Guide to 156 easy to moderately strenuous day hikes around San Luis Obispo County, ranging from bluff trails along the Pacific coastline to creekside canyon walks in the Santa Lucia Mountains, from city paths to wilderness retreats.

"Best Easy Day Hikes San Luis Obispo "includes concise descriptions of the best short hikes in the area, with detailed maps of the routes. The 19 hikes in this guide are generally short, easy to follow, and guaranteed to please.

In the mid-1800s, fortune seekers from around the world flocked to California, but not all of them ended up in the gold fields. Many settled in San Luis Obispo County, drawn by the Mediterranean climate perfect for planting a familiar crop: grapevines. Local viticulture originated with the Spanish Missions, but it blossomed with the influx of intrepid adventurers. Growers and winemakers like Pierre Dallidet, an immigrant who helped save the French wine industry, and Henry Ditmas and James Anderson, who were the first to plant Zinfandel grapes, established vineyards and set about crafting award-winning wine in the fertile soil of Central California. Join the experts at the Wine History Project of San Luis Obispo County as they share the unique stories of these legendary winemakers.

Best Easy Day Hikes San Luis Obispo includes concise descriptions and detailed maps for nineteen easy-to-follow hikes just south of Big Sur, California. Discover waterfalls, lakes, year-round creeks, volcanic outcroppings, and bluff hikes as well as top-notch trails and preserves, from Morro Bay and Montaña de Oro State Parks to Los Padres National Forest. Look inside for: • One-hour hikes to half-day adventures • Hikes for everyone, including families • Mile-by-mile directions and clear trail maps • GPS coordinates

Big Sur is an awesome stretch of spectacular coastline in Central California. The Santa Lucia Mountains quickly rise over 5,000 feet from the ocean. This magnificent landscape begins near Carmel at Point Lobos State Reserve and extends 75 miles south to Ragged Point in San Luis Obispo County, just south of the Monterey County line. The steep coastal mountain range and rugged shoreline isolate the Big Sur country, which maintains an unspoiled, rustic charm and relaxed, leisurely pace.This completely revised and updated edition of Day Hikes Around Big Sur includes 99 great day hikes along the coast and throughout the interior mountains. Hikes, which take from one hour to all day, range from easy beach strolls to strenuous mountain climbs with panoramic coastal vistas. The diverse terrain is a hiker's paradise with a well-designed trail system of more than 300 miles. The network of trails venture into the beautiful canyons and across the slopes and peaks, offering unparalleled views of the mountains merging with the coastline. Along Highway 1 are endless views of the scalloped coastline and the deep blue Pacific. Awe-inspiring bridges span numerous creeks and deep canyons. Highlights along the miles of trails include isolated beaches, eroded coves with tide pools, rugged marine terraces, redwood and Monterey cypress groves, shady canyons, waterfalls dropping into mossy glens, lighthouses, and vertical cliffs with crested ridges.Statistics, accurate driving and hiking directions, and numerous maps make these hiking adventures stress free. Dog admission information is included. Most trails can be accessed from Carmel Valley Road or Highway 1, including many beach access points.Companion guides include Day Hikes Around Monterey and Carmel and Day Hikes On the California Central Coast.

California was a wild and lawless place in the 1850s, and San Luis Obispo County was no exception. Outlaws and bandits passed along the El Camino Real, now Highway 101, leaving a trail of victims. Despite attempts to stem the tide of crime with a vigilante committee and a string of executions, notorious men continued to be drawn to the central coast well into the next century. The James brothers, the Daltons and even Al Capone made their mark here, while lawmen worked to tame this piece of the western frontier. Author Jim Gregory details nefarious activities lost to time.

Best Easy Day Hikes Conejo Valley, CA includes concise descriptions of the best short hikes in the area, with detailed maps of the routes. The 18 hikes in this guide are generally short, easy to follow, and guaranteed to please.

Lonely Planet’s Best Day Hikes California is your passport to 60 easy escapes into nature. Stretch your legs away from the city by picking a hike that works for you, from just a couple of hours to a full day, from easy to hard. Explore Yosemite, marvel at redwoods, and hike the coast. Get to the heart of California and begin your journey now! Inside Lonely Planet’s Best Day Hikes California Travel Guide: Color maps and images throughout Special features - on California’s highlights for hikers, kid-friendly hikes, accessible trails and what to take Best for... section helps you plan your trip and select hikes that appeal to your interests Region profiles cover when to go, where to stay, what’s on, cultural insights, and local food and drink recommendations to refuel and refresh. Featured regions include: Northern Coast & Redwoods, Marin County & the Bay Area, California’s Central Coast, SoCal Coast, Southern Deserts, Kings Canyon, Sequoia & the Southern Sierras, Yosemite National Park, Lake Tahoe & Gold Country, Northern Mountains Essential info at your fingertips - hiking itineraries accompanied by illustrative maps are combined with details about hike duration, distance, terrain, start/end locations and difficulty (classified as easy, easy-moderate, moderate, moderate-hard, or hard) Over 60 maps The Perfect Choice: Lonely Planet’s Best Day Hikes California, our most comprehensive guide to hiking in California, is perfect for those planning to explore California on foot. Looking for more information on California? Check out Lonely Planet’s California guide for a comprehensive look at what the country has to offer. About Lonely Planet: Lonely Planet is a leading travel media company, providing both inspiring and trustworthy information for every kind of traveler since 1973. Over the past four decades, we’ve printed over 145 million guidebooks and phrasebooks for 120 languages, and grown a dedicated, passionate global community of travelers. You’ll also find our content online, and in mobile apps, videos, 14 languages, armchair and lifestyle books, ebooks, and more, enabling you to explore every day. ‘Lonely Planet guides are, quite simply, like no other.’ – New York Times ‘Lonely Planet. It's on everyone's bookshelves; it's in every traveler's hands. It's on mobile phones. It's on the Internet. It's everywhere, and it's telling entire generations of people how to travel the world.’ – Fairfax Media (Australia)

California's Sonoma County is known for its wineries and a magnificent natural landscape--a picturesque mix of rugged coastline, steep cliffs, forested hillsides, and verdant agricultural valleys. A collection of 125 of the county's best day hikes are combined into this guide, providing access to 60 miles of coastline and thousands of acres of greenspace. All hiking levels are included, with a focus on mid-range hikes.