Sierra Buttes & Lakes Basin
Sierra City / Packer Saddle, Tahoe NF · near Sierra City · Gold Country & Central Valley
Mountain Biking · Stargazing
At a glance
- Skill level
- expert
- Trail miles
- Gold Valley Rim ~6 mi; 'Tower-to-Town' extension up to ~17 mi / ~7,000 ft descent
- Elevation
- Sierra Buttes ~8,591 ft; Lookout Trail 8,174→7,012 ft; one of the longest descents in North America
- Best season
- July–October (Packer Saddle road snow-blocked into early summer)
- Best season
- Summer–fall (high country snowy in winter); go near new moon
What is here
- Highlights
- milky-way · astrophoto
- Landscape
- lake
- Amenities
- Jagged Sierra Buttes foreground · Alpine-lake reflections · Quiet northern-Sierra campgrounds · Away from the crowds
- Best for
- Reflective alpine-lake stargazing up north
- Features
- Jagged buttes & alpine lakes · Reflective dark-sky scenes · Quiet northern Sierra · Uncrowded solitude
Worth knowing
- Good for a first timer
- No
- Hazards
- High country snowy in winter — summer–fall access · Winding mountain roads at night — drive carefully · High altitude — cold nights · Remote-ish — carry water & supplies
- Beginner friendly
- No
Mountain Biking detail
- Nickname
- The High Country Above Downieville
- Ride types
- enduro · all-mountain · xc · downhill
- Signature trails
- Sierra Buttes Lookout Trail · Gold Valley Rim Trail · Deer Lake Trail
- Ebike
- Yes
- Ebike note
- Class 3 e-MTB permitted on some segments (e.g. Sierra Buttes Lookout); designations are mixed by trail — verify per segment with the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship.
- Intl tip
- Book the Yuba Expeditions Packer Saddle shuttle and ride the upper Gold Valley Rim and Sierra Buttes Lookout before dropping the classic Downieville Downhill to town. Expert, technical terrain; July–October only.
Stargazing detail
- Designation
- informal
- Reach
- moderate
- Darkness
- 4
- Sky notes
- A cluster of gem-like alpine lakes beneath the jagged Sierra Buttes in the quiet northern Sierra — dark skies, granite spires, and still water make for beautiful reflective Milky Way scenes far from the crowds
- Stats note
- ~Bortle 2–3; jagged Sierra Buttes & alpine lakes; quiet northern Sierra
- Campground
- Yes
- Intl tip
- A cluster of gem-like alpine lakes beneath the jagged Sierra Buttes in the quiet northern Sierra (between Truckee and Quincy) — dark skies (~Bortle 2–3), granite spires, and still water make for beautiful reflective Milky Way scenes far from the crowds, with quiet campgrounds. High country: summer–fall season (deep snow in winter); winding mountain roads at night (drive carefully); cold nights at altitude; somewhat remote (carry water and supplies). A lovely, lesser-known retreat.
The guide
Above the famous Downieville Downhill lies its high-country soul — the alpine trail network around the Sierra Buttes and Lakes …
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Sierra Buttes & Lakes Basin — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 39.5949, -120.6503