Sadie Creek - Black Bear Run

We've been getting a lot of questions and comments about Sadie Creek trails and why are they rated so high. The reason is the "Qualifier". You must navigate the qualifier to get into the park to run these trails. If you run a stock vehicle and attempt the qualifier you will hit the undercarriage of your vehicle on a piece of concrete purposely put there to test your vehicle. If you have rock-sliders or rock-rails to absorb that hit and slide on them without "high centering" your vehicle then you will be fine, but you have to be alright with that. The stock plastic side-steps that are sold with a jeep are not "Rock-sliders" and you can expect damage if you attempt the qualifier with them installed. We recommend a minimum of a 2" inch lift on some aftermarket more aggressive tires. These trails have very tight turns, with stumps, and dirt walls which this writer finds attractive and challenging. Four-door jeeps and long bed trucks will have some issues, but not anything an experienced driver can't overcome. I'm attaching some pictures of how to navigate the qualifier and also a map of the "Sadie Creek / 4x4 area"

I came here today and was really disappointed. This is NOT an easy trail due to the gatekeeper that must be crossed just to get to the trailhead. This trail is inside Sadie Creek OHV area and the gatekeeper to get inside is a very tight turn around a gate with a 12"-18" block of concrete to crawl over. There are very few stock vehicles that can get in without damage. Maybe the trail after the gatekeeper is easy, but if you can't even get to the the beginning of the trail, then what's the point of marking it as easy? Also, the directions to the trailhead are vague and I ended up driving around quite a bit until I found the right place. The directions say, "Drive about 18.5 miles and look for the sign for Sadie Creek Multi-Use Trail System. The sign directs you to turn left on FS Road 3040 (E.Twin River Rd)." This is correct, but they should add a note that you should NOT turn left, you should turn RIGHT. The qualifier/gatekeeper is across the street from what the sign is pointing you toward. If you want to run this trail, you're probably going to need a short wheel base, a small lift, some rock rails (maybe), and probably 35s just because of the gatekeeper. Either that, or a very liberal stance on body damage for a stock rig. :P

based on this review I decided to try this trail system, was staying near here all summer and having very limited offroad trails in this area thought what the heck. Big disappointment! I have a JKU (4 door) with 3" lift on 35". just getting through the qualifier was a bit of a chore for my long wheel based rig, but certainly doable. Once in the service road is like most of the forest service roads, fun to drive for sight seeing but no challenge. went on a few of the trails, all were bone dry so no issue for traction with fully aired up tires. the problem is that these trails are not meant for long wheel based rigs like mine. Most the trails are made up with very sharp hairpin turns around huge stumps and or large trees. just waiting to damage doors and fenders. Few days after I was in town (Port Angeles) getting work done on my jeep and mentioned to the techs that I was at Sadie telling them about the tight turns. One of techs is a member of a local off-road club and said I was lucky to make it out of there without damage said the trails are used mostly in the winter by locals for the mud and that no one uses 4dr rigs due to the long wheelbase. He was surprised I was able to even get past the qualifier without damage. Won't ever go back. It's a shame these trails weren't setup for long wheelbase. although, with all that said, the review by Michael is accurate and very well done and thanks for that.

I had a really great time exploring this park and writing up this trail. The unexpected surprise of seeing a Black Bear with her cub on the service road was truly and exciting experience. She didn't stick around very long for viewing but since this trail had no name on the map of the park at the sign board, I though it was a fitting name. Hope you enjoy the park as much as I did.