Sierra North

Over the years, the guides have gone through a number of editions and have sold over 100,000 copies. The latest editions have been meticulously updated by Elizabeth Wenk and Mike White and include a feature that [original authors Thomas Winnett and Karl Schwenke] could never have imagined back in 1967: GPS trail coordinates. These fine books are certain to continue to guide hikers for generations to come, all thanks to the foresight and pioneering work of Winnett and Schwenke.”

—National Outdoor Book Award reviewers





Auteur

Since childhood, Lizzy Wenk has hiked and climbed in the Sierra Nevada and continues the tradition with her husband, Douglas Bock, and daughters, Eleanor and Sophia. As she obtained a PhD in Sierran alpine plant ecology from the University of California, Berkeley, her love of the mountain range morphed into a profession. But writing guidebooks has become her way to share her love and knowledge of the Sierra Nevada with others. Lizzy continues to obsessively explore every bit of the Sierra, spending summers hiking on- and off-trail throughout the range, but she currently lives in Sydney, Australia, during the "off-season." Other Wilderness Press titles she has authored include John Muir Trail, One Best Hike: Mount Whitney, One Best Hike: Grand Canyon, 50 Best Short Hikes: Yosemite, and Wildflowers of the High Sierra and John Muir Trail, the latter a perfect companion book for all naturalists. Mike White was born and raised in Portland, Oregon. He learned to hike, backpack, and climb in the Cascade Mountains, and he honed his outdoor skills further while obtaining a bachelor's degree from Seattle Pacific University. After college, Mike and his wife, Robin, relocated to the Nevada desert, where he was drawn to the majesty of the High Sierra. In the early 1990s, Mike began writing about the outdoors, expanding the third edition of Luther Linkhart's The Trinity Alps for Wilderness Press. His first solo project was Nevada Wilderness Areas and Great Basin National Park. Many more titles for Wilderness followed, including the Snowshoe Trails series; books about Sequoia, Kings Canyon, and Lassen National Parks; Backpacking Nevada; Top Trails: Northern California's Redwood Coast; Best Backpacking Trips in California and Nevada; Best Backpacking Trips in Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico; 50 of the Best Strolls, Walks, and Hikes Around Reno; and Afoot & Afield: Reno-Tahoe. Two of his books, Top Trails: Lake Tahoe and 50 Classic Hikes in Nevada, have won national awards. Mike has also contributed to the Wilderness Press classics Sierra South and Sierra North, as well as Backpacking California. In addition to his books, Mike has written for Sunset, Backpacker, and the Reno Gazette-Journal. A community college instructor, Mike is a featured speaker for outdoors groups. He and Robin live in Reno; his two sons, David and Stephen, live in the area as well.

Texte du rabat

This guidebook features 80 hiking and backpacking trips in the Sierra Nevada, with trip details, maps, day-by-day trail descriptions, and more.

Résumé

Find the Best Hikes and Backpacking Trips in California’s Sierra Nevada


The rush of trekking through nature, the thrill of experiencing new places, the reward of discovering beautiful sights—all of this awaits in the Sierra Nevada. For more than 50 years, this definitive guidebook has led readers along the top trails between the mountain range’s northern boundary and the southern edge of Yosemite National Park. Now, with this revised and updated edition, let hiking experts Elizabeth Wenk and Mike White show you the way.


Sierra North is the award-winning guide that features 80 meticulously selected trips, from new routes to old favorites. Traverse Hoover Wilderness, Ansel Adams Wilderness, Carson-Iceberg Wilderness, Emigrant Wilderness, Desolation Wilderness, and more. The trips are organized around major highways and roads, so it’s easy to choose your next adventure. Just pick an area, drive there, and go hiking. 


Inside you’ll find



• 80 trips that range from quick overnighters to 11-day excursions

• Complete trip details, including day-by-day trail descriptions, GPS waypoints, and elevation data

• 36 trailhead maps that show the routes for every trip

• Beginner tips and trusted advice on camping, fishing, and bear safety

• Information on side trips, geology, natural history, and more
 Planning your trip into the northern Sierra backcountry is easier than ever before. For additional hiking and backpacking opportunities, see the companion guide Sierra South. Both titles are recipients of a National Outdoor Book Award.

Échantillon de lecture
Young Lakes Trip Data: 37.93783ºN 119.33566ºW (upper Young Lake); 14.1 miles; 2/1 days Topos: Tioga Pass, Falls Ridge Highlights: The three Young Lakes, cupped under soaring Ragged Peak, are some of the most accessible lakes from Tuolumne Meadows that allow camping. Although busy, they are less crowded than the popular destinations south of Tioga Road. The cluster of lakes offers a large selection of campsites, some in heavy woods and others at timberline. These camps provide a base for exciting excursions into the headwaters of Conness Creek and for climbing Mount Conness itself. Day 1 (Glen Aulin Trailhead to Upper Young Lake, 7.3 miles): Go around the locked gate where the road to the stables trends right (north) and continue west on the service road along the lodgepole-dotted flank of Tuolumne Meadows, enjoying fine views south toward the Cathedral Range. After 0.25 mile you meet a smaller trail heading right (northeast) to the horse stables and soon thereafter the main trail splits. Here, the left (southwest) branch heads to a bridge across the nearby Tuolumne River, while your route, the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), veers right (west), slightly uphill, still on an old road, and quickly encounters a spur trail to the bubbling natural Soda Springs. Above Soda Springs the road forks, and you go right (northwest), still on the PCT. (To take a peek at the nearby buildingsMcCauley Cabin and Parsons Memorial Lodge briefly go left [southwest], then return after having satisfied your curiosity.) Your westbound trail passes a reed-filled lake, then traverses open sandy flats interspersed with lodgepole pine patches. Another spur trail from the stables merges from the right (southwest) and just beyond you descend to cross Delaney Creek, a potentially treacherous crossing in late May and June if no log is availale to balance across. In late season, this is your only water source until the Young Lakes. Continuing not far from the northern edge of Tuolumne Meadows you soon reach a junction, where you go right (north) to Young Lakes, while the PCT continues left (west) to Glen Aulin High Sierra Camp (Trips 31 and 51). From the junction, you ascend gradually across a broad expanse of boulder-strewn sheets of granite. An open spot affords a look south across broad Tuolumne Meadows to the line of peaks from steep, rounded Fairview Dome to the steeplelike spires of the Cathedral Range. After a little under a mile, the trail dips to first parallel and then cross Dingley Creek (may be dry by late season). The trail continues winding gently upward in shady pine forest carpeted with a fine flower display even into late season. Through early July, enjoy the delicate, creamy-white flowers of mariposa lilies, with one rich brown spot in the throat of each petal; mariposa means butterfly in Spanish, for the petals resemble a butterfly's wings. The trail remains just south of the ridge, denying the hiker spectacular northward vistas, so be sure to take a few steps north and enjoy the panoply of peaks: majestic Tower Peak, Doghead and Quarry Peaks, the Finger Peaks, M…