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 40 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 features 86 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 86 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 . 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 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. 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