" or so. But I was a little surprised upon arrival to see that it's eh maybe 5". Super small book. I had to get online and make sure I didn't buy some cheaper version of it but I guess this is the normal size. And I almost thought it stated "color pages", there's really only a few select pages in color, everything else black and white. I guess for the price if some of the profit actually goes back into the trails, it's not bad but I would really find it a better deal if sold for 10 bucks. 15-20 bucks seems a little much for what it is. Overall pleased though. Thank you!

Digital/Kindle edition, 2008... I've got only positive things to say about the choice of hikes and the description to which author Craig Romano adds to the selections. His descriptions are accurate and informative. However, copy editor Julie Van Pelt did a very poor job. I know this is a hiking guide and not a novel, but there is at least one grammar error in practically every hike description.For example, whether it's referring to North Cascades National Park, as National "Pork" (loc. 3526), granite slabs as "granite slobs" (loc. 3449), calling Eldorado peak "Ekdorado" (loc. 3473), forgetting to put spaces between words like "sparklingjewel" (loc. 3391), or things like "...travels,4 very difficult..." (loc. 3544), or the formatting mess (loc. 3689) that is entirely different than the completely bold-faced introductory paragraphs found throughout the guide - instead, this one has random words in bold that just yell at you like a college boy shooting fireworks on the 4th of July. It's painful..."If you wont solitude, it's here. There ore some fair views..." (loc. 3987). So many mistakes are there, it makes you wonder if the copy was even proof read at all.I point this out in my review because the sheer number of mistakes takes away from the experience of the guide itself and the Mountaineers series in general. The mistakes are simply unnecessary.I give it four stars out of five for content, and the oversight in editing takes it down to three. I've returned this version, and I'll check the hard copy in a brick and mortar store to see if they have updated it.