A 500-mile trail is under development, designed to connect 15 historic mountain towns in Northern California and Western Nevada. Spearheaded by the non-profit Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship, the project, known as the Connected Communities initiative, aims to link communities that were once centers of the Gold Rush, logging, and mining industries.
The Lost Sierra Route will wind through remote mountain country, stretching from the Truckee-Tahoe area to rural northeastern Lassen County. The trail is intended to create a town-to-town adventure for hikers, bikers, and horseback riders, offering an interconnected pathway through towns that have largely been bypassed by time.
The communities involved include Jonesville, Chester, Westwood, Susanville, Greenville, Taylorsville, Quincy, Downieville, Portola, Graeagle, Sierra City, Sierraville, Loyalton, Truckee, and Reno, Nevada. The route spans six counties—Plumas, Sierra, Lassen, Butte, and Nevada in California, and Washoe County in Nevada—and crosses four national forests.
A key design principle of the Lost Sierra Route is its accessibility, allowing users to complete a day's travel on the trail and then easily access lodging and amenities in a town at night, rather than requiring extended backcountry supplies. This approach is intended to provide an economic stimulus to these smaller communities, enhance access to nature, promote healthier lifestyles, and foster local pride by establishing trails that connect these historic locales.
Towns like Downieville, once a booming Gold Rush settlement with a population of around 5,000, now have about 200 year-round residents and are known for their rugged terrain and mountain biking opportunities. Similarly, Graeagle, a former company-owned lumber town, has transitioned to a recreation-focused identity.
While the full Lost Sierra Route is still under development, the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship has been actively building and maintaining trails in the region since 2003, having already completed over 227 miles of new trail and maintained more than 3,000 miles.
