I bought the book after hiking the canyon for the first time as a souvenier of the trip and to help me plan my next hike. You can use the book to show your friends or family, "This is what I'm going to do", or document what you did.

If you've never hiked the Grand Canyon, this is the book to inform you of what to expect, help you make your hiking plans, and to build your enthusiasm and excitement for the trip!

The book is only 68 pages long, but is packed with useful information. Well worth the price!

jes

13 of 13 found the following review helpful:

Excellence in brevity.  Jun 07, 2005
By D. Rosin
Things should be reviewed based upon what they're meant to be, and not by what they don't pretend to aspire to. This book is NOT intended to provide in-depth coverage of a national park that spans over 2,000 square miles; it's less than 70 pages long for goodness sakes! Rather, it is a convenient and easily followed introduction to what the Canyon has to offer. The Canyon can be overwhelming, and this book is better than any I've seen at presenting potential hikers with a quick overview of each trail. All pertinent trail information is included, including difficulty, areas of interest, and point of access. Yes, you can get this information from the nps.gov website, but this book is much more portable than a computer. If you are the typical Grand Canyon adventurer and are looking for an easy planning tool and a quick glimpse into what is waiting for you, then I highly recommend this book.

If, on the other hand, you are an experienced desert hiker who will be venturing beyond the popular "corridor" and are looking for extensive coverage of the canyon, then follow the crowd to John Annerino's "Hiking the Grand Canyon" (about 300 pages plus a true topo map).

23 of 27 found the following review helpful:

Official Guide to Hiking the Grand Canyon  Apr 13, 2000

What a dissapointment this book turned out to be. One would think the "ultimate" guide to hiking would contain detailed trail descriptions and suggested itineraries. The second sentence in the book says it all, "...provides basic information..."

This book provides very little in the way of interesting land marks and "must sees" for a trip to the Grand Canyon.

5 of 6 found the following review helpful:

Official Guide - Very Basic Info  Sep 24, 2003

Pros - all the basic hiking info. Small topo map. Unique vertical depiction. Few color photos. Good pack size (60 page paperback).
Cons - all basic information can be found at NPS Grand Canyon web-site. Detailed, trail by trail info limited to 2 pages. These pages consumed by vertical diagram, topo map and color picture. Little or no trail description, interesting features, sights, etc. Of little planning value. Returned the next day.
Try FODORS Grand Canyon - costs the same.

Official guide to Hiking the Grand Canyon  Apr 27, 2011
By Hack
Very helpful read. Concise, but full of useful information. On page 15, the telephone numbers for the Backcountry Office and the number for additional permit information are incorrect. They were printed with a 520 prefix which should have been 928.

See all 6 customer reviews on Amazon.com