Warren Ohlrich

For over 25 years Warren Ohlrich has been writing guidebooks while hiking, backpacking, running, biking, skiing and snowshoeing the trails in the Aspen and Central Colorado area. He also enjoys exploring new areas in Colorado and Utah, using other writers’ guidebooks. His philosophy of guidebook writing, gained from his own experience, is to provide good, descriptive information for not only the trails, but also for getting to the trailheads. He never assumes that the readers know what he as the writer knows.

Warren constantly revisits all the trails, taking his camera, digital recorder and GPS along to record information for new editions of the guidebooks. “I get out and do every single trail,” he said, “It’s sort of like my work is play.”

He sticks to the basic facts—what a hiker–skier–snowshoer will see, where to go, what to expect, how hard it will be and how long it will take. Ohlrich’s descriptions of trails and surrounding terrain aren’t flashy or flowery, but they are packed with factual details that don’t leave readers scratching their heads over directions. When necessary, he includes GPS readings for critical intersections and the start/finish of routes.

Warren Ohlrich has recently moved to Moab, Utah, looking for new trails, but he continues to spend a good part of the year back on the Aspen and Central Colorado trails which he loves so dearly.