Hike the Thomas Creek Trail in Reno's Galena Creek Regional Park

Go Galena

Hike the Thomas Creek Trail in Reno's Galena Creek Regional Park

05.19.2021
hikers on the Thomas Creek Trail in Mount Rose Wilderness near Reno

Just 20 minutes from Reno, Galena Creek Regional Park is unassuming amid dense forest on the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada. But wow has it got wilderness! Mount Rose Wilderness, to be specific.

hiker on the Thomas Creek Trail near Reno

hikers on the Thomas Creek Trail in Mount Rose Wilderness Reno

hikers on the Thomas Creek Trail in Mount Rose Wilderness Reno

You'll need an early start for this beautiful 15-mile out-and-back journey to heights with huge views of the Washoe Valley and surrounding mountains. The hike starts at Upper Thomas Creek and enters Mount Rose Wilderness (see italics for an alternate parking option to make this an 11-mile out-and-back). Forest bathe most of the way under a mix of mountainous Jeffrey pine, ponderosa, and white fir.

hiking woman on Thomas Creek Trail in Galena Creek Park

Find more great hikes around Reno!

You’re often alongside the creek, favored by anglers soaking in the quiet oasis. Creek crossings as of late are totally manageable, and the ascent is gradual and gentle. The last 3 miles are where you get mountain magic, as you leave the forest and begin gradual switchbacks in the basin of snow-tipped mountains and up to a ridge where you may have to tramp through patches of snow. The ridge is your turnaround point, but not before you turn around—and around—to take in the view.

hikers on Thomas Creek Trail in Galena Creek Park

hikers looking at wilderness information sign Mount Rose Wilderness Reno

hikers near Reno on Thomas Creek Trail

From here you have a wide and vast vista of Washoe Valley, with the Junction House Range in the foreground and the Hungry Range in the distance. To the west lies Chocolate Mountain, a less-known peak to consider bagging in summer.

TIP: Galena Creek Regional Park is also popular with mountain bikers.

Weekend Sherpa
Bright Lights & the Great Outdoors

Pay close attention to trail signs at Galena Creek Regional Park—there are sections in the first several miles where you briefly come out to a fire road before rejoining the trail in a few hundred feet. To shorten the length of this hike, take Thomas Creek Road up to a parking area with just a handful of spots in the forest at a bridge crossing. Either way, bring plenty of water and snacks and get an early start. This adventure is best for spring and summer days when there’s more daylight. Check out other great Reno hikes! This is an out-and-back trail. Dog-friendly!

Trending Stories NorCal

View all Stories
  1. Napa Valley Paddle kayaker and paddle boarder on the Napa Valley river

    Napa's Wild Side

    It’s wine country’s Amazon. The gentle Napa River is an ecological—and recreational—delight. And Napa Valley Paddle sets you up for maximum enjoyment of this experience.

    View

  2. Been There, Dome That

    Surrounded by granite domes, craggy peaks, and miles of hiking trails, the High Sierra landscape of Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite National Park is famous for good reason. For a truly grand view, take a short hike to bold—and bald (except for snow at times)—Lembert Dome.

    View

  3. Wapama Wows

    Hetch Hetchy can be overlooked in Yosemite National Park because of its more remote location and limited facilities. But this is where you’ll also find one of the best day hikes in the park: Wapama Falls.

    View
  4. Hike Mount Tamalpais into Muir Woods

    Muir Woods Through the Backdoor

    A backdoor entrance into Muir Woods? Hike a tranquil trail that starts in Mount Tamalpais State Park and quietly leads into Muir Woods, letting you avoid the busyness of the main parking area.

    View

Trending Stories SoCal

View all Stories

  1. Inn-spiration Point!

    For more than a century, people have been hiking or mountain biking to West Point Inn for good reason. Perched at 1,785 feet on the southern slope of Mount Tamalpais, the historic inn has sweeping views from the Marin Headlands to the San Francisco skyline.

    View

  2. A Thousand Steps to Paradise

    A picture is worth a thousand words, but is a gorgeous beach in Laguna worth a thousand steps? The answer is yes, though the question is moot, because it’s only 223 steep steps down to the 400-yard stretch of sand known as 1000 Steps Beach.

    View
  3. Sponsored

    Take the Exit to the Best of the San Francisco Peninsula

    The San Francisco Peninsula is proof that some of Northern California’s greatest surprises are hiding just off Highway 101. All you have to do is take the exit.

    View
  4. Hike to the Sierra Buttes Fire Lookout in the Lakes Basin

    Lookout for This View!

    Sierra Buttes Lookout, at a lofty 8,591 feet, is a memory maker for its pucker-worthy stairway to the tower’s balcony. It's a 5-mile (round-trip) hike to reach it. And the reward? Epic!

    View