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Best Long-Distance Hikes in California

The directory currently contains 54 quality-checked routes matching this guide in California. Their average mapped distance is 146 km and average recorded ascent is 3,354 m (11,004 ft); the longest route in the set is 580 km.

This subset represents 5% of the 1,083 quality-checked routes in California. Its average distance is 146 km, compared with 13.8 km across the full local set. Average recorded ascent is 3,354 m (11,004 ft), versus 464 m (1,522 ft) for all quality-checked routes in the same area.

These routes carry the long-distance tag. Total distance is shown for comparison; stage planning and accommodation require separate research. Within this set, 0 routes (0%) are rated easy, 54 (100%) are rated hard or expert, and 3 (6%) are recorded as loops. Ratings are computed from available distance and elevation data and do not establish current terrain or access.

Data refreshed September 2026

Choose by the details

How do these routes differ?

A closer look at the first 6 routes in this page’s default ordering. These comparisons describe this sample, not the entire destination or a field-tested recommendation.

Shortest mapped distance in this sample

70.3 km

ADT - California - T - Seg 9

Compare the climbing too; shortest does not necessarily mean easiest.

Lowest recorded ascent in this sample

1,539 m

ADT - California - T - Seg 9

6 of 6 have ascent data. Missing measurements are excluded.

Return logistics

0 recorded loops

Check start and finish for every option. An unknown shape does not mean a loop, and a loop does not establish access to its start.

Plan the return journey →

Distances follow stored route lines; ascent and time are estimates. Current access, surface and technical difficulty need separate checks. How to turn a comparison into a shortlist.

Trails

Unconventional view, but it works. Bolinas Lagoon Preserve of Audubon Canyon Ranch, California. The coastal subspecies of Red-winged Blackbird Agelaius phoeniceus californicus , lacks the yellow band of median coverts, so we see only a red
Expert

ADT - California - T - Seg 9

California · United States

Distance
70.3 km
/ 43.7 mi
Elevation gain
1,539 m
Typical duration
18 hr
  • Coastal
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Habronattus ustulatus in habitat, open pebble barren in chamise + redshanks chaparral. Riverside, California, USA
Expert

PCT - California Section B

California · United States

Distance
158 km
/ 98.4 mi
Elevation gain
3,340 m
Typical duration
42 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

PCT - California Section C

California · United States

Distance
207 km
/ 128 mi
Elevation gain
3,624 m
Typical duration
54 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Ski area at Mount Waterman in the San Gabriel Mountains (Los Angeles Count), California.
Expert

PCT - California Section D

California · United States

Distance
176 km
/ 110 mi
Elevation gain
4,010 m
Typical duration
47 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

PCT - California Section G

California · United States

Distance
182 km
/ 113 mi
Elevation gain
5,122 m
Typical duration
50 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Mount Humphreys , in the Sierra Nevada , California , USA
Expert

PCT - California Section H

California · United States

Distance
287 km
/ 178 mi
Elevation gain
7,332 m
Typical duration
79 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

PCT - California Section N

California · United States

Distance
210 km
/ 131 mi
Elevation gain
3,417 m
Typical duration
54 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

PCT - California Section P

California · United States

Distance
157 km
/ 97.5 mi
Elevation gain
3,446 m
Typical duration
42 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

PCT - California Section Q

California · United States

Distance
90.3 km
/ 56.1 mi
Elevation gain
1,262 m
Typical duration
22 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

PCT - California Section R

California · United States

Distance
98.4 km
/ 61.1 mi
Elevation gain
3,142 m
Typical duration
27 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

ADT - California - T - Seg 3

California · United States

Distance
73.6 km
/ 45.7 mi
Elevation gain
2,688 m
Typical duration
21 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Three hand crews – 20 packs as they’re known in their home country – out of Quebec, Canada have been assigned to the North Complex – a lightning-caused fire on the Plumas National Forest in northern California. The professional firefighters
Expert

PCT - California Section M

California · United States

Distance
147 km
/ 91.1 mi
Elevation gain
3,373 m
Typical duration
39 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Looking West over the San Francisco Bay from the University of California.
Expert

ADT - California - T - Seg 8

California · United States

Distance
77.4 km
/ 48.1 mi
Elevation gain
1,020 m
Typical duration
19 hr
  • River
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Lake Cuyamaca, also called Cuyamaca Lake, or Cuyamaca Reservoir, is an artificial lake that was formed in 1888 upon completion of the Cuyamaca Dam. Originally built to supply fresh water to San Diego, California, it is now part of a recreat
Expert

PCT - California Section A

California · United States

Distance
171 km
/ 106 mi
Elevation gain
2,638 m
Typical duration
44 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
A carpet of wildflowers stretches out in front of the Tehachapi Mountains, California
Expert

PCT - California Section E

California · United States

Distance
178 km
/ 110 mi
Elevation gain
3,339 m
Typical duration
46 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Panorama of French Lake, Nevada County, California
Expert

PCT - California Section L

California · United States

Distance
66.1 km
/ 41.1 mi
Elevation gain
1,329 m
Typical duration
17 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Coast to Crest Trail

California · United States

Distance
113 km
/ 70.1 mi
Elevation gain
4,587 m
Typical duration
33 hr
  • Coastal
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

PCT - California Section F

California · United States

Distance
138 km
/ 85.6 mi
Elevation gain
3,116 m
Typical duration
37 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
mountain pride, Penstemon newberryi var. newberryi, California, Sierra Nevada, Pacific Crest Trail, Upper Carson River - Carson Valley watershed, elevation 2367 m (7765 ft). This iconic and most appropriately named species is nearly endemic
Expert

PCT - California Section J

California · United States

Distance
119 km
/ 74.1 mi
Elevation gain
2,326 m
Typical duration
31 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

