California Off-Road Trails

Gold Lake Shore is high in the Plumas National Forest and is an amazing straight-through trail situated next to Gold Lake, one of the larger lakes in the area and home to the Gold Lake 4x4 Campground. The campground is set up as designated dispersed campsites that can be reserved ahead of time at Recreation.gov. Each campsite has a picnic table, fire ring, and bear locker for food storage. There are also several improved campgrounds nearby, including Gold Lake Campground.

Because this trail is a popular camping location, the trail in and out is moderately maintained and passable in most 4x4s with high ground clearance. On the trail, you should expect water crossings, scattered smaller rocks sticking out of the dirt, and minor hill climbs. Lower vehicles will have to pick lines through some of the areas.

Cooper Cienega Truck Trail connects Chihuahua Valley to Anza through the Beauty Mountain Wilderness. The northern section of the trail sits in the middle of a 200-foot-wide right of way through the wilderness area itself, offering a scenic drive through pristine backcountry. The southern section is popular for wild turkey hunting, where hunters can be found camping along the side of the trail. The entirety of the trail resides on BLM land but is in a protected environment, so travel is limited to designated routes. When combined with 9S05 Indian Flats, it is possible to travel from Warner Springs to Anza.

Difficulty

The trail is primarily graded dirt. However, two notable obstacles require high clearance and good traction.

• 1.5 miles from the south end is a 300-foot steep climb up a loose dirt shelf road. In normal conditions, a 2WD vehicle can traverse this with good traction, but if the ground is wet and slippery, this could be a challenge for even 4WD vehicles.
• 4.3 miles from the south end, just north of the midpoint of the trail, is a large buried crop of rock with ruts less than 6" deep. This rock creates a mild yet mandatory step-up/down requiring high clearance. Stock high-clearance 2WD vehicles should be able to pass this without issue.

Camping

At least 6 sites for dispersed camping exist along the trail. 3-4 obvious sites are right on the trail with little privacy, often used by hunters, while others can be found tucked away around a corner of a side trail. Two of these tucked-away sites can each accommodate upwards of 6 vehicles in a large flat area with plenty of shade and a hand-made fire ring.

Access

The trail can be traveled in either direction. Old Mitchel Camp Road provides access from the south off of Chihuahua Valley Road. From the north, Ramsey Road in Anza ends at the northern tip of Cooper Cienega Truck Trail.

Means Dry Lake is a broad, hard-packed lakebed located in the Johnson Valley OHV Area of Southern California’s Mojave Desert. It serves as a central hub for offroad recreation and provides direct access to iconic trails like Jackhammer, Sledgehammer, and Claw Hammer, as well as milder desert routes for casual riders. The terrain is flat and firm, making it suitable for dispersed camping, staging, and large gatherings.

Best known as the site of the annual King of the Hammers event, when the area becomes a bustling temporary city, Means Dry Lake is otherwise quiet and open, offering scenic desert views, dramatic sunsets, and exceptional stargazing. The area has no services, so visitors must be self-sufficient. A high-clearance vehicle is recommended for deeper trail exploration, but the lakebed itself is accessible to most vehicles. Camping is primitive but widespread, with ample space for RVs and trailers.

If roughing it isn't your thing, check out the many options in Yucca Valley, which include hotels and other housing options.

Climbing 3,200 feet into the southern San Bernardino Mountains, Alder Creek provides phenomenal views across the Inland Empire and out to the distant Santa Ana Mountains. Just off the trail, and hidden from traffic, are abundant dispersed camping sites. Many of these sites are located on large, level areas adjacent to wind-sheltering mountain slopes, with space for multiple vehicles and tents, and offer outstanding views of the cities below.   At its end, the trail intersects City Creek 1N09, which provides access to many other trails to explore or a quick exit to Highway 330.

Alder Creek twists and turns up the mountainsides with several hairpin turns, but it is an easy drive on a mostly flat, hard-packed dirt road. Shelf roads with very steep drops make up a large portion of the trail and can be intimidating, but these sections are generally wide enough for two vehicles to carefully pass with a few narrow segments that require careful maneuvering to make way for opposing vehicles. Many culverts and shallow water worn ruts cross the road, and these are easily managed by a two-wheel drive vehicle with good ground clearance

A popular gathering spot doing King Of The Hammers, Front Door aka as Comp Hill also the Shoot-Out Challenge from 2019 and is one hard hill climb. Full of large ledges and rocks, this hill climb is likely to spit out the less equipped vehicles in just the first few feet. With near-vertical climbs in spots that are already at the tip-over point, there is no question why this intense off-road hill climb made the shootout challenge. Be ready, rollovers are common at this one. This hill climb is only for the most experienced drivers and built rigs with good cages. Nothing less should attempt this hill climb.

Hollister Hills SVRA is a 6,800-acre SVRA park and was the first SVRA made by the California parks department. The park is divided into three parts, the Upper Ranch, Lower Ranch, and Hudner Ranch. The Lower Ranch is for dirtbikes. While the Upper Ranch and Hudner Ranch are for 4x4s, visitors should stop first at the ranger station in the Lower Ranch to pay the $5 entry fee and get a map of the trails, as well as the lock combination to the gate at Hudner Ranch.

