30 minute USGS Backpacking Map of the
Stanislaus and Toiyabe National Forests

Mapology

MAP NOTE
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.

Common Map Symbols

Hiking
The Carson Iceberg Wilderness

Topo Map Planning

The Main Long and Short Backpacking Route Options across and around the Carson Iceberg Wilderness

This topo hiking map depicts the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail as well as the four main trails that connect the TYT to the Pacific Crest Trail through the Carson Iceberg Wilderness. The Carson Iceberg is sandwiched between Highway 4 on its North Side and Highway 108 on the South.

This topo hiking map also depicts most of the Pacific Crest Trail across the Carson Iceberg Wilderness, excepting the 7.02 miles from Wolf Creek Pass to Ebbetts Pass. The complete Ebbetts to Sonora Pass Topo map is in the Pacific Crest Trail section of the trail guide covering the PCT between Ebbetts and Sonora Pass. Trail guide pages will eventually be constructed for the Highland and Boulder Lake connector trails between the TYT and the PCT.

The red dots along the marked trail routes are links to that specific location in the trail guide. Specific mileage and elevation information, as well as pictures and written descriptions of these key sections of the trail are available on the trail guide pages.

The Carson Iceberg Wilderness is set up for Big Loops

Though this trail guide is set up for long trips between Tahoe and Whitney, each of the wilderness areas along the way is full of excellent short and medium backpacking opportunities. This is especially true of the Carson Iceberg Wilderness.

Besides the Highland Creek Trail on the North side of the Carson Iceberg Wilderness and the Boulder Lake Trail on the South side, this topo hiking map shows how the Arnot and Disaster Creek Trails that lay between these two trails also connects the Tahoe to Yosemite and Pacific Crest Trails.

Thus we have four potential backpacking loops of up to 80 miles in length that we can us craft loops of various distance through the Carson Iceberg Wilderness by weaving together sections of the TYT and the PCT using these connector trails. Or, we can hike the PCT and the TYT between Highway 4 and Highway 108 as "trail sections" of 29.44 and 34.64 miles, respectively.

Check out this report on this quick 50 mile loop around the Carson Iceberg using sections of both the TYT and PCT.

Also note the access that the old paved road that follows the Clarks Fork of the Stanislaus River off of Highway 108 offers to the Southern Arnot and Disaster Creek Trailheads. The old paved road splits off of Highway 108 a few miles West of where Kennedy Meadows is located. Both the Arnot and Disaster Creek trails offer access North up to the PCT, which you can then hike South down to the Boulder Lake connector trail which will bring you back to the Clarks Fork of the Stanislaus where you started.

The Northern access to the Arnot and Disaster Creek Trails is through the PGE dirt access road off of Highway 4 to Highland Lakes a few miles West of Ebbetts Pass. Or you can hike South from Ebbetts Pass and access the Southwestern Carson Iceberg by turning Southwest at the Wolf Creek Pass trail junction.

The East Side of the Carson Iceberg Wilderness

Checking the Northeast side of the map above depicts the East Fork of the Carson River from Carson Falls running South to its junction with the Pacific Crest Trail. This trail is marked by black dots with red centers on the topo map, signifying an unmaintained trail.

Trailhead access to this area from the East comes from outside of the Sierra Nevada, from Highway 395. Though the Western Flank of the Sierra Nevada extends and descends for sixty miles from the Sierra Crest to the Valley, the Eastern Flank of the Sierra Crest drops precipitously down to a 5000 foot high desert valley. A series of long valleys bound the Eastern limit of the Sierra Nevada North and South along the whole length of the Eastern High Sierra. Highway 395 runs North and South through these valleys in the shadow of the Eastern Escarpment of the Sierra Nevada from Reno to South of Lone Pine. This is worth driving just to see the Eastern Escarpment of the Sierra.

When you hike Westward into the Sierra Nevada from Highway 395 you are actually entering the Sierra less than 30 miles from the Sierra Crest. On the West side you enter the Sierra Foothills sixty miles from the Sierra Crest. The last time I walked into the Eastern Sierra from Walker was 2010. I don't plan on walking up from Highway 395 up to the 8000 foot trailhead at Corral Valley on Rodriguez Flat, but it happens...

Our Eastern access point to the upper reaches of the East Carson River to reach the PCT is through the Corral Valley Trailhead, located at 8000 feet of elevation at the end of a 6 mile long dirt road off of Highway 395 just North of the town of Walker. Check out this Google Road Map of the Mill Canyon Road junction with Highway 395. The google map is part of an article exploring the Walker to Sonora Pass backpacking route.