PCT - California Section I

California · United States

Distance
116 km
/ 72.2 mi
Elevation gain
3,287 m
Typical duration
32 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
California State Route 89
Expert

PCT - California Section K

California · United States

Distance
95.3 km
/ 59.2 mi
Elevation gain
2,322 m
Typical duration
25 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
The Sierra Nevada is a mountain range in the U.S. states of California and Nevada, between the California Central Valley and the Basin and Range Province. The Sierra runs 400 miles (640 km) north-to-south, and is approximately 70 miles (110
Expert

North Lake South Lake Loop

California · United States

Distance
86.8 km
/ 53.9 mi
Elevation gain
2,788 m
Typical duration
24 hr
  • Lake
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Santa Ana River Trail

California · United States

Distance
61.1 km
/ 38.0 mi
Elevation gain
823 m
Typical duration
15 hr
  • River
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

ADT - California - T - Seg 5

California · United States

Distance
87.2 km
/ 54.2 mi
Elevation gain
184 m
Typical duration
20 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Lost Coast Trail

California · United States

Distance
85.2 km
/ 52.9 mi
Elevation gain
1,774 m
Typical duration
22 hr
  • Coastal
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Bascule -type drawbridge across the Sacramento River just west of Isleton, California , built in 1923.
Expert

ADT - California - T - Seg 6

California · United States

Distance
117 km
/ 72.5 mi
Elevation gain
111 m
Typical duration
27 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Big SEKI Loop

California · United States

Distance
251 km
/ 156 mi
Elevation gain
9,009 m
Typical duration
72 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Bigfoot Trail

California · United States

Distance
580 km
/ 361 mi
Elevation gain
13,620 m
Typical duration
158 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

John Muir Trail

California · United States

Distance
336 km
/ 209 mi
Elevation gain
10,195 m
Typical duration
94 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Silver Moccasin Trail (NRT)

California · United States

Distance
95.3 km
/ 59.2 mi
Elevation gain
4,451 m
Typical duration
28 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Theodore Solomons Trail

California · United States

Distance
409 km
/ 254 mi
Elevation gain
10,537 m
Typical duration
112 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Huckleberry Lake, viewed from rock ledge at north end. At 7,900 ft (2,400 m) in Emigrant Wilderness, Sierra Nevada USA.
Expert

Huckleberry Trail

California · United States

Distance
61.2 km
/ 38.0 mi
Elevation gain
1,811 m
Typical duration
16 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Condor Trail Monterey Section

California · United States

Distance
168 km
/ 104 mi
Elevation gain
6,252 m
Typical duration
49 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Marmota flaviventris (yellow-bellied marmot) looking out from a triangular entrance to granite rocks. Photo taken near the High Sierra Trail west of Kaweah Gap, in the Sierra Nevada , Sequoia National Park , California.
Expert

High Sierra Trail

California · United States

Distance
77.4 km
/ 48.1 mi
Elevation gain
2,961 m
Typical duration
22 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
(1 in a 5-picture set) Turn, paddle wheel, turn. You will go back in time as you watch the wheel churn up the beautiful cobalt blue water. Wanna' know a secret? The wheel is not really propelling the boast. It is just for 'atmosphere.'
Expert

Tahoe Rim Trail

California · United States

Distance
270 km
/ 168 mi
Elevation gain
4,808 m
Typical duration
71 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

High Sierra Camp Loop

California · United States

Distance
76.3 km
/ 47.4 mi
Elevation gain
2,125 m
Typical duration
20 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
Expert

Backbone Trail

California · United States

Distance
108 km
/ 67.4 mi
Elevation gain
2,914 m
Typical duration
29 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path
View of California taken during ISS Expedition 8.
Expert

PCT - California Section O

California · United States

Distance
130 km
/ 80.7 mi
Elevation gain
2,606 m
Typical duration
34 hr
  • Mountain
  • Long-distance path

The shortlist, side by side

The ten highest scoring routes on this page, so you can compare effort before opening any of them.

Distance, ascent, walking time and difficulty for the top routes
RouteDistanceAscentTimeDifficultyBest season
ADT - California - T - Seg 9California70.3 km1,539 m18 hrExpertApril to October
PCT - California Section BCalifornia158 km3,340 m42 hrExpertJuly to September
PCT - California Section CCalifornia207 km3,624 m54 hrExpertJuly to September
PCT - California Section DCalifornia176 km4,010 m47 hrExpertJuly to September
PCT - California Section GCalifornia182 km5,122 m50 hrExpertJuly to September
PCT - California Section HCalifornia287 km7,332 m79 hrExpertJuly to September
PCT - California Section NCalifornia210 km3,417 m54 hrExpertJune to October
PCT - California Section PCalifornia157 km3,446 m42 hrExpertJuly to September
PCT - California Section QCalifornia90.3 km1,262 m22 hrExpertJune to October
PCT - California Section RCalifornia98.4 km3,142 m27 hrExpertJune to October

ADT - California - T - Seg 9, PCT - California Section P, PCT - California Section Q currently rank highest in this filtered set according to the directory score. Open an individual route to inspect its mapped line, elevation profile, data source and planning caveats. Check live access, conditions and local rules with an official source before travelling.

Frequently asked questions

Plan with more confidence

All planning articles →

Choosing a route

How to choose a hike beyond the difficulty label

Compare distance, climbing, route shape and missing information to build a shortlist that fits your day.

Read article →

Understanding the map

Read an elevation profile without misreading the climb

Understand total ascent, net height change, profile scale and the section breakdown on each mapped route.

Read article →

Planning your day

Build a hiking time plan with room for your own pace

Separate moving time, climbing allowance and stops, then explore how changing your assumptions changes the plan.

Read article →

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