Illinois Hiking and Backpacking Trails (Revised Edition)

First, this work contains a wide variety of hikes. A total of 69 destinations are described, and the distribution is relatively even throughout the state. Trail distances range from 3 to 57 miles, and I would put the average at around 10 miles. Difficulty ranges from flat bike trails in the Chicago area to steep mountain hikes in Shawnee National Forest. Each hike contains a map (more on this later), a good background on the area, and directions to the trailhead. With this wide variety of hikes to choose from, you will have no trouble finding a trail to suit your location and ability.

One should note that the author does not spend all 370 pages describing trails. 45 pages are devoted to an appendix containing Illinois state regulations on use of natural areas. I am not suggesting this is a good or bad use of space, but such a large addendum is unusual, and I thought it should be noted.

Unfortunately, I now need to move to some shortcomings this book possesses. I mentioned above the presence of a map with each hike. While this is true, the maps as presented may not be of much use on the trail. The "maps" are really nothing more than drawings. They fail to show contours, names of trails, significant structures (i.e. park office and toilets) and natural features, and sometimes even the trailhead! It can be a challenge to determine on the map which trail the author is describing.

Another significant shortcoming is the trail descriptions themselves. In fact, many of the "trail" descriptions do not describe a trail (i.e. route for walking), but rather a trail system. Further, no suggested route through the trail system is given. In my opinion, this is a significant problem. As readers, we rely on the author to direct us to a trail of interest. We need information about what can be seen on a specific route to determine if we want to hike that route. We view the author as the expert and rely on his recommendation as to which route would be of greatest interest. The author of this book either does not possess enough knowledge about the area to recommend a route or simply refuses to share that knowledge. This makes it very difficult to choose a trail to hike.

In conclusion, I cannot really recommend this book. In addition to the above, this book is now several years old, and trails do change over time. In lieu of this book, I suggest you consider purchasing "Hiking Illinois (America's Best Day Hiking Series)" by Susan L. Post. I have not personally read Post's book, but my familiarity with this work and with the America's Best Day Hiking Series (I have personally read several works in that series) combined with the positive review Post's book has obtained suggests to me that it is a superior work.


Good Info   April 22, 2002
5 out of 6 found this review helpful

To be fair, this was the first book on the subject that I have purchased so I really don't have much else to compare it to. I do have to say that with this book I found many trails I never knew were there. Some of them right in my backyard. This book gives a lot of background on the areas as well as contact information. This contact information I think is important to obtain good maps from the parks and districts where the trails are located. That leads me to the biggest problem I had with the book. The maps appear to be hand drawn sketches. This is fine in most instances but I can think of a few times when I would have killed for a good map :) Ah but that is part of the adventure isn't it. Anyway with this book you will find many trails in the state and overall I think it is a worthwhile purchase.