1 comments about Zagat 2008 California Wine Country Restaurants (Pocket Guide) (Zagatsurvey: California Wine Country Restaurants).

1. I continue to buy new Zagat's guides because they work!
   How they maintain such consistency is amazing.

1 comments about Southern California Off the Beaten Path, 7th (Off the Beaten Path Series).

1. I just got this book this afternoon and have basically just skimmed through it to see what was said about my area and some areas I've visited. I was disappointed that there were no photos of any of the places mentioned, just a couple sketches here and there. I was expecting some little known places to be mentioned, but for the most part, I've either already heard of all of them (in my area) or been there! Most of the places mentioned are readily found on the various websites for each city, so an internet search would have given me the same results. I was kind of hoping to have a guide informing me of quirky places to visit as I was travelling, with photos of the neat places I could visit along the way. This is more like the Sunday paper telling you what's happening each month. Nothing new or exciting in my opinion. And definately not "off the beaten path". Most of the places listed are nationally known!

5 comments about Cruising the Chesapeake: A Gunkholer's Guide.

1. In addition to telling you where facilities, anchorages, and other interesting local points of interest are, he supplies invaluable lessons only learned in the school of hard knocks. Valuable mariner lessons were included on weather prediction, inlet navigation, and other techniques tailored to use in the Chesapeake bay. The book was very well done, and I hope to set off on a cruise in the very near future.



2. We have a power boat but found this book to be very informative & helpful. We are planning our trip, have not been to the Chesapeake in about 25 years, and have found this book the best yet in our preparations. We like to anchor out and this book is informative not specifically focusing jumping from marina to marina like many guides do.



3. I have two copies of the 2001 edition: one aboard my sailboat in Annapolis and the second in my office. Most of my use of the book has been in the middle Chesapeake. In crawling up and down the Magothy, Severn, South, West, Rhode, Chester, Wye, and Tred Avon Rivers this book has provided helpful insight into what I would find. This book and the Maptech chart book are all you need to find your way to and through the backwaters of the Chesapeake.



4. Not to be trite, but this book is an absolute must for anyone who seriously cruises Chesapeake Bay including its approaches. Superb detail and illustrations compliment a clear, carefully worded text. I have and use two other cruising guides for additional information but always start and end with this book.



5. I bought this book because I wanted a complete description of the Chesapeak area to help us in a planned visit of the area. It has met or exceeded my expectations with excellent maps and complete descriptions of the navigable areas. It provides detailed navigation advice along with an overall description of what to see, facilities, history, etc...

2 comments about The Michelin Green Guide To USA West (Michelin Green Guide: USA West).

1. This is the same review I wrote for the Michelin Green Guide USA East. To cover the entire USA, one must buy 2 books.
   I have been using green (and often red) Michelin guides for almost 50 years. For any area in the world they cover, they are clearly the best guide books available, with some caveats: one must have a good general education, and one must be able to read a very condensed map--skills many young Americans sadly lack. With those skills, however, as usual this new edition of the USA book is superb. Unlike almost all other travel books, Michelin offers clear value judgments, rankings, of sights. I have found over the years that I almost always agree with Michelin opinions. Because I like the series so much, and this book is very good, I give it 5 stars. Sadly, however, I don't think these books are as good as in past years. They should have more ½ page city maps, and there is no reason in the Green Guides to list hotels and restaurants. I suspect fewer maps and more hotels/restaurants are a sop to modern competitive requirements. For the most part, hotels and restaurants suggested are only the very most expensive--perhaps for those European travelers who have strong Euros to spend! Not much use to ordinary people! Another problem with Michelin Guides is that they are relatively expensive and if one travels widely, the collection of necessary guides (both Green and Red) becomes very large indeed. All that said, as an American I find this and the companion edition (Michelin USA West) wonderful reviews of the entire USA. If one has the time to travel widely in the USA, there is no better place to start vacation planning.



2. As all Michelin guides, it provides very concise and objective advice. If it says "***" (three stars) make sure you go there!!!

2 comments about Hiking Idaho, 2nd (State Hiking Series).

1. Falcon's guides are consistently good references to the areas they cover, and this is no exception. Reading it will inform you about the many excellent wilderness hiking opportunities in this beautiful state. For more specifics on an area, like the Sawtooths, also consider one of Lynn Stone's books, like Hiking Idaho's Sawtooth Country.



2. The trail descriptions are great. The maps are great. The depth is great.

   BUT, there are two things this book is missing that any good hiking book has. Each and every trail description in this book has a 'quick glance' section which lists a quick description, general location, maps, special attractions, difficulty, season and contacts for more information - BUT not trail LENGTH or an estimated time to complete! You have to read the entire description to find the length and probably won't find an estimate of the time required. Sure, this is OK if your friend recommended hike 'X' and you want to look it up. But, it is terrible if you are looking for a hike of, say, 6 miles that you can complete in 3 hours. It's just not readily available - you'd have to read the whole book! Even better, many guides have an index of sorts where you can see this information (and the availablity of backcountry campsites) for all trails at a glance, then go to the specific trail(s) that interest you.

   This is what this otherwise great guide is missing. I returned mine and picked up 'Trails of Western Idaho' by Margaret Fuller instead - which does contain this information. Ms. Fuller's book is older (1992 vs. 1995 for this Falcon Guide), but not terribly so. She has some newer revisions for her other quides and I'm hoping this one will be reviced soon as well!

No comments about Day Hiking, South Cascades: Mt. St. Helens / Mt. Adams / Columbia Gorge (Done in a Day).

1 comments about Best Bike Paths of New England: Safe, Scenic and Traffic-Free Bicycling.

1. This book was a nice introduction to some of the bike paths in New England. The path descriptions, for the paths I have ridden, were very accurate. The only thing missing were detailed maps of the trails themselves.

No comments about Newcomer's Handbook For Moving to and Living in Boston: Including Cambridge, Brookline, and Somerville.

3 comments about Best Loop Hikes: Colorado (Best Loop Hikes).

1. More than half of the hikes in this book are front range hikes. Many of which, I would hardly call a hike because they're only 2-3 miles in length. Many of the great loop hikes in the mountain areas were left out. The authors even admit that some of the "best" hikes listed in the book really aren't that great! There are also hikes which I recognize as being mountain bike trails, and who wants to be on a trail with a bunch of mountain bikes whizing by? Now I must admit I did find out about two mountain loop hikes that I didn't know about, so I guess the book was worth buying for that.



2. Unfortunately the previous review does not give just credit to the hikes included in this book and the specific reason for including them. As a native of Colorado, I can say that there are copious amounts of trails and wanderings to be enjoyed and Weinstein and Johnson's guide does an excellent job of providing a handful of quality Colorado options for the day-hiker or multi-day trekker. It is truly one of the few guides that covers loop routes of Colorado in vivid description and I would highly recommend it.



3. This is arm chair reading for the winter months, as most of the trails described are covered with snow. I was pleased to find so many options within a two hour drive of Denver. The descriptions give enough detail to create interest but do not overwhelm the hiker with minutia. I will copy the appropriate pages and put them in my pack in anticipation of Spring.

No comments about Maine Mountains Trail Map 1: Baxter State Park-Katahdin/Rangeley-Stratton/Gulf Hagas.