California trails · Pacific Crest Trl
Pacific Crest Trl
A 32.5-mile point-to-point in California, with 2,218 ft of climbing. Reaches Castle Pass and other lake/pass/summit destinations. Managed by CA State Parks.
Elevation profile
The climbing is spread fairly evenly along the route. It gives back about 4,445 ft along the way, so it rolls rather than climbing steadily.
3-D terrain
USGS 3DEP ELEVATION × ESRI WORLD IMAGERY · VERTICAL ×1.5
Reaches
- Castle Pass (pass)
- Mount Stephens (summit)
- George R. Stewart Peak (summit)
- Euer Saddle (pass)
- Flora Lake (lake)
- West Lakes (lake)
Heads up
Getting there
Pacific Crest Trl access — parking nearby. 39.31677, -120.32604 · directions
Daylight at the trailhead
On August 31, 2026 — the day this page was generated — first light reaches this trailhead at 6:01 a.m., the sun rises at 6:28 a.m. and sets at 7:33 p.m., and the last usable light fades about 8:01 p.m. (PDT) — 13 h 05 min of daylight. At about 2.7 mph plus 30 minutes per 1,000 feet of climbing, the 32.5-mile route works out to roughly 13 h 09 min of walking — more than a single day of daylight here, so plan it as an overnight or hike it in sections.
Loop options
- Pacific Crest Trl + NST - Pacific Crest — 4.3 mi loop, 814 ft gain
- NST - Pacific Crest + Pacific Crest Trl — 10.4 mi loop, 2,038 ft gain
- Pacific Crest Trl + NST - Pacific Crest — 1.9 mi loop, 261 ft gain
Nearby trails
- NST - Pacific Crest — 20.2 mi
- Tahoe Yosemite Trail — 22.1 mi