The Bureau of Land Management has a big job managing millions of acres of public land nationwide. For Californians, that means diverse recreational opportunities. For instance, we recently hiked 10 miles of the South Yuba National Trail, which parallels the Yuba River.

That was only one of many trails that can be found along the length of the Yuba. For more hiking options, pick up "The River: Hiking Trails and History of the South Fork of the Yuba River" by Hank Meals (Hank Meals Publishing, $18.95, 252 pages, with maps and black-and-white photos).

Meals is a veteran hiker and Nevada City resident who knows the Yuba River well. He details dozens of hikes and side trips off those hikes, telling in plain language how to find the trailheads and what hikers will see along the way. He also explores the multilayered history of the region, from the first people to inhabit it to the eco-terror that was hydraulic mining.

Of the South Yuba National Trail, Meals said via telephone: "It's the longest stretch without a road at that elevation. You're not going to have visitors with dogs and beer cans and all the things you'll get at a crossing."

"The River" can be purchased at Time Tested Books (1114 21st St., Sacramento; 916-447-5696) and at bookstores in Grass Valley and Nevada City. It also can be bought from Meals at (530) 470-0632 or