Guide books often compliment, but do not usually replace the need for a print map of your hiking and backpacking area. Guide books offer suggestions of which trails to use and in what combinations for a pleasurable hiking and backpacking experience. They also provide narrative descriptions of trails and sometimes an assessment of trail difficulty, or suggestions for novice, intermediate and advanced hikers and backpackers. Less frequently, guide books also present interesting information about an area’s natural, historical or cultural environment.