Did a quick overnight out of Disaster Creek Trailhead in Carson-Iceberg last month. Really beautiful area, lots of running water in Disaster Creek and all the other little streams that flow into it. Super green everywhere, especially in and around the meadows. Didn't see much wildlife except for an owl that woke me up perched on a branch right above my bivy.

Lots of shots heard from the valley - some sounded like fully automatic. If people were getting ready for the deer season, I was wondering whether shooting actually scares the deer away.

More pictures here:

https://www.satjourney.com/dibenko/trips/carson-iceberg-wilderness-july-2026-1fj4bd

Would love to hear if anyone here has favorite routes in that area.

Hi there. From DC and first time backpacking in the Desolation Wilderness. I'm starting at Echo Lake and my permit for night 1 is Waca Lake, which is South of the much bigger Lake Aloha . Any tips on how to get there? Doesn't seem like there is a trail. I'll be approaching Lake Aloha from the PCT. Then I see an unnamed trail that heads down to the South East tip of Lake Aloha and then it T's with one way heading to Lake Aloha and the other heading towards Lake of the Woods. Should I just hug the shores of Lake Aloha , make my away around America Lake and then hopefully see Waca Lake? Any help would be great!

🗓️ This Thursday, September 3

6-9PM

Fieldwork Brewing, Berkeley

📍1160 Sixth St, Berkeley, CA 94710

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👋Hello! We hope you'll be able to join us for this month's Berkeley First Thursday Hiker Meetup!

Once a month we get together to share hiking & backpacking information, tell stories & plan future adventures 😃

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This is a great opportunity to connect with other people who love spending time outside! Our community includes 250+ hikers 🎉

This is a free community led event and everyone is welcome - even if you have zero hiking experience!

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There are also very experienced people in this group if you are looking to connect with other mountaineers, skiiers, climbers ect

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We typically gather outside at a table on the patio. This is a very casual event - feel free to stop by for any amount of time from 6-9pm. Look for a blue backpacking bear can on our table 🫙

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Look forward to seeing you all at Fieldwork Berkeley this Thursday night!!! 🍻

I recently got given this picture i had never seen of my dad. I wanted to see if anyone on here had any ideas as to where he might have been hiking. My best guess dates this picture back to the late 60's or early 70's when he was living in Berkley.

He and most of his side of the family have passed away at this point, and I have lived in the southeast and havent gotten to spend any real time on the west coast so this all looks completely foreign to me.

Thanks!

Update: I talked to my mom on the phone last night, telling her about your suggestions, and once I said Desolation Wilderness she said she remembered my dad talking about a trip he took there. We don't know if that was the trip in the picture but it seems likely. I really appreciate everyone weighing in. I never expected this much of a response.

Loved Canon Creek Trail up to the lakes and beyond. Looking to discover a few more epic trails for 2 night/3day backpacking. 5-8 miles a day… out and back is OK, loop preferred. Looking at Stewart Fork Trail up to the meadows to camp both nights and do a big day hike to Emerald in Sapphire Lakes on day two. Would love to hear your favorite three day adventures in the Trinity’s.

I know of a lot of epic routes that are 4 to 6 days. But looking to expand my smaller adventure routes. Thanks in advance!

Volcanic Wilderness 4 hours North of San Francisco

My fiancee and I are backpacking in Yosemite this weekend and have two extra spots on our reservation since our friends can no longer make it. We are looking for people to join. The spots can go to you and a friend or to two strangers

The permit date is Friday, September 4. We are required to hike from Glacier Point to Little Yosemite Valley on Friday. We are hiking half dome on Saturday. We are hiking out on Sunday

You would have to hike the entire trip with us, so hopefully we would have some things in common. A bit about us: we are early 30's, enjoy camping, tennis, running, and skiing.

Message us with a bit about yourself and please describe any previous backpacking experience

i was planning to do canyon creek lakes this week but now it looks like it's going to rain (and possibly snow?!). i'm super bummed because i've been wanting to go to trinity alps for a while, but i know i'll just be grumpy and miserable in those conditions :(

any suggestions for other spots to go instead that'll be dry and hopefully a bit warmer? i'm a beginner backpacker and looking for something that's 2-3 nights, averaging around 6-8 miles per day. i've done ventana (pine ridge to sykes), point reyes (bear valley to wildcat), and emigrant (gianelli to chewing gum lake), so would like to check out somewhere new but open to other trails/routes in those areas as well.

