Cerro Este & Little Yosemite Loop (Sunol Regional Wilderness, CA)

Cerro Este Overlook, Sunol Regional Wilderness, December 2021 Spanning 6,859 acres of the northern Diablo Range, Sunol Regional Wilderness is a hiker’s paradise close to home in the East Bay, wedged between the massif of Mission Peak (2,517’) to the west and Ohlone Wilderness and Rose Peak (3,817’) to the east. This terrific loop hike …

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Scorpion Canyon Loop Trail (Channel Islands National Park, CA)

Scorpion Canyon Loop Trail, Channel Islands National Park, September 2021 Scorpion Canyon is a usually dry drainage that cuts through the northeastern section of Santa Cruz Island, the largest island in California’s Channel Islands National Park. This moderate-to-strenuous hike follows the lower reaches of the canyon before rising steeply to a landscape of high chapparal …

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Top 10 Hikes in 2021

Evolution Lake, John Muir Trail, Kings Canyon National Park, August 2021 The past year brought new milestones for Live and Let Hike, with the Covid-era bump in traffic continuing for a second year. In fact, annual viewership rose by more than 50 percent compared to 2020 and more than 100 percent relative to 2019—Live and …

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John Muir Trail Northbound Section 4 – Red’s Meadow to Happy Isles (Ansel Adams Wilderness & Yosemite National Park, CA)

Garnet Lake, John Muir Trail, Ansel Adams Wilderness, August 2021 Note: This is the fifth in a series of five posts describing the John Muir Trail (JMT), a scintillating, multi-week hike through California’s Sierra Nevada that extends more than 200 miles from Yosemite National Park in the north to Mount Whitney and Sequoia National Park …

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John Muir Trail Northbound Section 3 – Muir Trail Ranch to Red’s Meadow (John Muir Wilderness, CA)

Marie Lake, John Muir Trail, John Muir Wilderness, August 2021 Note: This is the fourth in a series of five posts describing the John Muir Trail (JMT), a scintillating, multi-week hike through California’s Sierra Nevada that extends more than 200 miles from Yosemite National Park in the north to Mount Whitney and Sequoia National Park …

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John Muir Trail Northbound Section 2 – Onion Valley to Muir Trail Ranch (Kings Canyon National Park, CA)

John Muir Trail above Woods Creek Junction, Kings Canyon National Park, August 2021 Note: This is the third in a series of five posts describing the John Muir Trail (JMT), a scintillating, multi-week hike through California’s Sierra Nevada that extends more than 200 miles from Yosemite National Park in the north to Mount Whitney and …

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John Muir Trail Northbound Section 1 – Horseshoe Meadow to Onion Valley (Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks, CA)

John Muir Trail above Lower Vidette Meadow, Kings Canyon National Park, August 2021 Note: This is the second in a series of five posts describing the John Muir Trail (JMT), a scintillating, multi-week hike through California’s Sierra Nevada that extends more than 200 miles from Yosemite National Park in the north to Mount Whitney and …

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Deadman Canyon Loop (Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks, CA)

Deadman Canyon, Kings Canyon National Park, June 2021 Becoming increasingly well-known as a lesser-traveled alternative to the popular John Muir Trail – Pacific Crest Trail corridor, the roughly 50- to 60-mile backpacking circuit known as the Deadman Canyon Loop (a.k.a. Elizabeth Pass Loop) traverses spectacular terrain spanning both Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks in …

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Upper Yosemite Falls Trail (Yosemite National Park, CA)

Upper Yosemite Falls Trail, Yosemite National Park, April 2021 At 2,425 feet, Yosemite Falls is the tallest waterfall in North America* and an iconic destination in California’s Yosemite National Park. The entire height from base to crest can be tackled via the very strenuous Upper Yosemite Falls Trail, one of the most challenging day hikes …

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Mount Diablo via Macedo Ranch (Mount Diablo State Park, CA)

Mother's Trail, Mount Diablo State Park, March 2021 Rising more than 3,000 feet above the valley floor, Mount Diablo (3,849’) is perhaps the most iconic peak in the East Bay, a behemoth for which the broader Diablo Range—which extends around 200 miles south into central California—is named. Most visitors reach the peak by way of …

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