Sierra Nevada - Sierra Nevada visitor guide showing a virtual tour of 'Sierra Nevada' linked to an interactive map with local and travel information. 360° panoramas from California.

This map shows the location of the Sierra Nevada mountain range in California and Nevada on the western side of the USA. Select a pin on the Google map to explore some of the sights and attractions in the Sierra Nevada. Sierra Nevada is Spanish for 'snowy mountain range' and the range is also known as 'the Sierra', 'the High Sierra', and 'the Sierras'. It is the alpine region of California and most of the towns and villages are geared towards mountain sports and skiing.

The range stretches 400 miles down the easter side of America from Fredonyer Pass in the north to Tehachapi Pass in the south. To the east of the Seirra Nevada is the Great Basin, and to the west is the Central Valley of California down which the Interstate-5 runs. The mountains increase in height from north to south, and the highest mountain Mount Whitney (14,505 feet, 4,421 m).

Aside from the numerous skiing resorts, the Sierra Nevada contains many popular tourist attractions, parks and beautiful lakes. Included in these are Yosemite National Park, Hetch Hetchy Valley, Kings Canyon, all glacial valleys with stunning scenery. Between the main Sierra and the Carson Range, just north of Eldorado National Forest, is Lake Tahoe covering some 191 square miles at an altitude of 1,897m. Along a narrow band on the western side of the Sierra Nevada are Giant Sequoias (Sequoiadendron giganteum), the largest trees in the world, which can be seen in Sequoia National Park.

The principle towns and cities in the Sierra Nevada include Bishop, Bridgeport, El Portal, Grass Valley, Lee Vining, Lone Pine, Mammoth Lakes, Oakhurst, South Lake Tahoe and Tahoe City.