High Sierra Topix

Another consideration is looking at areas outside designated Wilderness and National Parks. There are very remote and relatively undisturbed areas that are not in Wilderness.
People assume non-Wilderness NF lands are all logged over. Not true. Many of these areas have never been logged, or if they have was over 50 years ago and the road system is gone.

I pore over old historical maps looking for trails that are gone now. Many times a road was built bypassing the trail and eliminated the trail need. A few times I found old trails that lead to an off-trail lake or follow a stream. Those are worth exploring. Someone thought it was worthy of a trail at some point in the past, that reason may still exist. I will search the internet for old trip reports. If I find a lot of writeups I keep looking for other spots. If I find few or no trip reports, I may have a winner!

I found a waterfall on google earth that is not on any maps. Not even visible as a waterfall on the most recent imagery. It only showed up when I looked at old imagery, rotated the photo and changed the view angle. Otherwise the shadows obscure it. Rough estimate 50-60 feet high. It is about a 1/3 mile off an old seldom used and unmaintained trail. When I searched for any on-line references I found exactly one writeup about 15 years old -- and that was a one-sentence mention of the waterfall on a trip report for the trail hike. Time to plan a trip!

Not everyone WANTS to get away from crowds. And what is a "crowd" to someone may be a nice little group to another. I am not one to judge other's intentions. Those of us who want solitude already know how to do it. If my goal is a specific location for scenery, I am willing to put up with crowds. I rarely plan my route specifically for solitude. I do like off-trail travel, and solitude simply is an added bonus.

The PCT hikers arrive in early season "bubbles" but are largely gone by mid-July. I do have a few small bones to pick with PCT hikers; in reality they seem to feel they have a different set of rules than the rest of us. There are abundant established campsites adjacent to the PCT that are used by PCT hikers although technically "illegal". They seem to like to bunch up at trailside campsites. I realize they have long daily miles to do, but do not see why they cannot just find legal sites.

I would like to see a few "no-camping" zones established along the PCT and JMT. Part of the problem is that many follow camping information with PCT or JMT guidebooks and GPS data logistics that result in quite bunched up camping. I am always amazed that most PCT hikers really have no idea where they are relative to the general area. Their information is very tunnel vision right along the trail.

I am one who says you really dont have to worry about crowds if you just stay off the JMT for the Sierras.
I always tell people.. just go one mile east, or one mile west of the JMT and you won't see many people..sometimes NONE at all.
My record is 8 days without seeing a person. I just saw 3 people in 10 days of backpacking a couple of weeks ago.
Of course, you have to deal with the trailhead. Yes if you go over Bishop or kearsarge passes, you will see lots of people. But they are gateways to seldom visited country. My rule of thumb I tell people.. in seki...go west of the JMT. In John Muir Wilderness, go east of the JMT. You won't see very many people.

after being in California for ten years, I must say in my experience that the vast majority of hikes available out there are fairly secluded. National Forest, BLM land, and designated wilderness are the things to check into. National Parks, not so much, but even then I have found everything except Joshua Tree and Yosemite relatively less crowded.

it just feels like people mob the same places over and over and leave most others alone. there is common sense, too, when planning. for instance, I am not going near Lake Tahoe this July 4th weekend!

as for posting trip reports, especially on these forums, I'd argue it does not impact much of anything. unless you are an influencer on instagram, the impact of trip reports will be minimal.

Obsidianpumice wrote: ↑Fri Jul 01, 2022 11:31 am after being in California for ten years, I must say in my experience that the vast majority of hikes available out there are fairly secluded. National Forest, BLM land, and designated wilderness are the things to check into. National Parks, not so much, but even then I have found everything except Joshua Tree and Yosemite relatively less crowded.

it just feels like people mob the same places over and over and leave most others alone. there is common sense, too, when planning. for instance, I am not going near Lake Tahoe this July 4th weekend!...

Agree. We are retired and no longer have to plan trips around a work schedule. We cocoon at home for the 4th weekend. There are plenty of other locations and other days to escape the crowds.