Upper Salmon Lake Trail to Salmon Lake Lodge

Upper Salmon Lake is a reservoir in the Lakes Basin Recreation Area in Sierra County, California. This is a scenic place for picnicking, swimming, kayaking, boating and fishing. Hiking around the lake gets tricky at the south side, but is easy on the north side, where the Upper Salmon Lake Trail connects Salmon Lake Road with the Salmon Lake Lodge. In the beginning, the trail takes you well above the lake. To the left of the rock wall in the picture, the trail goes down to lake level and, after passing the Lodge area, continues on to the small Horse Lake and to Deer Lake, from where further trails connect with the Pacific Crest Trail and the Packer Lake Lodge area.

Getting there
From the Bassetts Station (between Sierra City and Sattley) on Hwy 49 along the North Fork of the Yuba River, take Gold Lake Highway. Go past Packer Lake Road and turn left on Salmon Lake Road. As soon as you can see the reservoir in front and to the left, look out for the Upper Salmon Lake Trailhead on the right side of the road. The hiking distance to the Salmon Lake Lodge area is a little more than one mile and from there to Horse Lake is 1/8 mile. Horse Lake to Deer Lake adds another mile.

Future Rim-to-Reno trail connecting Reno with Mt. Rose Summit and Tahoe Rim Trail

On July 6, 2009, the Reno Gazette-Journal featured a front page article reporting about plans to link Reno with the Mt. Rose Summit and Tahoe Rim Trail (TRT). The Reno-to-Rim or Rim-to-Reno Trail, which either way may be abbreviated as RRT or RtRT, could start at the Hunter Creek Trailhead in northwest Reno. Alternately (or additionally), TRT could be reached from Reno's Ballardini Ranch via a connector trail through Thomas Creek Canyon. In either case, the hiking distance from Reno to the Tahoe Rim Trail over the Mt. Rose or Mt. Houghton Summit will be almost 20 miles. To warm up for the long and steep climb into the Mt. Rose Wilderness, a year-round 10-mile loop trail in the Belli Ranch area (Belli Front Trail System) south of Mogul is also proposed. Comments are accepted until July 26 and can be submitted electronically via email to comments-intermtn-humboldt-toiyabecarson@fs.fed.us as simple message or as file in txt, rtf, or doc format (rim-reno-scoping).
The planned system of trails will not just offer new access to the backcountry, but will shape an interstate trail system, linking Nevada and California and its diverse habitats together for recreational and sustainable human activities.

More information and comment options
Jeff Delong: Trail proposal links Reno, Tahoe areas
kolotv.com: NationalForest Trail would Connect Reno, Tahoe
ktvn.com: National Forest Trail would Connect Reno, Tahoe
TahoeLoco.com: Forest Service has plans for Rim to Reno Trail

Hunter Creek Trailhead currently under construction

The Hunter Creek Trailhead in southwest Reno will eventually be an access point to the Mt. Rose Wilderness. Currently, a dirt road into the area above the Steamboat Ditch is accessible from here. A board at the trailhead construction site, entitled The Ridges at Hunter Creek, informs:

Thank you for your patience and cooperation. The Ridges at Hunter Creek is hard at work constructing your trailhead. We share your enthusiasm for hiking in this beautiful wilderness and have dedicated a permanent trailhead that will serve as access into the Toiyabe National Forest and Steamboat Ditch Trail. Working with Washoe County Commissioner Jim Galloway, Washoe County Parks and Recreation, along with many interested citizen's groups for the past several years, we expect the first phase to be ready for use in the summer of 2008. There will also be a system of trails through the Ridges at Hunter Creek that links the trailhead to Caughlin Ranch so you can either hike or drive to the trailhead. In the meantime, your cooperation with Campbell Construction is appreciated. This will be a busy place with heavy equipment traffic and other hazards that could be dangerous so please avoid this area while the construction is proceeding. You will be pleased with the results.

Whenever the “meantime” will be over, this will be a busy place with hikers and bikers ready for the wilderness.