Carson Pass

Carson Pass sits at 2,637 meters in California's Sierra Nevada mountains, linking northern and southern regions through State Route 88. This mountain corridor opens to vast wilderness areas with trails, alpine lakes, and high-elevation meadows.

During California's Gold Rush in the 1800s, thousands of settlers crossed this pass while heading to mining regions and new settlements. This movement established it as a major route through the mountains.

Native American groups used this mountain corridor for trade between the eastern and western slopes of the Sierra Nevada long before it became a settler route. You can sense this history in the landscape and trail networks that follow the same paths people traveled centuries ago.

A visitor station at the pass offers maps, guides, and current condition reports for hiking the Pacific Crest Trail and surrounding routes. Snow closes the road during winter months, so plan visits for late spring through early fall.

Winter snow transforms this mountain corridor into a cross-country skiing destination, with marked trails winding through forests and high meadows. The season creates a completely different landscape from summer hiking routes.