Sierra Nevada Byways: 50 Backcountry Drives For The Whole Family (Paperback)

~ (Author) "Anyone who has waited in line for a wilderness backpacking permit, a ski lift or a crack at climbing Mt. Whitney knows the appeal of..." (more)
Key Phrases: Toiyabe National Forest, Inyo National Forest, Sequoia National Forest (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Includes: Tahoe Basin, Mammoth Lakes and Owens Valley With this book you can visit ghost towns north of Lake Tahoe, see the Mono Lake moonscape, or marvel at the transition from the desert floor of Owens Valley to Sierra Nevada glaciers-all in a single day's travel!

About the Author

Adventure-driving expert Tony Huegel, who grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, has a lifelong history of exploring far off the beaten path. Before embarking on extensive travels through the wildlands of the American West for his acclaimed Backcountry Byways guidebook series, Tony hitchhiked and road freight trains cross-country several times, thumbed his way to Alaska, drove a 1965 VW bug to Guatemala in the midst of its civil war, and "autostopped" his way alone across North Africa and Europe. He paused just long enough to earn a bachelor's degree in journalism at the University of California, Berkeley. Since then he's been a full-time news reporter, photographer, editor, author and magazine freelancer. --This text refers to the Spiral-bound edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 152 pages
• Publisher: Wilderness Press; 2 edition (May 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 089997273X
• ISBN-13: 978-0899972732
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 4.8 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #974,237 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars This book should be in every SUV glovebox!, June 6, 2001

By A Customer

As an owner who actually goes off-highway, I often get asked by people at work who've bought a shiny new Jeep or 4Runner, where they can go exploring. And I always recommend this series of books. The Sierra have hundreds (thousands?) of miles of legal dirtroads and off-highway routes, and this book highlights about 50 of them, from North of Tahoe to near Death Valley. Each route has a detailed description and map. The routes range from easy drives to more challenging routes, but author Huegel assures us that all are feasible in almost any stock SUV without requiring special equipment or skills. The emphasis is on the scenery, the natural and human history, and family enjoyment, not crawling over rocks or slogging through mud bogs.

In addition to route descriptions, there's a good introduction to off-highway driving techniques and trip planning. Photos are adequate, providing a flavor of many of the trips.

If you have the previous edition, you'll miss the spiral binding but appreciate almost 20 new routes. By the way, I'd recommend this book to dual-sport motorcyclists and even mountain bikers.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Don't Drive That SUV to Work! Take Your Adventures Off-Road., May 22, 2001

By	Sandy G. (Sunnyvale, CA USA) - See all my reviews

"Sierra Nevada Byways" is the 3rd book by Tony Heugel that I've purchased since acquiring a Subaru Forester (not a heavy duty off-road monster, but more than capable of many pavement-free adventures). This is a great series!

Content (4 stars): Excellent for beginners like me. I've been on one of these trips already (Jawbone to Lake Isabella), and found the directions to be accurate and concise (so the navigator has time to enjoy the scenery!). A majority of the tours in this book are rated "Easy", making this a good choice for the first-time off-roader. I also appreciate that each tour is captured in two pages: one page of text (rating, directions, local points of interest) next to the map on the facing page. Sometimes I wish there was a little more information (landmarks, more detail on map), but there's usually enough to get you through.

Format (2 stars): Previous releases by Tony Heugel were spiral-bound, with an extra flap to hold your place. Those features are sorely missed in this paperback version. I think I'd rather have taken my chances with the older easier-to-use but not up-to-date release of this book. Doesn't look like much of the content has changed significantly, anyway. The older versions had color on the maps, too, making them easier to read.

Overall: Flipping through this book makes me want to hit the road on another adventure! Probably not the best choice for the hard-core 4-wheeler, but an excellent book for the mild-mannered yet adventurous sort who'd like to get away for a while.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars rebuttle, July 21, 2004

By	K. Pace (sacramento, ca) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

To the customer who was "very disappointed in this book" it states plainly in the first few pages that it is not a difinitve guide to backroading and in fact recommends that you buy supplimentary maps and check with local (listed in the book also) resources for current road conditions as weather and local use may have altered the reliablility of the original map. Gentle readers, please realize that prefaces and warning pages are written for a reason and take advantage of the information provided in these often overlooked gems. This book is wonderful!