Golden Gate National Parks, Guide to the Parks Review

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(More customer reviews)Just last week I was hiking the in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area and surrounding lands with my father, on vacation from Idaho. While on a guided tour of the Point Bonita Lighthouse, the ranger remarked that GGNRA was the single most visited national park in the country. I was somewhat surprised. Usually that honor goes to Great Smokey Mountains, Yosemite, Grand Canyon, and similarly well known locales. But as the ranger pointed out, just about every time a Bay area resident goes to walk their dog, they notch a visit into this fabulous urban parkland. Indeed, with over 77,000 acres situated next to and among one of the largest urban centers in the world, GGNRA offers some great recreational opportunities for local residents and those visiting from out of town. If you are not sure where to begin exploring this region, this guidebook published by the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy is an excellent place to start.
This book is divided, like the park itself, into two basic regions: lands south and north of the Golden Gate Bridge. All the major attractions in each region receive a detailed write up discussing the history and recreational opportunities in the area, and there is so much to discuss. Land's End, the dramatic penninsula headlands, Fort Mason, the old growth redwood grove at Muir Redwoods National Monument, Stinson Beach, Tennessee Valley and Alcatraz Island are all described, along with many other destinations. Walking tours are included for many of the landmarks. Sharp color photos, detailed maps, and well written side bars on natural and local history round out what has to be the single best guide to the region.
So if you are planning a trip to San Francisco or surrounding regions, by all means get this book and experience some of the (truly) wild side this metropolis has to offer. From military history (indeed, we have the military to thank for keeping so much of the land undeveloped before it became parkland) to tidepooling, hiking and biking, this book has it all. I cannot recommend it enough. As an aside, readers should note the Amazon publication information is not entirely accurate. The second edition was published in 2004, not 2000. This book, and the recreational opportunities it showcases, are far more current than the Amazon page implies.

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