Rainbow Basin National Natural Landmark

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5/5 (6 reviews)
Barstow, California (San Bernardino County)
Last Updated: 05/15/2023

Trail Information

Highlights

Rainbow Basin National Natural Landmark is an area of geo-formed badlands with folded multi-colored strata eroded into small ravines and pinnacles. The winding loop trail meanders through the basin, providing terrific views of the fantastic rock formations. Huge slabs of red, orange, white, and green stones tilt at crazy angles. Set deep in the vast Mojave Desert, the remote loneliness of the setting is quite striking.


Trail Difficulty and Assessment

Trail Navigation

Trail Reviews

5/5 (6)
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Rated 5/5
Visited: 06/06/2023
Difficulty Accuracy: Spot On

Stayed in Owl Canyon Campground. Well **** out with vault toilets. The campground was basically empty when we visited. We had our choice of sites. Well worth the minimal fee. Recommend driving this loop in either the morning or evening sun. Lower sun angle causes the colors to pop and highlight the dramatic angles of the geology. A high clearance 2WD will not have any problems on this loop. There's a turn or two that is easier to make with a shorter wheelbase.
Trail Review: Rainbow Basin National Natural Landmark - Daniel L
Trail Review: Rainbow Basin National Natural Landmark - Daniel L
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Open
Rated 5/5
Visited: 05/28/2023
Difficulty Accuracy: Harder

Fantastic scenery. Like breathtaking. Passenger cars might have a few very rough spots due to ruts. Anything with more ground clearance than a civic is fine.
Trail Review: Rainbow Basin National Natural Landmark - George Deyarmond
Trail Review: Rainbow Basin National Natural Landmark - George Deyarmond
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400
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Rated 5/5
Visited: 05/07/2022
Difficulty Accuracy: Spot On

Great little loop. Great scenery and plenty of photo ops. A full size rig might find some tight spots… but plenty of room for most vehicles. Some spots you can pass other cars if needed. Perfect for thos first timers with the exploration itch!
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Visited: 01/18/2021

The Owl Canyon Campground is great! It is $6.00 a night, first come first served. We came over MLK, Jr weekend and about 7 of the 22 sites were full. Sites have new cement picnic tables, new fire rings with adjustable height cooking grates, new cement BBQ grills, and new shade structures. The vault toilets are clean, with many spaces around the two loops. The road is well compacted and graded. Any RV should be fine in these sites. There are no hooks ups, and no shade other than the man made structures. Site are spaced apart fairly well for SoCal. Nice rocks for kids to play on. Some playground equipment too.
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1000
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Rated 5/5
Visited: 02/23/2020

This is a beautiful little canyon that can be accessed by just about any vehicle. It is a well graded dirt road. There is some very cool geologic features to enjoy. We had a group of 10 vehicles and we did this as a part of a larger day trip that started out on Fossil Bed Road.
Trail Review: Rainbow Basin National Natural Landmark - Jeff
Trail Review: Rainbow Basin National Natural Landmark - Jeff
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