Hi all. My wife and I area heading out to Carmel & Monterey for our 20th anniversary next week. We were planning a day hiking around Big Sur, but the fires have obviously thrown a wrench in our plans. My wife really wants to see some redwoods, so I'm trying to find the best alternative. We're flying into San Jose and will arrive relatively early in the day. Should we stop by Henry Cowell State Park on our drive down to Carmel? Or are there better options on the way? Thanks in advance for any help you can provide!

Hi all. Looking for trails in Nor Cal that are a good introduction to hiking. We did a great hike at Mammoth last week and would like to start hiking closer to home. Just a little nervous I'll pick a place that is too much too soon. I bought the All Trails app to help. Of course, I assume Labor Day will be a busy day to hike - but if anyone has suggestions, that'd be great. Thanks! ;)

I am organizing a group trip to Hot Springs on October 10-12 on the Northern California Women Backpackers group (https://www.facebook.com/groups/norcalwomenbackpackers/?ref=share_group_link&mibextid=wwXIfr)

I am looking to expand my local backpacking network so if you live in NorCal and are interested, please join the group and check the event on the event tab for more detailed information.

Thank you!

PS Please don’t give me shit about Facebook its one of the best free organizing platforms I’ve found as someone who organizes many events

Hello, we will be hiking Southbound (starting in Mattole) please let me know if you'd like to coordinate. Thanks!

Got out to the new Skyline Watershed Ridge Trail that opened in San Mateo County this week, running along Skyline Blvd above Upper Crystal Springs Reservoir. The parking lot and trailhead are right off the intersection of Hwys 35 & 92. You also need to register for a free permit, basically acknowledging that you'll observe best practices while hiking near the drinking water. At this point, the trail is only a 6 mile out and back from the trailhead; there are no connections to Phleger Estate or Purisima Creek Redwoods, though a connection to the latter is planned. There are two pit restrooms along the trail at the ~2.5 and 5 mile marks. The trail is open to hikers, runners, cyclists and equestrians.

I hiked out to the first restroom and back, a little less than 5 miles total with a climb of ~500 ft. The trail is very exposed so be prepared with sufficient sun protection and water (no water available along the trail). The views of the reservoirs and SF Bay are quite nice! It'll be even better once there's a connection to Purisima, allowing one to start from either end of the trail.

seems to me the only options to doing impassable zones during my permit is waking up at 5am to hike in the dark (which i feel is dangerous) or waiting the entire day and hiking before dinner?

Have the ticks been bad this year? We'll be camping and hiking, so just looking to find out if we should plan for extra precautions beyond our usual picaridin lotion (maybe some permethrin spray for our gear and clothes?) Some of the areas we hiked this summer were overrun with ticks, so just hoping for some insight from anyone who's been to sly park recently. Thanks!

Hello everyone,
Going out solo in desolation wilderness for 3 days/2 nights in a couple weeks. I will be starting out from echo lake trailhead and spending the first night at lake of the woods. (Timing/permit constraints made this the best fit for the first night, I think)

Any suggestions on where to go the second day? Experienced and would love to get some great hiking in. I’m open to either hiking and setting up camp somewhere else or doing some day hiking and staying at lake of the woods again for the second night

Thanks for any suggestions!

Howdy folks. I am going to backpack the Lost Coast relatively soon and am finalizing my pack list. I think I have everything dialing but some feedback would be helpful. My plan according to the tide information for my trip dates is to do the hike in 3 days, hiking about 8 miles per day.

The main thing I'm unsure about is water. I am planning to bring 1 liter, with a second 1 liter water bottle to fill with dirty water and attach to my filter so I don't need to bring a CNOC bag. I'm aware of the number of creeks on the trail and that water should never be more than two miles off but I just don't know if 1 liter is going to be sufficient. Or if I'm forgetting anything huge.

My pack list: https://lighterpack.com/r/kh8g6x