Books

Backpacking & Hiking by Karen Berger and published by DK. This is one of those great books I keep talking about. Well worth the $20.00 I paid for it.

the Hiking Companion by Michael W. Robbins and published by Storey Books. Michael Robbins provides practical hiking tips and advice drawn from his own hiking adventures.

Nature Walks In Southern Indiana by Alan McPherson

Outdoor Guide to Using Your GPS by Steve Featherstone and published by Creative Publishing International. This book provides practical guidance on how to use a GPS to find your way in the wild. It has a particularly good section on how to use a GPS in conjunction with USGS Quad Maps.

Maps

USGS Topographic Maps: The standard map for backcountry hiking is the 7.5 minute quadrangle or "quad" map. The are more than 55,000 individual quad maps covering the conterminous 48 States. These maps are sold for $7.00 each.

DeLorme Topo USA: Topo USA is a computer program that contains all of the quad map quality maps for the entire USA, including Alaska and Hawaii. The program sells for $100. In addition to the maps, Topo USA contains a lot of information not found on USGS maps. You can even overlay your own GPS tracks to map trails that are not on the basic maps. And the best part is that you can print the maps to produce your own custom USGS quality maps.