Lost Sierra Bikepacking Route

This is a 250-mile Bikepacking loop that starts and ends in Truckee, California. The route combines The Tahoe, Sierra and Plumas National Forests and travels to the Northernmost edge of Sierra Nevada and back to the famous town of Truckee just north of Lake Tahoe.

For the optimal experience, the route is best broken up into 5 days at about 60 miles and 6,000k of vert per day and can be done on a larger tire gravel bike or hard tail mountain bike.

The best time of year is mid-summer to late fall, due to snowpack. Check the weather window, it gets hot in places and can be freezing at night.

The route is rugged, remote, challenging and awe-inspiring but very doable logistically with plenty of camping, resupplies and water along the route.

The ~ 100 miles of paved roads is a bit misleading as the majority of the paved roads are remote and feel like forest service roads once you get a few miles from towns. The surfaces vary and can ride much like gravel roads… some have weeds growing up from the yellow lines if there are lines left at all from years of weather and lots of use…

The ~ 150 miles of dirt forest service roads range from smooth to rocky but are not technical by any means. The rockiest sections are up near and past the Sierra Buttes.

• Paved: 40%
• Smooth Gravel: 30%
• Rough Gravel: 20%
• 4×4 Road: 10%
• Singletrack: 0%

• Parking can be found at the start at the Sagehen OHV Staging Area. The route backs right to it.
• Resupplies are plentiful in towns along the way, check store hours as they may close before dark
• Dispersed camping is allowed in the majority of the National Forest except for restricted areas, check local regulations.
• Developed camping is plentiful, but fills up in the summer so make reservations well in advance.
• Bring a water filter, there is plenty of drinkable water along the route in rivers, lakes and streams.
• Cell service is very limited.
• Bike shops are limited to Downieville and Quincy and have limited mountain town hours!

The route was inspired by the Connected Communities Project. The Connected Communities Project aims to stimulate the economies of rural communities in the Lost Sierra by improving trail access and connectivity and encouraging diverse user types to explore and recreate on public lands by linking 15 mountain towns by trails. Learn More at https://sierratrails.org/connected-communities/

This route has been posted as an Ambassador Route on RWGPS. Check out the route page which has more detailed information on noteworthy features of the route, a large photo gallery, and more.

The Lost Sierra bikepacking route was developed by Matt McCourtney, and as he shared, “The route is out my back door and took me 6 months to lay out. I pre-rode sections on bike, dirt bike and 4×4 and created the best route I could after about 100 hours of research.”

Matt (he/him, Johnsville, CA) is a detailed, experienced backcountry traveler.   From quick backyard blasts to deep dives into multi-day human powered travel, each adventures seems to inspire the next. With a background in cycling, commercial photography and backcountry fly-fishing guiding, Matt truly enjoys emerging himself in wild places and getting off the beaten track. If he is not in the backcountry, you can bet he is dreaming of his next adventure that will get him right back out there again.

Matt has recently become a Board Member for the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship and, in partnership with them, is in the process of creating more routes in the area.

This route traverses the traditional lands of the Nisenan, Mountain Maidu, and Washoe.