Raptors Ravine is a moderately difficult trail in the Hudner Ranch portion of Hollister Hills SVRA. The trail doesn't have any major technical obstacles, just a few steep hills. However, the trail is narrow, and drivers with wide vehicles may have a hard time navigating the trail. The entirety of Hudner Ranch is perfect for new off-roaders to test their skills with low-risk but entertaining trails. There is no camping directly off of the trail, but campsites are available in nearby Hudner Ranch and require a prior reservation.

Spooners, a Johnson Valley trail named after a couple of guys who got stuck on the trail and had to spoon to survive overnight cold temperatures, is one of the original Johnson Valley rock crawling trails. Located near Outerlimits, this nearly 3-mile long trail is one of the furthest trails from Means Dry Lake and is positioned directly against the military boundary on its northern end. With large boulders over 4 feet round, waterfalls over 5 feet tall, and a difficult S-Turn obstacle that can quickly end your day with one wrong move, Spooners is a trail only for the bravest and built. This trail is best suited for modified vehicles with lifts, larger tires, skid plate protection, and locking differentials. Body damage and mechanical failure are likely.

Even though the trail got its name from two guys camping on it, users should be aware that this trail does not offer any suitable camping options.

Thomas Hunting Grounds is an 11.6-mile straight-through dirt alternative to Highway 38 that contours the hills above Mill Creek, passing Morton Peak, Mountain Home Peak, and Constance Peak in about an hour. Frequent turnouts offer amazing scenic views of the Inland Empire. The route is easy and beginner-friendly. Scattered rocks about golf-ball to softball size are mostly avoidable, and any stock SUV or truck can make the drive. Multiple side spurs provide dispersed camps for 4–6 vehicles; sites are first-come, first-served, and some have established fire rings. Per the U.S. Forest Service, a California Campfire Permit is required for any fire use, including campfires, charcoal BBQs, and gas stoves, and only street-legal vehicles are allowed.

Wolfskill Truck Trail follows the edges of the San Jacinto Mountains foothills, providing distant views to the west and connecting to other Bureau of Land Management (BLM) trails that meander through these foothills.

The majority of the trail is on BLM land, where dispersed camping can be enjoyed when following the BLM Dispersed Camping Guidelines. There are a few suitable campsites along the trail. These consist of pullouts a few feet off the road with room for one or two vehicles but do provide views. Open fires are prohibited, and it is the responsibility of campers to understand the Fire Restrictions.

A beginning offroad driver in a two-wheel drive high clearance vehicle will enjoy this trail. Some areas of the trail are impassible from washouts, and bypasses can easily be seen at these spots. Water worn ruts in the road can easily be avoided by driving to one side.

Carving its way up Blackhawk Mountain, Monarch Flat is an up-and-back road in the Mountain Top Ranger District of the San Bernardino National Forest (SBNF). Along the way, majestic views north and east only get better as the trail climbs in altitude. The trail eventually reaches 6,700 feet atop Silver Peak, where the abandoned Silver Mountain Mine with its shuttered mine shaft remains. Official maps may show the trail extending beyond Silver Peak, but the trail has long been forgotten and reclaimed by nature. The trail is moderately difficult and made up of loose rock and narrow, twisty shelf roads. A high-clearance four-wheel drive vehicle with an experienced offroad driver is recommended to manage this trail.

This trail offers several excellent dispersed camping locations, especially at its namesake, Monarch Flat, about 1.2 miles from the trailhead and again at the trail's end with its magnificent views. Dispersed camping is permitted when following the SBNF Dispersed Camping Guidelines. Be sure to follow all Current Fire Restrictions and Related Prohibitions and obtain a California Campfire Permit before camping.

Reaching far into northern foothills of Shadow Mountains and across the Shadow Mountain Tungsten District, the Bureau of Land Management's Princess Pat Mine Road morphs from a graded dirt road to a narrow rugged Jeep trail with steep inclines and descents. The 3,400-foot elevation provides sweeping northerly views of a rugged, empty desert, reminding one how far from civilization you are. Numerous intersecting trails offer opportunities to explore the many inactive mine claims in the area.

The rugged hills offer limited flat dispersed camping sites, but finding one provides wonderful quiet solitude while enjoying the far-off views.

A four-wheel drive high clearance vehicle is required to navigate through the foothills.

Starting on the desert floor, Bird Spring Canyon Road passes through Bird Spring Pass, gradually rising and falling about 2,000 feet.   It skirts the southern edge of the Kiavah Wilderness between the tall peaks of the Scodie Mountains, and the Pacific Crest Trail crosses about five miles from the western end, where a watering station is set up for the hikers.

The road is wide and well maintained and an easy drive for new offroaders, but it still requires a high clearance 4x4 to manage the soft sand and occasionally exposed rocks. Descending on the western end follows a series of switchbacks, which may be intimidating, but these are wide enough for ascending vehicles to pull aside and allow passage.     

The eastern portion of the trail has a few primitive campsites set up by the BLM, which are easily identified by posted signs noting a 15-mile speed limit when campers are present. Camping there or at suitable dispersed sites can be enjoyed 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.