Tell Elaine Gorman to “take a hike” and she’ll likely respond with an enthusiastic “Where to first?”
Gorman is a former life science teacher. She retired in 2009 after 24 years at Mark Twain and Roosevelt junior high schools and has been an avid birder, naturalist and hiker since.
Recently, she’s become an author. Published in the summer of 2024, “Valley Ventures” is a book of 20 hiking trails within two hours of the Modesto area, ranging from easy to moderately strenuous walks. Spots nearby include places in Ripon, La Grange and Waterford, and farther out you’ll find trails in Sunol, Round Valley in Brentwood and along the Cosumnes River in Galt…