1N09 - City Creek

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4.8/5 (67 reviews)
Redlands, California (San Bernardino County)
Last Updated: 05/05/2023

Trail Information

Highlights

Whether you are into overlanding, 4x4'ing, or rock crawling, the San Bernardino National Forest is a common area for people to seek adventure and memories. On the front side of Big Bear is an offroad route that is still barely known, even though it is right off Highway 330, the main highway up to Big Bear. 1N09, or City Creek Road as it's also known, is a magical scenic drive that can easily be made into a day trip or weekend adventure. The trail itself is relatively easy, but as you travel east among the dense forests, you are pleasantly surprised by the many water crossings the trail has. So the next time you go up to Big Bear to do a little wheeling, instead of overlanding on 3N16 again, check out 1N09 City Creek Road for a taste of the mountains' lush forest and tranquil beauty.

Trail Difficulty and Assessment

Trail Navigation

Trail Reviews

4.8/5 (67)
Open
Rated 4/5
Visited: 07/02/2023
Difficulty Accuracy: Spot On

Nice easy trail lots of blooming wild flowers. Good box canyons for shooting. Unfortunately lots of trash left behind.
Open
Rated 4/5
Visited: 06/23/2023
Difficulty Accuracy: Spot On

Fun trail! Super easy with just enough at the end to keep you from getting board! Small but beautiful water crossings and if you take the connector road back to the pavement there is a nice waterfall!!!! Any 2WD with a bit of clearance should be fine.
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Open
Rated 4/5
Visited: 06/17/2023
Difficulty Accuracy: Spot On

I wanted to have lunch by Bear Creek with some friends. We added a little shooting to our overlanding picnic with a little river dunking trip. Bear Creek (a few miles below Big Bear Lake Dam) was flowing really nice with a couple small pools you could get all the way underwater. The road west of the river crossing is easy with only one place I needed to go into 4wd for 20 yards. The road east of Bear River is graded and was driven by a 2wd minivan down to the river. This is an easy day trip.
Open
Visited: 05/21/2023
Difficulty Accuracy: Spot On

My brother and I did this trail on a Sunday. There were hardly any other vehicles on the trail that day. We did have some light rain, which was nice as it kept the dust down. The trail was very scenic and colorful, most likely to our heavy rain season. It was an easy trail and we did not run into any obstacles that a stock 4x4 could not do. This is a good trail for beginners and even experienced offroaders.
Trail Review: 1N09 - City Creek - Carlos Bautista Jr.
Trail Review: 1N09 - City Creek - Carlos Bautista Jr.
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Official Crew
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125600
Open
Visited: 05/05/2023

Trails are officially open https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd1095216.pdf

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