Self-Propelled in the Southern Sierra was like the Google search engine for the trails and terrain of the bottom half of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. (150 miles long and 50 miles wide) -- it's that all-out comprehensive: flora, forest critters, history, lumber and mining, off-roading, you name it, he knew about it. He literally walked every mile of trail and cross country route in the range. How much terrain are we talking? The Southern Sierra encompasses the 150 mile section of the Sierra Nevadas stretching from Tehachapi, CA, northward to Cottonwood Lakes, fifteen miles southwest of Lone Pine; or, roughly, 7,500 square miles.

Not many people who died before reaching the age of thirty have a summit in a world class mountain range named after them. J.C. Jenkins, author of Self Propelled in the Southern Sierra, has a prominent mountain on the lower Eastern Sierra Crest named in his honor, is testament to his testifies not only to how well beloved he was by his colleagues and his second "family" in the United States Forest Service, but to his lasting legacy of having written, the best Southern Sierra trail guide out there -- period. A quarter century has passed since the Bureau of Land Managment & USFS dedicated Jenkins Peak (elev. 7,921) named after him with a dedication plaque near its craggy summit, and since that time, the light of his brilliant legacy has not dimmed.

From obscure summits ( to obscure snow-shoe trek in the Piute Mountains (sub range within the Southern Sierra), and from the decrepit remnants of obscure sawmills and mines, on to the obscurest meadow on the Kern Plateau overlooking Half Dome's littler siblings in the Domeland Wilderness, Jenkins leaves no trail or cross-country route untravelled or undescribed, and he writes always artfully in minute detail with decimal point mileages. His throughness & accuracy leaves virtually no chance of getting lost in the regions covered, unless you're a hiking novice wandering alone -- a no no in hiking/backpacking circles -- and don't understand Jenkins terminology ("cairn," "use trail," or "follow drainage due south for .7 miles"). I particularly like how Jenkins describes getting from point A to point B without reading like MapQuest directions. For instance, listen how he interweaves directions with the scenery and a slice of history from trip 42, Cannell Meadow Hike:

"Self-Propelled in the Southern Sierra," published thirty years ago in 1978, remains a must-have for the Southern Sierra adventurer looking for a more secluded backpacking romp through the woods. Trust me, having hiked several of the routes catalogued here, you won't find the tacky hordes of attire-challenged tourists -- yellowish green wool socks to the knees with matching sunvisors -- on Jenkin's trails, like you'd inevitably and repeatedly stumble across (or more likely they stumble into you) farther north in Yosemite or Tahoe. You can journey for weeks here, as Jenkins did, in the late 70s, alone with his ten-speed-wheeled pedometer, and encounter nobody else.

Long live the memory of the eminently intrepid, J.C. Jenkins. His life and spirit still soar like eagles in these Southern Sierras. ( )