Base Camp Reno: 101 Hikes from Sage to Snow

by Christopher Barile, Elizabeth Barile

Overview

Reno: A Base Camp for All Seasons
Ideally positioned between the spectacular peaks and lakes of California’s Sierra Nevadas and the vast and varied Great Basin of Nevada, Reno is an unparalleled hub for exploring the natural beauty and grandeur this region offers. The area’s four-season climate combined with year-round sun guarantees that every day can be a great day to go exploring.

Discover the dramatic scenery and diverse terrain of ten distinct geographical regions with 101 hikes—all within no more than an hour’s drive from downtown Reno. Enjoy a trail through snowbanks or amble along a sandy path. Traverse sage-covered hillsides or walk through meadows of wildflowers. Stroll along peaceful creeks or ascend to craggy cliffs and mountaintops. With Christopher and Elizabeth Barile as your guides and Reno as your base camp, you’ll find your perfect adventure, whether you have a few hours to spend or time for an all-day trek.

History, geology, flora, and fauna for each hike

Best hikes for each season, and where to enjoy spring wildflowers, fall foliage, and more

Ratings for trail conditions, difficulty, and suitability for children

Detailed driving directions to trailheads and info about parking

Regional maps showing all trailheads in each chapter; route and elevation map for each hike

Best hikes for kids, teens, and adults with limited ability

Elevation gains, mileage, average hiking times, and even calculated caloric burn!

Hikes by interest: waterfalls, rock scrambling, bird watching, petroglyphs, wild horses, and many more

How to prepare & what to take

101 great hikes to choose from!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781945501586
Publisher:	Imbrifex Books
Publication date:	04/05/2022
Series:	Base Camp , #3
Pages:	376
Sales rank:	659,397
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.00(d)
Age Range:	15 - 18 Years

About the Author

Christopher (PhD) and Elizabeth (MSc.) Barile have hiked over 200 trails in Nevada and California while pregnant or carrying their two young children on their backs. They are alumni of Stanford Universityand the Universityof Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Chris is currently a chemistry professor at the Universityof Nevada, Reno. They live in the beautiful city of Reno and have hiked over a thousand miles here. Although they have published dozens of scientific papers, this work is their first book.

