Sierra High Route: Traversing Timberline Country

My girlfriend and I now refer to this book as 'Stevie' after spending a month thru-hiking the SHR with it this fall. I'm not sure that Mr Roper would approve of having his name taken in vain, but we sure took a liking to his style and found that his words of wisdom quickly became our loyal companion. Like others before us (and it broke my heart to do it) we cut out the actual guide section of the book to keep weight down, and I highlighted all route-finding information to make it stand out from the amazingly informative and, at times, highly entertaining, descriptive detail. Used in conjunction with Andrew Skurka's excellent accompanying map set (available via web) we had very few route-finding problems, although we were blessed with exceptionally good weather and zero snow cover. It appears that the guidebook maybe too good, as we found that use trails had become pretty well established over large portions of the route, possibly to the dismay of Roper and cross-country purists. If you are planning to thru-hike the SHR, you need this book. It is not an easy trek (much more rugged than the JMT) and there is no other hard-copy guide. The book's also worth buying if you are craving a shorter High Sierra trip, as some great options are described for incorporating sections of the route into loops with access points on both sides of the range. The author's advice is priceless for safe cross-country travel through some of the world's most spectacular mountainous scenery. May Stevie become your friend too - but tread lightly so that it remains as rewarding a challenge for future Sierra lovers as it was for us.

This book is the ideal companion for everyone who likes walking off-trail on uneven terrain with a heavy pack. We used it last summer to hike a section of "the high route" (from devils postpile to tuolumne meadows) and it was so marvelous, we are going back this summer for another section. Roper gives exactly the amount of indications needed for a successful trip, although some experience in off-trail mountain-hiking is required. The high route is not trivial, even if no technical climbing is involved. The only thing: for most people it doesn't matter to have a single connected route. It would be nice to have other (shorter) routes in the same style, which are not necessarily connected. Maybe in another book? I don't know of anything comparable.

My girlfriend and I recently took some of Ropers advice on a Mt. Conness Loop 5 day hike in Yosemite. It was an increadible trip. Roper gives just enough hints to get you there but few enough to make it still feel like exploring. Be advised however when he referes a section of your hike as 'adventurous' or 'exciting' he means it. We pushed ourselves to the physical and mental limit on this trip.

This book outlines a magnificent experience following an off-trail, higher version of the Muir Trail through the High Sierra. We have followed most of Roper's route over several years: sometimes we thought we were lost or overwhelmed, but it always turned out fine, and usually excellent. He treads a fine line between complete instructions that would allow no mistakes, and an experience that gives the hiker their own opportunity for route-finding, discovery, and growth. This is one of our favorite books, and we keep an intact copy plus another one torn apart for each journey and sometimes given away to people met along the way who need it. We still travel the trail some of the time, but genuinely value this alternative farther away from the crowds.

I made good use of this book to plan a wonderful cross-country trip in the Sierra. Roper was kind of vague at times, but I never got lost.The route he described was breath-taking. I intend to use this book to plan next summer's trip.