By Hal Tarleton

Daily Times Opinion Editor

Allen De Hart, "Trails of the Triangle" Second Edition. John F. Blair, Publishers, Winston-Salem. 298 pages with index. $13.95, paperback.

Joe Miller, "100 Classic Hikes in North Carolina." The Mountaineers Books, Seattle. 238 pages with index. $21.95, paperback.

Karen Chavez, "Best Hikes with Dogs North Carolina." The Mountaineers Books, Seattle. 238 pages with index. $16.95, paperback.

In the past month, three new hiking books arrived for review at the Daily Times, any one of which will make you want to lace up those hiking boots and hit the trail. All three books will impress the casual walker with the number and variety of trails available in North Carolina. Although most of the trails are in the western part of the state, some are much closer.

Some are very close. "Trails of the Triangle" lists four trails in Wilson County -- Hominy Canal Trail, Toisnot Lake Trail, Lake Buckhorn Trail and Lake Wilson Trail.

This book lists scores of smaller, out-of-the-way trails around the Triangle, not only in the expected places like Umstead State Park near Raleigh or Duke Forest near Durham but also Jordan and Falls lakes, Historic Yates Mill Park, the American Tobacco Trail, Clayton Community Park, Masons Farm Biological Preserve in Chapel Hill and dozens of greenway trails in various cities and towns.

Almost anywhere you're traveling in the Triangle area, you're likely to find a place in this book to get out of the car and hike. Maps and black-and-white photographs are included for many of the trails, and each trail lists length, description and directions to the trailhead.

"100 Classic Hikes in North Carolina" is the classiest of these three hiking books with color photos on nearly every page, color maps and good descriptions and directions. "100 Classic Hikes" is the most professional and serious of these three books, while also being the most general, covering the entire state and all kinds of hiking. The thoroughness and the color photographs of beautiful scenery on the trails add to the book's appeal.

Author Joe Miller (a News & Observer outdoor writer) divides the trails geographically -- coast, piedmont and mountains with subsections on each city or area. One can easily select a region of the state and browse through Miller's selection of the best hikes in that area, complete with information such as trail length, difficulty, estimated hiking time, best season for hiking, availability off maps, directions to the trail head and contact information. The only other thing you'll need is a pair of hiking boots.

This book is a valuable resource for any hiker in North Carolina.

"Best Hikes with Dogs" comes from the same publisher but is a bit more specialized. The book begins with tips on hiking with dogs. Karen Chavez, an outdoor editor at the Asheville Citizen-Times, gives thorough advice on health concerns and first aid for dogs in the woods, followed by practical tips for hiking with dogs -- some of which apply to any hiking. Anyone thinking of hiking with a dog would be wise to check out Chavez' practical advice.

She follows with a description of dozens of hiking trails that are suitable for dogs, and most hiking trails are. Nearly all the trails require that dogs be on a leash, although some allow dogs to be off-leash (but under control!) at certain times of the year.

Most of the trails listed are in the mountains, but a short section includes more easterly trails, including those at Eno River and Umstead state parks in the Triangle and the Croatan National Forest near the coast.

Hiking books can be found all over, but these three books add to the existing inventory by offering a focus on one area (the Triangle), by specializing in hiking with dogs and by being just a darned good reference for N.C. trails.

tarleton@wilsontimes.com | 265-7812