By Tom Davids

Welcome to the Internet

www.weeklywalker.com

"Give me thy hand; stand up: Prithee, let's walk."    William Shakespeare

                                                                 

         Many readers of this column over the years have asked about "the book." It seems that many of you clip your choice of "Weekly Walks" from your edition of The Independent Newspaper Group, file it somewhere, and can't find it when you need it. I think about self-publishing the book a lot: the best title, what size, page layout, pictures, maps, binding, marketing, and all of the many details that go into a classic publication. I even followed my wife's suggestion of sending sample walks to a publishing house and letting them do the work. I sent three proposals and got three rejections--which is probably a reality check on the commercial value of this endeavor. But I'm still thinking about it--just seems the right thing to do--so be patient, and someday a book may surface.

            In the meantime, I offer you a Web site of more than 60 published walks. Each weekly walk will be added to the site and sorted by distance, features, and location. Just find one of interest, and print it out. Future walks on the Web will also include a picture and a map.

            Here is how it works. Go to the home page at www.weeklywalker.com. That inviting picture in the center of the screen is Sky Trail at Point Reyes. To the left of the picture are five major sort buttons. The Walk of the Week includes only the current published walk. Click on this bar, and the next screen shows the walk title and a one-line description. Click on the trail button for the complete text.

            The next bar is Walks by Date. This will include walk title and location by week of the month. If you recall a walk of interest last February, click on the month, and select which of the four walks you want. The listing will run for a 12-month period.

            The third bar is Walks by Interest. There are nine sort buttons including separate listings of walks by length (short, medium, and long) and walks by special features such as waterfalls, creeks, coastal, bay, and rainy day walks. The Grandpa Walks section is under development, but will include special short walks for kids of all ages and what to do along the way or when you get there.

            Dog Walks are listed as a separate category and include a wide variety of walks in dog-friendly areas.

            Walks by Location sorts each walk by county and location within the county. If a park or preserve has more than one walk in file, click for a description of each walk in this group.

            The final bar is "Foot" notes. This includes walks or subjects of special interest that don't appear elsewhere in this Web site.

            So take a little time to get familiar with www.weeklywalker.com and find just the right walk. Then, "stand up" (as Shakespeare said), and start moving. And let me know how this Web site is working for you. Just hit the e-mail line, and we're connected.

            Development of this Web site was a family effort, and mine was the easiest part. My son Tim designed the site, created the logo, and arranged for the multiple sorting of each walk. Thanks, Tim, for a job well done. My wife Veralyn spent many hours reformatting the file for electronic transfer to Tim and proofreading the result. Not only is she my constant hiking companion, but these walks would never be published if she didn't type them.