What follows is a select, annotated bibliography of practical, informative and inspirational readings devoted to the California section of the Pacific Crest Trail.

The PCT in Southern California

Sierra Nevada: The Golden Barrier
By Dorothy and Joseph Dowdell
Indianapolis: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, 1968.

Explains the role that the Sierra Nevada has played in the social and economic history of California and the American West, from earliest times to the 20th Century.

A History of the Sierra Nevada
By Francis P. Farquhar
Berkley: University of California Press 1966.

An especially well written and beautifully illustrated story of the Sierra Nevada from the time of early Spanish exploration to the early 20th Century. The author quotes from the diaries of explorers, travelers, miners and settlers to make the historical events"come alive." Of special interest to hikers are the stories of the early exploration of the high peaks and the creation of the National Parks.

The Sierra Nevada: A Mountain Journey
By Tim Palmer
Washington, D.C. Island Press, 1988.

The story of one person's journey, by foot, boat and vehicle through the Sierra Nevada. Offers insight into local culture and into the political, economic and most especially the environmental issues that face the region.

A Treasury of the Sierra Nevada
By Robert Leonard Reid Ed.
Berkeley, California: Wilderness Press, 1983.

A collection of excerpts from the writings of people important in the history of the Sierra Nevada mountain range. Reid provides extracts from the writings of explorers, immigrants, early tourists, naturalists, mountaineers and conservationists.

Natural History

California Landscape: Origin and Evolution
By Mary Hill
Berkeley: University of California Press, 1984.

This is a "must read" book for any Pacific Crest Trail hiker who wants to understand what he/she is looking at. Hill does a fine job of explaining the geological processes which have shaped California, especially explaining the roles of glaciers and volcanoes in forming the Sierra Nevada, Cascade and Klamath Ranges.

The California Deserts
By Edmund C Jaeger
Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1965.

Most hikers will be unfamiliar with the landscape and ecosystems of the almost 700 miles of PCT in Southern California. Jaeger clearly and simply explains how the terrain was formed and provides a good orientation to its plant and animal communities.

Assembling California
By John McPhee
New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1995.

Well-known environmental writer and activist John McPhee discusses what he has learned about the unique geological origins of California as a result of 15 years of scattered field trips across the state. The uniqueness of the California landscape and the challenges it presents to human habitation are ably blended.

Nature Writings
By John Muir
New York: The Library of America, 1997.

Editor William Cronin has selected the best of Muir's penetrating insights about nature, geology, the origins and beauty of the Sierra. A must-read for lovers of the Range of Light.