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Hiking the Sierra Nevada, 2nd (Regional Hiking Series) | 
 enlarge | Author: Barry Parr
Publisher: Falcon
Category: Book
List Price: $19.95
Buy New: $9.99
You Save: $9.96 (50%)
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Avg. Customer Rating:  1 reviews
Sales Rank: 362633
Media: Paperback
Edition: 2nd
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 432
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.5
Dimensions (in): 8.9 x 6 x 1.2
ISBN: 0762735716
Dewey Decimal Number: 917.9440454
EAN: 9780762735716
ASIN: 0762735716
Publication Date: August 1, 2005
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Product Description
Thoroughly updated and revised, this four-season guide samples 140 of the best hikes from every quarter of the range, geared to differing levels of skill and experience.
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| Customer Reviews:
Off the Beaten Path (sometimes literally!) August 27, 2006
22 out of 28 found this review helpful
When I first saw this book I had to wonder if we really needed another guide to hiking in the Sierras. These are some of the most popular mountains in the United States. During a recent backpack trip along the Rae Lakes Loop in Kings Canyon National Park, I spent the night with some 60 people at Woods Creek Crossing. Later, at the junction between the John Muir Trail, Kersage Pass Trail, and the cutoff to Charlotte Lake I met about a dozen people; one person there suggested the Park Service install a traffic light. Still, Barry Parr's guide is a worthy addition to the numerous guidebooks covering the region, in part because by following his routes you can get to highly scenic but little known destinations all over the range.
Barry Parr divides the Sierras into ten distinct regions. Two of these, the north and south Gold Country (foothill regions) have received little coverage in other guides. Because of this, and the foothill hikes he mentions in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, this guide to Sierras includes more off-season hiking than most guidebooks. But even in regions that do receive a lot of coverage, notably Yosemite and trailheads in and around the Owens Valley, Parr manages to find some wonderful hikes where one can avoid the crowds.
In all, the book describes 140 walks. 106 of the trails receive extended coverage, with nice topographical maps and detailed directions. The remaining 36 are shorter hikes with easy to find trailheads. He includes these as "honorable mentions." Most of the trails described are dayhikes. Some are short enough for families with small children, but most are fairly extensive and moderately strenuous. At least 1/2 the hikes in this guide will require you to be in good physical condition. Parr also throws in a few backpack trips so that hikers can explore some of the fabulous backcountry in this region. Some "classic" hikes (often found elsewhere) are included: the climb of Mt. Tallac in Tahoe and the Yosemite Falls trail come to mind. But for the most part, the routes described here are not that common and you will not face the crowds. The Rockefeller Grove of Sugar Pines in Yosemite, for example, is an easy to get to but a relatively isolated destination, even on crowded summer weekends. The Deadman Canyon backpack trip in the backcountry of Sequoia and Kings Canyon is also wonderful with far fewer crowds than other backcountry destinations. Finally, it should be noted that Parr includes a few cross country rambles through rough terrain. Isolation abounds on routes like these, but you will need to be an experienced hiker to attempt them.
On the whole, this is an excellent book, and Parr is to be commended for his good work. The diversity of hikes means people of all abilities, interests, and fitness levels will be able to find one or more walks in each region suited to them. Full of natural and local history, listing the major long distance trail routes in the Sierra, and describing lesser known trailheads, this book is a gem. Hikers who want to explore the truly wild side of the Sierras should be sure to get this book.
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