Eastern access to the Carson Falls and the loop routes around the Pacific Crest Trail via the remote beauty of the East Carson River are tough hikes with lots of hard miles and climbs. I've hiked South to Tuolumne and North to Tahoe out of here a few times, and this trailhead is on my annual "circuit" of hikes. Though tough, this is a spectacularly beautiful and exceedingly remote part of the Sierra Nevada.

Eastern Carson Iceberg Route Options

Below the Carson Falls (North of the Falls) we see the trail East through Murray Canyon connecting the PCT with the East Carson River. Above the Falls (South of the Falls) we see the PCT and East Carson River connect through Golden Canyon. Both of these trail are difficult climbs ascending the steep wall making up the West side of the East Carson River's canyon.

Continuing South past both of these trail junctions to follow the East Carson River upriver to its unmarked junction with the Pacific Crest Trail is the most difficult route of all. The route up the East Carson River from the Carson Falls to the PCT is an unmaintained route through difficult terrain. This section is physically challenging, will challenge your route-finding skills, and is across a very isolated and lightly traveled route.

Arriving at the trail junction of the East Carson River route and the Pacific Crest Trail puts you 7.97 and 9.83 miles South of the Golden and Murray Canyon trail junctions, respectively, and 8.74 miles North of Sonora Pass. You could turn North to loop back to your Corral Valley Trailhead through either Golden or Murray Canyons, or continue South to Sonora Pass on Highway 108, and hitch-hike back to your Corral Valley Trailhead.

The Carson Iceberg: Difficulty of Access

The difficulty of these Eastern Carson Iceberg trailheads is partially the difficulty of access. Heck, all of the trailheads along the Sierra Crest on Highway 4 and Highway 108 are at the end of long and twisting Sierra roads. Take your travel time to the trailhead into consideration when planning your trips.

Free Car Camping

Both Highway 4 and 108 have many nice high-altitude free car camping spots in the National Forest Lands along or right off of the highway. Sonora Pass has many well established sites both East and West of the Crestline, while most of the car camping sites on Highway 4 are located East of Ebbetts Pass.

Take your time driving up, then set up a nice car campsite and enjoy your first evening acclimating to elevation in leisure.

NEW
Full Carson Iceberg Wilderness Backpacking Map

Tahoe to Yosemite Trail
Topo Map, Miles, Elevations,
and
Permit Information

Mileages
and
Elevations

Meeks Bay to Saint Marys Pass
The Tahoe to Yosemite Trail
from
Highway to Highway to Highway...

Lake Tahoe
to
Saint Marys Pass Trailhead

Meeks Bay to Echo Summit
Highways 89 to 50
30.71 miles

Echo Summit to Carson Pass
Highways 50 to 88
12 miles

Carson Gap to Lake Alpine
Highways 88 to 4
25.31 miles

Subtotal
Meeks Bay to Lake Alpine
68.02 miles

Lake Alpine to Saint Marys Pass
Highways 4 to 108
34.64 miles

Total
Meeks Bay to Saint Marys Pass
102.66 miles

Back to The
Highway 4 to Highway 108
Trail Guide Index

Trail Guide Pages
TRAILHEADS

Ebbetts Pass

Lake Alpine

Sonora Pass

USGS Topo Map
Information

Map Name
USGS Bridgeport Calif, 1985,
30x60 minute Topographic

Compass Offset
Magnetic North is
16 degrees East of True North

scale
1:100 000

Contours
50 meters

Download this
USGS topo hiking map
for free

My Favorite
Carson Iceberg Map
for
Hiking:

Additional Map
2009 Dept of Agriculture
National Forest
Carson Iceberg Wilderness Map

This map is downloadable, and opens
again in crappy Adobe Reader.

The link above is to a pdf map, opening in a new tab...

Those Mountains...

We've an amazing set of peaks in the Carson Iceberg Wilderness running off the West Flank of the Sierra Crest depicted on the maps above.

Let's take a look at them to our North from Saint Marys Pass just before we descend to end our hike across the Carson Iceberg Wilderness.

Trail Guide,
VIEW from Saint Marys Pass

Large Version of image

Large Version of image with labels

Carson-Iceberg Wilderness
BACKPACKING PERMITS

East Flank

National Forest
Toiyabe

 Carson Ranger District
1536 South Carson Street
Carson City, NV 89701

(775) 882-2766

Bridgeport Ranger District
HC 62 Box 1000
Bridgeport, CA 93517

(760) 932-7070

West Flank

National Forest
Stanislaus

Highway 4 Corridor
Backpacking permits for the Northwest flank of the Carson-Iceberg Wilderness, near Lake Alpine along the Highway 4 Corridor, is the

Calavaras Ranger District
5519 Highway 4, P.O. Box 500
Hathaway Pines, CA 95233

(209) 795-1381

(209) 965-3434