Backpacker’s best buddy

Veteran hiker and mountaineer Paul Richins Jr. draws upon his 35 years in California’s wild spaces to craft a well-appended guide to 20 multi-day hikes, most 40 to 60 milers.

As the “trekking” handle indicates, the book focuses on longer, more adventurous trips. Several routes blaze trail-free or seldom-trodden terrain. Each trek is illustrated with a glossy map and includes elevation relief, total distance and camp logistics. Richins also suggests side trips and jaunts up peaks.

Besides sample trips and mileage breakouts, Richins has included chapters on planning a long trek and executing it safely, advice everyone from the beginner to the sand-bagger can use.

After all, as he writes, days in the backcountry “may well be the best days of your life.”

-- Emmett Berg