Nevada Trails -- Best Books?

Having recently driven through Nevada on our way to Moab, coupled with some recently posted pics from @wayalife that were very inspiring, I'd like to plan some trips exploring the Nevada area. In particular, the Reno area since that's closest to us.

Amazon searches lead me to purchase "Nevada Trails Western Region" by Peter Massey.

Is there anything better? Or in addition?

Thanks for any tips...

FunTreks is a good source of trail info.


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tengland said:

Having recently driven through Nevada on our way to Moab, coupled with some recently posted pics from @wayalife that were very inspiring, I'd like to plan some trips exploring the Nevada area. In particular, the Reno area since that's closest to us.

Amazon searches lead me to purchase "Nevada Trails Western Region" by Peter Massey.

Is there anything better? Or in addition?

Thanks for any tips...

Click to expand...

That's about the only book you'll find. Nevadans try really hard to keep the trails we have a secret so that outsiders don't ruin them. The upside is that if you read history books and do some research of old maps, a lot of what you might be interested in seeing is still out there to be found.

I bought that nevada trails book a few years ago, while it's a decent book i maybe used it once and I don't think I've even touched it in 2 years. I found that there are so many trails to just venture out on around here so, for me, I preferred going and exploring- granted if your coming from out of town im sure there is some benefit to having a plan.


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JeepJeep75 said:

FunTreks is a good source of trail info.


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Click to expand...

Definitely a FunTreks fan. Haven't seen much on Nevada though...

wayoflife said:

That's about the only book you'll find. Nevadans try really hard to keep the trails we have a secret so that outsiders don't ruin them. The upside is that if you read history books and do some research of old maps, a lot of what you might be interested in seeing is still out there to be found.

Click to expand...

That's what I'm finding out. And I totally get the locals-only sentiment, too.

I can only imagine how all the long-time residents of Moab have dealt with the explosion in popularity they've seen since 10 years or so...

benatc1 said:

I bought that nevada trails book a few years ago, while it's a decent book i maybe used it once and I don't think I've even touched it in 2 years. I found that there are so many trails to just venture out on around here so, for me, I preferred going and exploring- granted if your coming from out of town im sure there is some benefit to having a plan.


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Click to expand...

Thanks for the feedback, benatc. The book arrives tomorrow. The main benefit I get from these books is how to even get near the main trailheads to find all the other offshoots.

These days, whenever driving down interstates and I see a bunch of dirt trails off in the distance, I automatically wish I could just pull over and explore. I'm not retired so of course I can't So these distant dirt trails off in the horizon burn into my brain, then I like to read about what I might saw -- and maybe then plan a trip around it.

Pretty cool stuff, all these mysterious trails to discover...

wayoflife said:

That's about the only book you'll find. Nevadans try really hard to keep the trails we have a secret so that outsiders don't ruin them. The upside is that if you read history books and do some research of old maps, a lot of what you might be interested in seeing is still out there to be found.

Click to expand...

I agree. Totally.

Nothing beats a good map. I prefer Benchmark maps and don't bother with Delorme. Read about places and if you find something exciting, try to find it. Even if you don't find what you're looking for, you won't be disappointed.


You can pretty much cover the entire state on back trails. On this trip (ignore the extra tracks I forgot to clear), I tried to only hit pavement to get to a gas station, otherwise, cover northern Nevada on trails only. The key for me is to only go for compass points ("ok, I've travelled north enough, probably time to start heading east"). If I see a trail in the distance that looks cool, I try to find it. I'm rarely thwarted.


Nevada is awesome; one of the most awesome states in the union and I feel so fortunate to live here.