101 Best Outdoor Towns: Unspoiled Places to Visit, Live & Play (101 Best...Series) Paperback – Illustrated, May 4, 2007

Good book for providing information on outdoor activities in that are located around areas although that would not be enough of a reason in itself to make me want to move to an area. But a well researched book.

I feel most of the places it explores are on the cusp of being over-explored, as if the author was a day late. This would be a wonderful book for people who don't get out often or who only travel as exotically as a Disney cruise.

Boring! I was looking for a travel guide for cool remote outdoor towns and this is not it. I've never heard of any of these towns and non of them look interesting enough to visit. Not even in color.

I have read numerous travel books to help me plan my vacations and decide where to go. This is hands down by far the best travel book I've ever read in my entire life. If you are looking to plan a vacation or need an insiders guide on what to do, get this book right now. Don't know where to go on your next vacation?? Get this book. Don't know where to stay, what to eat, fun things to do while in town??? Get this book. Good stuff.

After seeing the rave reviews of this book, I was looking forward to enjoying its tour through undiscovered outdoor towns. After reading through the reviews of towns known personally to me, it appears this book gives you a good list to begin your outdoor town quest but delivers very little content and additional sources to continue it.What I liked about this book: They introduce many towns not widely known to travelers and outdoor-minded downshifters. Some examples are Red Lodge, MT, Cloudcroft, NM, and Sheridan, WY. Their focus on smaller towns (though they never define how big that is) is welcome, which is why you don't see many of the outdoor town usual suspects such as Boulder, Asheville, and Flagstaff.What I didn't like: the book idea itself is ill-conceived as it attempts to cover 101 towns for "living, visiting, and playing," but ultimately falls short of the mark as it's too much to cover in one book. They would have been better served leaving off towns such as Moab and Taos and focusing on the lesser known gems they uncovered.There's no seasonal weather information in the book other than the odd anecdote (unbelievable for a travel/relocation guide). Town elevations are not consistently given, even in the West where it's a vital stat for a city. They don't mention that Livingston, Montana is one of the windiest spots in the lower 48, or that Gunnison, Colorado and West Yellowstone, Montana often have the coldest temps in the continental US in the winter.Although housing prices were stated to be a key factor in winnowing down their list, no median housing prices are mentioned. They cover the economy of a town in unhelpful brevity: "industries: tourism, retail" with no mention of wages or unemployment rates. The pictures in this book are atrocious -- most of the time it's hard to determine what the black and white photos cobbled together from state tourism boards and chambers of commerce were trying to depict. Good quality color photos would have added immeasurably to the book. There's only one map in the book, and it labeled the Columbia River as Hood River.Fact checking was inconsistent -- it says Gunnison's weather is milder than Crested Butte, CO yet this is exactly wrong. Gunnison is colder in the winter and warmer in the summer than Crested Butte. Caption under photo of Columbia River and the town of Hood River, OR claims that it is a picture of the river of "Hood River." The book says that Silverton is only 19 miles away from Telluride's Airport, but they don't tell you this is via a 4x4 jeep road that's only open for a few months in the summer when they finally plow through the 20 foot snow drifts in June at the 11,789 foot Ophir Pass. Otherwise it's over a 50 mile crawl on winding (although beautiful!) roads.There is nothing substantively critical in this book. Come on guys -- all towns have their downsides whether it's the brutal winters of Whitefish or the remoteness of Alpine, TX and your book would be better addressing those as well.It also would have been beneficial to have additional suggested readings, internet sources, and the number/website for the local visitors bureau.I'm left with one gnawing thought upon reading this book -- did the authors genuinely visit all of these towns? They don't claim to have done this. The pictures are from the tourism boards, some of the facts are wrong, and they are accustomed to writing about outdoor gear they've never used and places they've never visited from their time with Men's Journal. I would be interested to know.

I teeter on between ok and like it. I sort of felt like the information in the book was a little obvious. But it was still helpful when I used it with the other books I purchased... 45 Affordable Retirement Towns and the Places Rated Almanac .

In the age of consumer reviews that are often unreliable (aka TripAdvisor), it is wonderful to find a travel resource that provides an unbiased look at 101 great places to visit in the US. Based on a formula, the authors locate towns that are able to retain their individualism in a society that is overrun by Walmart and other big box stores. These towns are inexpensive, uncrowded and great for people that like biking, hiking, fishing, etc. I have used this book to uncover some great new places, and I highly recommend it.

First off, I'm jealous of anyone who lives (or spends a lot of time) in any of the towns mentioned so colorfully here. This book gives me exactly what I need to know: what to do (what trails, trout streams, rivers, favorite hideouts, etc.); where to do it; who the local legends are; where to sleep--and maybe most importantly, where to grab a bite and a drink at the end of the day. I can find the elevation, chamber of commerce phone number, and weather online. But I can't find the intangibles and vibe of a completely out-of-the-way town like Lake Placid, New York or Silverton, Colorado unless I know a local, or read this book. Extensively researched, very pithy, and often funny. The writing is much better than standard guidebook fare.