John Soares is a writer living in Northern California.

He is the author of 75 Hikes in California’s Lassen Park and Mount Shasta Regions (The Mountaineers, 1996), Best Short Hikes in and around the North Sacramento Valley (The Mountaineers, 1992), and numerous newspaper and magazine articles.

Marc Soares is a landscape consultant and teaches plant and yoga classes for Shasta College Community Education.

He is a professional outdoor photographer and naturalist who writes columns for the Redding Record Searchlight newspaper. He also plays guitar and sings in a local classic rock band.

He has written two other hike guidebooks, 75 Year-round Hikes in Northern California (The Mountaineers, 2000) and Best Coast Hikes of Northern California: A Guide to the Top Trails from Big Sur to the Oregon Border (Sierra Club, 1998).

THE MOUNTAINEERS, founded in 1906, is a nonprofit outdoor activity and conservation club, whose mission is “to explore, study, preserve, and enjoy the natural beauty of the outdoors . . . . ” Based in Seattle, Washington, the club is now the third-largest such organization in the United States, with 15,000 members and five branches throughout Washington State.

The Mountaineers sponsors both classes and year-round outdoor activities in the Pacific Northwest, which include hiking, mountain climbing, ski-touring, snowshoeing, bicycling, camping, kayaking and canoeing, nature study, sailing, and adventure travel. The club’s conservation division supports environmental causes through educational activities, sponsoring legislation, and presenting informational programs. All club activities are led by skilled, experienced volunteers who are dedicated to promoting safe and responsible enjoyment and preservation of the outdoors.
If you would like to participate in these organized outdoor activities or the club’s programs, consider a membership in The Mountaineers.

For information and an application, write or call The Mountaineers, Club Headquarters, 300 Third Avenue West, Seattle, WA 98119; 206 284-6310. The Mountaineers Books, an active, nonprofit publishing program of the club, produces guidebooks, instructional texts, historical works, natural history guides, and works on environmental conservation. All books produced by The Mountaineers Books are aimed at fulfilling the club’s mission.