Main Features: From Echo Summit the Tahoe to Yosemite and Pacific Crest Trails share the same route heading South thorough the Meiss Country Roadless Area to the Carson Gap. The Meyers-Christmas Valley-Big Meadow trail junction at Meiss Cabin is where the Tahoe Rim Hiker turns North. This junction is the Tahoe Rim Trail's Southernmost point. This junction also leads down to the Meyers Trailhead shown on the Eastern side of the map.

Just below the top of this map the Tahoe to Yosemite trail splits from the Pacific Crest Trail at the Carson Gap. See the Carson Pass Region Map for a detailed look at this trail junction and your options for hiking South on either the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail or the Pacific Crest Trail through the Carson Pass Management Area.

The center to bottom of this topo map focuses upon the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail from Round Top Lake to the end of this section of trail at Lake Alpine on Highway 4.

You will notice some minor innacuries in the trail route on this map that I have not bothered to correct. I have corrected the outdated and changed section of the route on the detailed maps and noted these changes on the trail guide pages.

The reason I did not alter this topo hiking map is this map presents a broad overall context of the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail in relation to the trans-Sierra Highways and potential side trails and nearby trailheads from which you can carve short and medium distance backpacking trips into these remote terrains.

Also note that the accumulation of these route alterations over time is the cause of mileage inaccuries on the trail posts and in the trail guides. The routes are being constantly rerouted by man and nature, leaving mileage figures inaccurate.

As I've hiked these trails for decades I've become somewhat familiar with the slow changes in the routes compared to the static depictions in the USGS topo maps. I've measured the miles for this guide using the figures given by trail signs compared with measurments of the modified routes rather than the old trail routes.

The miles I read out will be adjusted with changes in the trail and input from you.

North Sierra Trans-Sierra Highways

LAKE TAHOE TRAILHEADS

HIGHWAY CORRIDORS

ROAD MAP

Sonora Pass (PCT) and Clarks Fork Road and Saint Marys Pass (TYT)

This is a road map for highway access to the trailheads on the South end of the trail map above.

Centered On
Sierra Crest Backpacking Trailhead Access

Miles and Elevations

South Miles

Echo Summit to the Carson Gap: 10.61 miles

Echo Summit to Carson Pass Miles and Elevations

North Miles

Echo Summit to the PCT-TY trail Junction at Middle Velma Lake: 19.21 miles

Echo Summit to Meeks Bay Trailhead: 30.71 miles

Meeks Bay to Echo Summit Miles and Elevations

Continuing South from the Round Lake Junction on the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail

Round Top Lake Junction is the new mileage Zero Point

This section of the guide measures mileage South from our exit from Lake Tahoe Basin at the Carson Gap to Lake Alpine.

As there are three routes from the Carson Gap up to the trail junction at Round Top Lake, you either have walked 3.9 miles from the Gap to Round Lake via the footbridge route, 3.4 miles via the Lost Cabin Mine route, or 4.57 miles from the Carson Gap to Round Top via Carson Pass and the Winnemucca Lake trail junction.

To simplify measuring trail mileages further South the Round Top Lake trail junction where these 3 routes all converge is the new zero-point for measuring distances to the Bee Gulch Trailhead located on Highway 4 at the East side of Lake Alpine.

Round Top Lake Junction      9360                      0

                                              -1196                      2.3

Fourth of July Lake               8164                     2.3

                                               -724                      1.31

Summit City Creek Junction   7440                  3.61

                                              ***                    ***

Boy Scout Camp                        ***                    ***              

(Summit City Junction to Horse Canyon)                                                    -560                        2.43

Horse Canyon                        6880                    6.04

                                           -160                            .8

Telephone Gulch                    6720                    6.84

                                                                                                                 ***                      ***

Rock Zone                                ***                      ***   

(Telephone Gulch to Upper Ford)                                                             -160                    1.71

Upper Ford                              6560                  8.55

                                                  -440                    1.32

Water/Nice campsite             6120                 9.87

                                              ***                     ***

Water                                    ***                     ***            

(Campsite to Lower Ford)       -580                     1.19

Lower Ford Summit City      5540                  11.06

Ducked path to Forest           ***                       ***  

(Lower ford to forest)                  -20                    .32

Unblazed forest                      5520                11.38

                                                    -40                    .71

Forest to Munson jnct             5480                 12.09

                                              +160                       .47

Munson Meadow Junction     5640                  12.56

                                                 -360                      .57

Camp Irene                            5280                 13.13

                                             +3440                   5.24

top of Mt Reba                       8720                 18.37

                                                -280                      .87

Bee Gulch Junction                8440                 19.24

                                               -2254                    1.4

Trail Jnct above Lodge          6186                20.64

                                                1134                     .51

Hwy 4 Bee Gulch Trailhead   7320                 21.15

                                                 +40                      .34

Al's hidden Camp                    7360                 21.49

Map Name: Placerville Calif, 1976, 30  minute USGS Topographic

Map: Smith Valley, 1985, 30  minute

Map: Bridgeport, 1985, 30  minute

Map: San Andres, 1993, 30  minute

The order of maps rotates clockwise from the upper left.

Compass Offset: Magnetic North is 17 degrees East of True North

scale: 1:100 000

Contours: 50 meters

Map Coverage

Echo Summit to Mount Reba on TYT

North Side Backpacking Permitting Authority

Echo Summit to Carson Gap

National Forest: Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit

TW information: Meiss Country Roadless Area

Fed information: Meiss Country Roadless Area

South Side Backpacking Permitting Authority

Carson Gap & Carson Pass around Round Top

National Forest: El Dorado National Forest

TW information : Carson Pass Management Area

Fed information: Carson Pass Management Area

South of Round Top to Mount Reba

National Forest: El Dorado National Forest

TW information : Mokelumne Wilderness

Fed information: Mokelumne Wilderness

Physical location

The Meiss Roadless Area lays Between Highway 50 to the North, Highway 89 to the East, and Highway 88 to the South.

The Tahoe to Yosemite Route crosses the Mokelumne Wilderness through the Western flank of the Sierra Nevada between Highway 88 to the North and Highway 4 to the South.

Carson Pass

Resources on the Federal Websites

Crossing Highway 88 South puts you into the Carson Pass Management Area.

South on the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail

Heading South of the Carson Pass on the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail puts you into the Western section of the Mokelumne Wilderness, which is administered by the El Dorado National Forest

South on the Pacific Crest Trail

Heading South of the Carson Pass on the PCT puts you in the Mokelumne Wilderness administered by the Toiyabe National Forest.

North of this Topo Map: Desolation Wilderness

Lake Tahoe: 6225 feet

Echo Summit : 7377 feet

Carson Gap : 8800 feet

Round Top Lake: 9360 feet

Camp Irene: 5280 feet

Mount Reba: 8720 feet

Lake Alpine: 7303 feet

Trail Guide Section: Lake Tahoe to Highway 4

Miles: Echo Summit to Carson Pass

Google Trailhead Road Maps

Echo Summit

Carson Pass

Highway 4

Map Credit

Free USGS Topo Hiking Maps

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

I love these folks.

USGS MAP LOCATOR

Move the Map to the Sierras. Select size of Maps you wish to locate. Click "Mark Point" on map to see the USGS map grid of the selected map scale.

Set up folders to download these bad boys into, then fire them up in Adobe Reader.

USGS Topographic Maps

Map Information

Map Symbols