California Off-Road Trails

Frank Rains OHV Park is located not far from Patterson, CA. It is open to 4x4s from sunrise to sunset with a $5 admission fee per vehicle. The park is open to all OHV vehicles, so watch out for dirtbikes, quads, and SXS.

Matt's Hill is a difficult trail, rated a black diamond by the park's rating system. Most of Matt's Hill is similar to the rest of the trails in Frank Raines, with loose dirt, steep hills, and medium ruts. However, Matt's Hill has one challenging obstacle, possibly making it the toughest trail in the park. This obstacle is a very steep hill, with a sharp turn and a deep rut on the inside of the turn. There is not enough space for a full-size vehicle to go around the rut, so you have to straddle it while ascending or descending a pitch over 30 degrees. Descending is far easier than going up the hill, but the loose dirt causes traction issues in either direction. At the top of the trail, Matt's connects to Truck Trail and Spider Trail.

Deer Creek Campground is located at the park's entrance. The campground has 34 sites with picnic tables, restrooms, and other amenities. Prices range from $15 to $30 per site.

FSR 1S16 is an easy trail, that provides a quick adventure in the beautiful Stanislaus National Forest. The trail connects you to Forest Service Route 02S17Y and also takes you by a fire lookout, although the trail up to the lookout is not always open. The Forest Service maintains the trail, and it can be completed in 2WD. The trail is closed seasonally from December 16th-April 14th to prevent damage to wildlife habitats and damage to the road. Camping is not allowed along the trail. 

Horse Canyon SC65 is the South Searles Subregion of the Burea of Land Management (BLM) Ridgecrest Office.   The road is straight through, passing through the Kaivah Wilderness, eventually ending at the border of the Sequoia National Forest, where it continues as Forest Service road 27S11. Combined with 27S11, this Horse Canyon is used to reach the trailhead of 36E52 to then reach McIver’s Cabin. Numerous OHV trails intersect over Horse Canyon's 11-mile length, and the eight staging/camping areas it passes attest to its convenience to explore the many trails in the area.

SC65 is almost entirely a soft, sandy, wide trail. A beginning offroader would enjoy this easy trail and experience the surrounding desert using a high clearance 4WD vehicle.

Eight set-aside camping areas can be found over its length, all with existing rock fire rings. These sites can be used for camping when meeting the BLM Camping Guidelines. During high fire danger, campfires may be restricted, and if planning to camp here, one should review the current BLM Campfire Restrictions and have a Campfire Permit.

One of the many historic Johnson Valley Trails in California, Boulder Dash was one of the original rock crawling trails of the area. Full of moderate to large size rocks and plenty of optional hard lines, there is no reason why people wouldn't find this trail fun and exciting. Because of the makeup of this trail, it is a great crossover trail for the people looking to move from overlanding and dirt roads to rock crawling. The trail is full of challenging obstacles that are not required but allow you to test your skills and vehicle. So if you are in the area, looking for something new to try, you should stop by and give the old Boulder Dash trail a try.

Sherman Pass 4x4 Trail skirts the north side of Sherman Peak and climbs to the crest of the Sequoia National Forest, gaining about 2,500 feet in the first 3 miles. Although the trail can be run in either direction, running the trail west to east, starting from Sherman Pass Road, is recommended, as you will be driving the trail uphill. The first half of the trail squeezes through dense brush where pinstriping is unavoidable and crosses numerous rock gardens with boulders from softball to beachball size. Rear lockers are recommended to traverse the rock gardens, especially so on the eastern end, which contains an overly rough rock garden. A high-clearance vehicle with a mild lift and larger tires is ideal. Once you commit to the trail, there are no turnouts to reverse course. It is a narrow trail with limited pull-out opportunities. The trail connects with 33E48A (North Meadow 4x4) and Corral Meadow Road. It delivers a full day of technical wheeling, big views, and a quality camp at the midpoint, where a shaded dispersed site with two established fire rings can accommodate 8 to 10 vehicles.

Short Bus, a short cut in Johnson Valley is a quick way to cut over the hill if you are traveling over to Backdoor. The hill is mild with only a couple little obstacles that short wheelbase vehicles could avoid.

If you are out looking for a "short-cut" in Johnson Valley and wanting something different, check out Fielders Choice which may be a short cut by distance, but not by time. This cool little cut over path takes you over the mountains from Hammers Bi-Way to Claw Hammer. The trail does have a couple of obstacles that will give most people a challenge but nothing too hard that requires an overbuilt vehicle. If you are in the area and just want to do something different, check out Fielders Choice

Anza-Borrego State Park's northern territory has this simple and floral-rich wash. Ella Wash, named after Ella Calvert, the wife of the first Anza-Borrego supervisor, is the perfect new to the off-roading scene trail. Along the route, you will get a taste of the northern territory of Anza Borrego State Park, with the Santa Rosa Mountains hovering in the background. At the same time, the foreground has stunning plant-rich scenery. It was said that Ella spent a lot of time in this area of the park as this was her favorite area due to the wide range of fauna that grows in this area, which doesn't grow in any other part of the park. Many say this is one of their favorite drives in the park due to the wide range of colors you see along the route.

In the high desert of the San Bernardino National Forest, JF3225 follows the contours of Grapevine Canyon, and intersects with North Peak 3N17D. The trail rises quickly and provides stunning views to the north of the Lucerne Valley dry lakes and onto the distant Granite Mountains. The terrain surrounding the trail offers a unique landscape dotted with fascinating massive granite boulder formations called inselbergs. 

This trail is a continuation of the same JF3225 that makes up the start of Grapevine Canyon Road. 

The trail surface is generally flat and sandy, with very steep sections that require a high clearance 4x4. The steeper sections of the trail may require four-wheel drive for heavier vehicles. Being only one vehicle wide, there is ample space over most of the trail to pull over in the rare occurrence that there is an opposing vehicle. The trail becomes very narrow near its south end and is surrounded on one side by granite boulders and on the other by intruding bushes, which will result in some stripping.

The best dispersed campsite is found near the trail's northern end, up against a granite boulder formation for wind shelter. Other campsites can be found further along the trail after the steep sections, with flat and open clearings and room for one vehicle. The Horse Springs Camping site is only a short distance from the trail's southern end and offers tree-shaded campsites, picnic benches, fire rings, pit toilets, a group ramada, and a picnic area. Campfires are prohibited in the National Forest.

With only a 2-hour drive north of Los Angeles, spectacular canyons can be observed in the El Paso Mountains. Previously home to the Kawaiisu Indians, the El Paso Mountains contain much of their heritage today. Later on, mining became the mainstay. Many mining camps of different minerals are spread across this mountain range. The Dutch Cleanser Mines, Bickel Camp, Cudahy Camp, Burro Schmidt Tunnel, Holland Camp, and Holly Ash Mine are just a few of the attractions. So, whether you're overlanding or just taking your 4X4 out for quick access to the many trails within the Red Rock State Park system, Hagen Canyon Trail is a great choice to see the essence of the El Paso Mountains.