Killer Sunset at The Sisters near Carson Pass Lake Tahoe to Mount Whitney: Crown Jewel of the Pacific Crest Trail Need a Map? Lost Al near Lost Keys Lake
Hiiking map to Iva Bell Hot Springs.
 
Dicks, and Fontanillis Lakes from Dicks Pass

Reds Meadow Pack Station and Mammoth Lakes
to
Vermilion Valley Resort
Backpacking Map

John Muir Trail & Pacific Crest Trail
Including
Alternative Route
to VVR via Iva Bell Hot Springs

Region Map

30 minute USGS Backpacking Map

Aloha Lake under Pyramid Peak from Dicks Pass

Maps
INDEX
JMT
John Muir
Wilderness

Reds
Meadow

to
Vermilion
Valley

Guide
INDEX
JMT
John Muir
Wilderness

SOUTH

Reds
Meadow

to
Vermilion
Valley

Guide
INDEX
JMT
Alternative
Route

SOUTH

Iva Bell
Hot Springs

over
Goodale Pass
to
VVR

30 min
MAP
NORTH

Donohue Pass
to
Reds
Meadow

30 min
MAP
SOUTH

Vermilion
Valley

to
Muir
Ranch

Miles
and
Elevations

NORTH
JMT-PCT

Tuolumne Meadows
to
Reds
Meadow

Miles
and
Elevations

SOUTH
JMT-PCT

Reds
Meadow

to
VVR

Trail Guide
PAGE

Reds
Meadow

to
Lake
Virginia

7.5 minute
MAPS


Donhue
Pass

to
Reds

 

Reds
to
VVR

Click
RED DOTS
for
Trail Guide Page

Click
BLACK DOTS
for detailed maps

WEATHER

Mammoth Lakes

All
High Sierra
Weather

RESUPPLY

Tuolumne
Meadows

Yosemite
Valley

Reds
Meadow

PERMITS

Inyo
National
Park

Sierra
National
Forest

map information

John Muir Wilderness
South of Reds Meadow

Detailed Map
Reds Meadow to Vermilion Valley

North
JMT-PCT
Donohue Pass
to
Reds Meadow
Click
Black
and
Red
Dots

  South
JMT-PCT
Vermilion Valley
to
Muir Ranch

Reds Meadow South JMT to Vermiliong Valley map.
North: Donohue Pass to Reds Meadow 30 minute Backpacking Map Click
Black
and Red Dots

  South: Vermilion Valley to Muir Ranch


Location

Main Features and Location Information

 

Those squares breaking the USGS maps up into grids are the Universal Transverse Mercator / Military Grid Reference System, otherwise commonly known as UTM.

What's important for our general reference purpose is that each side of a square is 1000 meters, or a Kilometer.

From my point of view that is 1093.6 yards or .62 of a mile.

Diagonal: 1414.22 meters, if my trig is correct.

That converts the diagonal distance into 4,639.8 feet or .88 of a mile.

Map Information Map Symbols

Online and Trail Maps Online Length Conversion

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Mapping, Mileage,
and
National Forest Information

 

 

Map
NORTHWEST
Yosemite, Calif, 1975, 30x60 minute USGS Topographic Map

METRIC

NORTHEAST
Benton Range, Cal-Neva, 1988, 30x60 minute USGS Topographic Map

METRIC

SOUTWEST
Shaver Lake, Cal, 1980, 30x60 minute USGS Topographic Map

METRIC

SOUTHEAST
Bishop, Cal, 1978, 30x60 minute USGS Topographic Map

METRIC

Compass Offset
True North is between 16 and 16.5 degrees West of Magnetic North, depending on if you are further North or South on the above maps

 

scale
1:100 000

Contours
50 meters

Online Length Conversion

Backpacking permitting authority

National Park
Yosemite

Wilderness Area
Yosemite
Physical location
Yosemite
M
m

North: Donohue Pass to Reds Meadow 30 minute Backpacking Map                             South: Vermilion Valley to Muir Ranch

Elevations   More Information

Reds Meadow: feet

 

Alt Route South
Alt Route to VVR via Iva Bell,
Island Crossing:
feet

Alt Route to VVR via Iva Bell,
Goodale Pass:
feet

VVR: feet

 

JMT Standard Route
JMT Tully Hole: feet

JMT Silver Pass: feet

VVR Ferry: feet

Trail Guide, Section:

Trail Guide, Segment:

Google Map:


Map Credit

U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior
The
USGS

USGS MAP LOCATOR

I love the USGS, as you can see from the Tahoe to Whitney Maps.

I also dig the NWS, as you can see from our Weather Page.

We gotta know the terrain under our feet, and the weather in the sky. These are the basics. In that spirit, let's set you up with the USGS maps sufficient to plan and execute your High Sierra Backpacking Trip with a set of custom backpacking maps.

In fact, we can use the USGS to set us up to plan and hike anywhere in the US of A.

Move the Map to the Sierras. Or your favorite backpacking spot in the US of A. Navigate the map to the area you wish to locate maps. Click "Mark Point" in the options to see the USGS map grid of the various scaled maps.

Select the maps that will help you plan and execute your backpacking trip, set up a directory on your computer named for the trip or location of the maps, and begin downloading those suckers.

Open your USGS maps with Adobe Reader.

But first, we have to "unzip" the maps.

I use 7zip.

Custom Maps
Once we get the maps downloaded, unzipped, and running on Adobe Reader we can cut and paste the pieces of the maps we need together, and mark our selected hiking routes to create our own customized maps using MS Paint, Photoshop, or some other image software.

Printing
If we want to print up our maps for field use we need some printer technology and knowledge. I understand Inkjet printers, special inks, and the proper paper are necessary to print up servicable maps.

At least one reader of Tahoe to Whitney has copied and printed out Tahoe to Whitney Maps with success.

Map Information Map Symbols

Online and Trail Maps

That is totally cool for personal and non-profit uses.

Trailhead
Comments
Contact
Alex Wierbinski

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Lake Tahoe to Mount Whitney

Your guide to backpacking the Sierra Crest, including the Tahoe to Yosemite, Pacific Crest, and John Muir Trails
© Lake Tahoe to Mount Whitney: Crown Jewel of the Pacific Crest Trail