Hiking the Big Sur Country: The Ventana Wilderness

by Jeffrey P. Schaffer

Opportunities abound for hikers and equestrians in Big Sur Country, its adjacent state parks, coastline, and public beaches. Here is the guide to exploring 260 square miles of wilderness. Contains 25 accurate, 2-color topo maps.

Genres: Travel, Reference

168 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 1988

Reviews

[Julie Mickens · Rating 4 out of 5]

Out of date (pub 1987) but surprisingly engrossing as nature writing about a *relatively* unknown vast tract of wilderness & national forest hiding in plain sight. The Ventana Wilderness/Los Padres National Forest/Santa Lucia Mountains are single-digit mileage inland as the crow flies from the crowded, famous Big Sur route on Highway 1, yet much of their terrain is solitary, rugged and often dangerous.

The book includes about a dozen legit glossy USGS topo maps that the author annotated with his routes and landmarks.

Obviously don't try to use it directly as a guidebook today. Even as the author laments a fire recent to the 80s, two or three more serious fires & their subsequent regrowth have happened since then, including a big one last year in 2016. These fires can radically alter vegetation, trails & camps, and even the terrain itself, not necessarily for worse, but certainly for different. Floods too can change watercourses. And trails, camps & roads are always being added, abandoned, renovated, etc. Finally, if I'm not mistaken, additional public lands have been added to this district over the years.

[Josh Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

First of all, it's clearly dated. This might not matter very much - wilderness doesn't change very fast - but trends in backpacking, and trail use do.

Past that, the book is useful but hard to follow with not enough commentary on which hikes are good/bad for different people and experiences.

[Scott Cox · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite hikes in the Big Sur are the Sykes Hot Springs and Cone Mountain areas. These are fantastic hikes in an incredibly beautiful region of central coastal California. Also, there is always the chance of spotting a re-introduced California Condor in the Big Sur region!