Product Description
Aimed at serious outdoor lovers, the described routes assume some familiarity with backpacking. The trips range from one night to two weeks, and cover the Coast Ranges from Mexico to Oregon, the Sierra Nevada, the Cascades, and the Warner Mountains, including portions of the Pacific Crest Trail, the High Sierra Trail, and the John Muir Trail. Some are old favorites, others are published here for the first time.

Brief biographies introduce you to the venerable Wilderness Press authors who will be your guides. Their unique and personable styles reflect a labor of love, and their helpful tips reveal extensive backpacking expertise.

Edited by Paul Backhurst, trail descriptions are arranged in a clear and readable format. Each trip includes a trail map showing the trailhead, route, and terminus; campsites; mileage; and an at-a-glance hiking difficulty chart.

CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 4.5 based on 7 reviews)

below standards of other books in series

Obviously, I'm not happy with this book. I have 6 books in this series titled backpacking by Wilderness Press. Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Idaho, Nevada, and now California. I believe I use these books for their intended purpose, to evaluate and plan a backpacking trip, not necessarily needing to be from the area. Most of the books in the series, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, and Idaho follow a standard. These books give elevation gain for each day, shuttle mileage listed easily, and score for scenery, solitude, and difficulty. These books display a trip summary chart which is very nice. Also, their maps list mileages on the map along with frequent elevation along the route, except for Idaho. All these things are missing in the California book, which is what made the above books so good. In addition, over 15 of the hikes in my opinion are not backpacking trips, they are just day hikes. This was what I was trying to get away from in the Falcon guide books. California for some reason just had to be different, maybe it's because of all the different contributors, instead of just one. Either way it's a let down, and the Wilderness Press should stick to the previous standard that made Douglas Lorain's Backpacking books so great.
September 03, 2007

Useful Backpacking Planner

I've done trip 7(The San Bernardino Mountain Traverse) and trip 22 (Mineral King to Little Five Lakes) since receiving this book in August. I've found the trip descriptions accurate, up to date and, most importantly, enthusiastic. That feature has prodded me to go from "gee, it'd be nice to be out in the backcountry" to actually doing it more often. I find that the difficulty ratings are a little overdone, but, especially for newbies, that's probably the safest course. Also, the "variations" sections are skimpy ("Reverse the directon of this route") or nonexistent. All in all, a great guide to some of the most beautiful and challenging backcountry on the planet! I'll consult it before planning any Sierra trip.
November 11, 2006

Best Backpacking Trips

I've been a fan of Wilderness Press since the early 70's. This book presents some of the best trips in California, several of which I can personally vouch for.
October 26, 2005

THE Premier, Single Reference, CA Backpacking Guide

After several years of planning trips with topos, multiple books, websites and word of mouth recommendations I discovered this book. It turned out that every trip I had done, heavily considered, or that was on my "to do" list was included. Any book that tries to cover a topic as broad as "Backpacking California" is going have limitations - but the authors pick the absolute best of the coast, Desolation, south Cascades, Tahoe, Yosemite, Kings/Sequoia, Ansel Adams, Inyo and more. There is also good variety of distances and almost a third of the trips are loops. The maps are very good and trail statistics are helpful. My only complaint is the absence of elevation profiles (a total gain/loss number is offered) so the "Sierra South"/"Sierra North" books make good companions to this one. However, if you are going to own just one backpacking guide for your first 5 years of backpacking in CA or are just visiting and want to pick from the best, this is the book to have.
May 21, 2005

Great book!!!

I've always been a fan of Wilderness Press books and this one won't disappoint! I used this book to help plan a trip to Lost Coast (Oct '02), but had to change plans at last minute when I got to Calif. We did the Lassen Loop also described in the book and it was great. Highly recommend this book.
April 09, 2003

SIMILAR PRODUCTS

Trekking California (Backpacker Magazine)
by Paul Richins

Sierra North: Backcountry Trips in Californias Sierra Nevada
by Kathy Morey, Michael White, Stacy Corless
by Thomas Winnett

Sierra South: Backcountry Trips in Californias Sierra Nevada
by Kathy Morey, Mike White, Stacy Corless, Analise Elliot, Chris Tirrell, Thomas Winnett

Hiking & Backpacking Big Sur: A Complete Guide to the Trails of Big Sur, Ventana Wilderness, and Silver Peak Wilderness (Hiking and Backpacking)
by Analise Elliot

Foghorn Outdoors California Hiking: The Complete Guide to More Than 1,000 Hikes (Foghorn Outdoors)
by Tom Stienstra, Ann Marie Brown