I was curious to know if anyone can recommend some places with good walking areas. Not mountain hikes but walking for those of us who enjoy natural settings but don't have the desire to head into the forest for more than a day trip.

I know I've enjoyed walking the Marginal Way in Maine. It would be great to find some picturesque walks like it so I can plan my next trip.

Any ideas?

If you haven't been to Acadia NP yet, that would be at the top of my list for scenic day-hikes/walks.

Try the U.P. in Michigan - the national forests along Lake Superior are magnificent - especially "Pictured Rocks". The water is blue-green & reminscent of the Caribbean. There is also a forest nearby that has acres & acres of birch trees - check it out at night under a full moon - they positively glow.

There are hundreds of trails and paths thru the Mountains of Vermont and New Hampshire,many of which would qualify as walks more that strenous mountain hikes.
The question is where do you draw the line between a hike and a walk? One very easy but very scenic one that comes to mind is the Mt. Tom trail in Woodstock Vermont. This is a 1/2 hour stroll up a well laid out path to some very nice views.

Doug, that walk sounds great.

The distinction I'm trying to make is that while I enjoy vigorous walks in scenic areas, I'm not the type to strap on a backpack and spend an entire day hiking. Does that make sense? The longest I'd probably want to walk is a few hours.

Thanks for your advice.

I did more walking on a recent San Francisco vacation than on any other vacation I've ever been on.

Take a look at the walking tours put together at www.backroads.com. While this company puts together package trips, you may get an idea of ideal walking areas and begin to research your own trip, if you want to put together your own itinerary. Our neighbors did a Backroads trip & were pleased with their service.

I must say that I find your question a bit odd. Almost any state/national park area would have good walks. Often there are short trails for "walkers" or you can easily do a short stretch of a long trail (e.g. I recently walked on about a 3 mile stratch of the Appalachian trail in the Shenandoah NP)

In addition, in any rural area there would be nice walks along country roads...you could turn around whenever you wanted to.

Also there are unlimited urban walks that have nice, natural settings.

I think the question would be better answered if you ahd a particular place or area in mind, and wanted to find out about a particularly nice walk in that place, otherwise the options are basically unlimited.

Sorry my question is so "odd" but that's why I asked it. There are so many people that read this board, I thought they might know of specific walks that they enjoyed. I don't have a specific area in mind because I want to learn about many areas.

RB and I had the same idea. I also took a Backroads trip and loved it. It was a "hiking" trip -- although it might meet your definition, Tom, since your backpack only carried water and snacks for a 2-3 hour hike and the hikes were not overly strenuous.

Backroads puts together some great itineraries with well-guided hikes, great accommodations, fabulous food and all the "services" you might need (snacks and equipment provided, maps provided, van to pick you up if you're too tired, etc). Their trips are rated by difficulty, so one might suit your needs.

I took the one in Santa Fe and Taos and LOVED it. You can call them for a free (and gorgeous) catalog.

zion national park by all means. i do not walk a lot and found the river trail and a few other non-climbing trails absolutely the most beautiful scenery of any of my trips. i don't know where you live, but it's worth the trip to southern utah. i go in the fall when it's cooler.

I love Backroads too - especially when I can pay a two hundred or so dollars a day with them, when I can do it at 1/3 the price on my own.

Key West has walking tours around Old Town. You can get maps from the Chamber of Commerce.

TM - o.k. I'll bite. Since you like the Marginal Way you'll like the Cliff Walk in Newport. A beach walk that goes in back of some of the mansions. I'll also agree with Acadia NP in Maine - There's one in particular that goes along the water and thru the forest overlooking Sand Beach.
In Falmouth MA on Cape Cod there is a bike trail called Shining Seas that people walk on - it's a couple of miles and goes along the ocean.

Here in Massaschusetts most State Parks and Wildlife santuary's have walking trails - some more scenic than others.

I suggest looking for a book on the area your visiting such as Nature hikes in xxx or Family Walks in xxxx. If it's described as family or for kids it will about 2 hours.

Happy trails.
Sandra