Table of Contents

Before You Hit the Trail 11

The Northeastern Sierra Nevadas 39

1 Frenchman Lake 42

2 Adams Peak 44

3 Lakes Basin 48

4 Beckwourth Pass Loop 53

5 Badenough Waterfalls 55

6 Babbitt Fire Tower 58

7 Sardine Peak 61

8 Stampede Overlook 64

9 Little Truckee River 67

10 Verdi Fire Tower 70

11 Boca Ridge 73

12 Truckee River Canyon 75

Petersen Mountains 77

13 Red Rock Cliffs 80

14 Sand Hills 83

15 Petersen Springs 85

16 Little Petersen 90

17 Goldstone Loop 93

18 Cold Springs 95

19 Silver Knolls 98

The North Valleys 101

20 Dogskin Mountain 104

21 Moon Rocks 107

22 Warm Springs Mountain 110

23 Freds Mountain 112

24 Hungry Valley 114

25 Hungry Ridge Loop 117

26 Granite Hills 120

27 Swan Lake 122

28 Spanish Benchmark 124

The Pah Rah Range 127

29 Pyramid Lake 130

30 Tule Peak 133

31 Incandescent Rocks 137

32 Seagull Point 140

33 Virginia Peak 142

34 Sugarloaf 145

35 Griffith Canyon Petroglyphs 148

36 Spanish Springs Peak 152

37 Olinghouse 155

38 Airway Loop 158

Truckee Meadows 161

39 Sun Valley Park 164

40 Peavine Peak 167

41 Keystone Canyon 171

42 Evans Canyon 174

43 Dog Valley 178

44 West Peavine 182

45 Oxbow Park 186

46 Steamboat Ditch 190

47 Hunter Creek Falls 193

48 Rattlesnake 196

49 Huffaker Hills 198

50 Steamboat Hills 200

Donner Pass 203

51 Sierra Buttes 206

52 Webber Lake 209

53 Webber Falls 212

54 Mount Lola 216

55 Sagehen Creek 220

56 Castle Peak 223

57 Summit Lake 226

58 Alder Creek 229

59 Boca Hill 231

60 Mount Judah and Donner Peak 233

61 Coldstream Canyon 236

62 Martis Creek Lake and Lake Ella 238

63 Five Lakes 241

North Lake Tahoe 245

64 Martis Peak 248

65 Kings Beach Tahoe Rim Trail 250

66 Incline Flume Trail 253

67 Stateline Point 256

68 Sand Harbor 259

69 Chimney Beach 262

70 Marlette Lake 264

The Carson Range 267

71 Upper Thomas Creek 270

72 Thomas and Whites Creeks Loop 273

73 Church's Pond 276

74 Brown's Creek 279

75 Mount Rose 282

76 Mount Houghton and Relay Peak 286

77 Tamarack Lake 290

78 Tamarack Peak 292

79 Incline Peak 294

80 Tahoe Meadows 297

81 Chickadee Ridge 300

82 Ophir Creek 302

83 Genoa Loop 305

The Virginia Range 309

84 Chalk Bluff 312

85 Hidden Valley Peak 314

86 Hidden Valley Canyon 317

87 Lagomarsino Petroglyphs 319

88 Louse Benchmark 323

89 Geiger Grade 326

90 Mount Davidson and Mount Bullion 328

91 Washoe Lake 332

92 Mount Scott 335

93 Basalt Hill 337

Carson City and Beyond 339

94 Patua Hot Springs 342

95 Grimes Point 344

96 Rocky Peak 347

97 Emma Peak 350

98 Fort Churchill 353

99 Kings Canyon Falls 355

100 Prison Hill 358

101 Bently Heritage Trail 360

Acknowledgments 363

Appendix A Choose Your Perfect Hike 364

Appendix B Hikes Ordered by Elevation Gain 366

Appendix C Hikes Ordered by Round-Trip Mileage 367

Appendix D Hikes Ordered by Difficulty 369

Index 371

Editorial Reviews

"The authors share their local knowledge of Reno: where to find the rare Dog Valley Ivesia flower, Basque arborglyphs, hidden falls, or seasonal information on when particular flowers and berries bloom. Each described hike contains information about difficulty, elevation, solitude, season, animals, distance, trail type, user type, land ownership, and features. In addition to driving directions, the authors include advice about vehicle accessibility (low/high clearance or 2WD/4WD) and note when digital map directions differ...A solid choice for local collections and for travelers planning to hike in the area."—Rita Baladad, Library Journal



“With routes suitable for the beginner and expert hiker alike, this book should be your starting point for both choosing and planing your adventures around Reno. The incredible photos will make you want to go; the route descriptions and maps will show you how.”—Jeff Pelletier, Team Salomon Canada


“This is the essential guidebook for exploring the great outdoors in the vicinity of Reno.  And as authors Christopher and Elizabeth Barile illustrate, some of these hikes can be a family affair, even with small children.”–Dennis Goza, L’Eau Theque Productions



"Routes of the hikes with precise information about levels of difficulty,elevation gain, trail heads, and so forth, are clearly illustrated. The Bariles catalogue the area’s various ecosystems from high desert to montane forests, its huge variety of flora, fauna and geology, and the human history of the ranchers, miners, and indigenous peoples who live there. And they have done so in a guide that is crisp and cleanly organized, written in highly readable language such that the book is a pleasure to browse." –Michael Vella, Professor Emeritus American Literature, Indiana Universityof Pennsylvania


"What a fun and information-packed hiking guide!  It made us want to go out and try all these intriguing hikes, just minutes from Reno.  The guide’s great variety of hikes and trails will please all hikers, from toddlers to grannies and everyone in-between.  We greatly appreciated the clear directions to trailheads and admired the beautiful photographs which displayed the beauty of this region."—Rose Strickland, author of How Not to be Cowed - Livestock Grazing on the Public Lands: An Owner's Manual and a member of the Public Lands Committee of the Sierra Club


"If like me, you don’t live in the Reno area but are planning a visit, Base Camp Reno: 101 Hikes from Sage to Snow is a must-have resource. The photos are absolutely enticing. Each hike is described with all the information you will need to choose one suited to you and safely get you there and back. There are easy hikes, hikes with great views, hikes in both mountain and desert, hikes shaded or by water, epic or super challenging hikes and all within 35 miles of Reno. —Jaimie Bruzenak, author of Retire to an RV: The Roadtrip to Affordable Retirement,


“Every hike resonates with the authors’ passion for and knowledge of the region, every page carries vivid descriptions that transport the reader into their world. The authors are particularly good on flora. At Mount Lola, look out for “crimson columbines, red paintbrushes, pink shooting starts, orange lilies, yellow monkeyflowers, blue larkspurs, lavender asters and purple lupines.” On Brown’s Creek on Slide Mountain, they invite you to scratch and smell the inner bark and twigs of the Jeffrey pine to enjoy its “delightful citrusy-vanilla odor... Alongside the geography and flora and fauna, the book also touches upon areas such as history, geology, and Native American culture, all contributing to the vivid picture that the Bariles paint of a region they know like the back of each other’s hands.”—Peter Thody, RoadTrip America


"As an avid hiker of multiple trails the Sierra and throughout the Washoe and Carson Valleys, I was inspired and impressed by Elizabeth and Christopher Barile’s book Base Camp Reno: 101 Hikes From Sage to Snow. Their thorough overview of the history, geology, topography, weather, flora, and fauna was a perfect snapshot of the uniquely extreme variety the Reno area has to offer. Each hike has a detailed description that gives the reader enough information to successfully plan and locate it in an easy-to-read and organized fashion. This book is for both the experienced hiker and those looking to go on their first foray onto a trail. I look forward to checking each hike off the list myself! This book is a must-have for any local Reno hikers or someone coming to the area who wants to hit the trail."—Dawn Swinney, dawnswinney.com


“As an avid urban and trail hiker, I was blown away by the level of care and loving detail offered in Base Camp Reno. Christopher and Elizabeth Barile have created a lush manuscript which will be valued by novice hikers and seasoned pros!”—Harry Fagel, author of Street Talk and Undercover

From the Publisher

01/01/2023

A good hiking guide accurately directs readers to the trail, describes it well enough for hikers to know what to expect and plan for, and perhaps relates a few author anecdotes of time spent on specific paths. A better hiking guide, such as this one, also interweaves the author's particular expertise or interests. The Bariles are educators and naturalists, and they pay detailed attention to history, geology, fauna, and particularly flora—wildflowers, plants, and trees. The authors share their local knowledge of Reno: where to find the rare Dog Valley ivesia flower, Basque arborglyphs, hidden falls, or seasonal information on when particular flowers and berries bloom. Each described hike contains information about difficulty, elevation, solitude, season, animals, distance, trail type, user type, land ownership, and features. In addition to driving directions, the authors include advice about vehicle accessibility (low/high clearance or 2WD/4WD) and note when digital map directions differ. Helpful appendixes guide hikers in choosing their adventure by interest, elevation, mileage, and difficulty. VERDICT A solid choice for local collections and for travelers planning to hike in the area.—Rita Baladad

Library Journal