North of Fillmore,CA
Start at HWY 126 (cross of SR 23). FYI; this is where you grab fuel, food and find a toilet.
Head north on “A” St. In about a mile there will be a yield sign, bear right onto Goodenough Rd. At the end of Goodenough, there’s a fork, uphill to the right.
Stock 2wd pickups and “soft roaders” are fine on the main road. There’s enough vertical clearance for sprinter vans and plenty of cut-outs to turn around.
This is a single lane fire road (6N16.1 and 6N16.2) that passes through Los Padres NF and the California Condor Sanctuary. The first 5 miles or so, there is a mix of Macadam, broken shale and gravel. It’s a bench cut road on a steep hillside with many blind, sometimes slippery turns. This part is susceptible to rockslides. This road is used by employees working in the oilfields. Large trucks can sometimes be excepted.
At the 5 mile is a plateau that used to be a USFS station. From here, there is no more asphalt. It’s mostly silt and gravel over hardpack with the occasional hidden boulder in the roadbed. At around mile 7 is the Tar Creek trailhead, which is currently closed.
From here on the road gets less maintenance and is susceptible to the weather. Expect to find more ruts and seasonal mud. This area will often close after heavy storms.
At the Dough Flat trailhead there is a pit toilet, behind which, the trail into Alder Creek and Sespe Creek starts.
This can be either the terminus or start of a through hike of the Sespe Wilderness to Piedras Blancas north of Ojai.
The Condor Overlook trail also starts nearby. This is a short in and out hike up a knoll a short walk back on the road you drove in on.
As far as 4x4 or adventure biking… this is not a worthwhile trip, unless you want a quick side trip and you’re in the area. However, if you want to do some hiking, it’s worthwhile, especially in spring when it’s green and water is flowing.
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5 star for the views. Beautiful views of PCh corridor and Morro Bay Area.
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Great mountain biking for average riders. Nice pine forest through out and some great views sometimes. Even on a Saturday in May, I only encountered 3 other parties, on motorbikes and OHVs.
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Solo day hiked Thurs 3/14/2024 – More of a road walk than a hike that starts on pavement, transitions to dirt and then snow at the 7500 ft elevation level. Was a great day to do this trek under blue skies with some manageable wind gusts. Since Frazier Mountain Road (Forest Rd 8N04) is closed for the season right now, it’s a nice time to go for anyone not interested in exercising the post-winter “drive up” option. The abandoned lookout tower and radio tower installations on the Frazier summit are interesting sights, making it worth the stroll up. While the stairs to the lookout are long gone, it is possible to scale the platform (tank side) for a nice, panoramic bird’s eye view. Early morning summit gusts were strong and cold enough to switch to heavier gloves, really nipping fingers when taking gloves off for less than a minute at a time. Another highlight of this hike are the spectacular views on the way down, looking across Cuddy Valley towards the towering summits of Mt Pinos, San Emigdio, Antimony and Escapula. This hike would be great for taking a group on an easy hike/stroll through the forest, with or without snow. Logged 13.1 miles/2594 vertical ft with Gaia.
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Solo day hiked Thurs 3/14/2024 – More of a road walk than a hike that starts on pavement, transitions to dirt and then snow at the 7500 ft elevation level. Was a great day to do this trek under blue skies with some manageable wind gusts. Since Frazier Mountain Road (Forest Rd 8N04) is closed for the season right now, it’s a nice time to go for anyone not interested in exercising the post-winter “drive up” option. The abandoned lookout tower and radio tower installations on the Frazier summit are interesting sights, making it worth the stroll up. While the stairs to the lookout are long gone, it is possible to scale the platform (tank side) for a nice, panoramic bird’s eye view. Early morning summit gusts were strong and cold enough to switch to heavier gloves, really nipping fingers when taking gloves off for less than a minute at a time. Another highlight of this hike are the spectacular views on the way down, looking across Cuddy Valley towards the towering summits of Mt Pinos, San Emigdio, Antimony and Escapula. This hike would be great for taking a group on an easy hike/stroll through the forest, with or without snow. Logged 13.1 miles/2594 vertical ft with Gaia.
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Solo day hiked Thurs 3/14/2024 – Highly recommend the Chorro Grande Trail before the heat! Hiked it in the afternoon in sunny but cooler weather after a morning trek up Frazier Mtn. The trail has a nice, classic slope climbing layout that takes you from a start in the chaparral off Hwy 33, through small oak groves via switchbacks and then to a northern finish in the pines at Pine Mountain Road (Forest Road 6N06). The elevation gain on the way up was constant but well distributed over the trail distance. Much thanks to caretakers of this trail who have trimmed back most of the bushy segments and removed the fallen trees. There are several small stream crossings, a few muddy areas and some slightly overgrown grassy segments, all of which can be easily crossed or bypassed. Extended the trek at the northern end by heading east on Pine Mtn Road and then using micro spikes to directly ascend the SW slope of Pine Mountain. Going down Chorro Grande in the late afternoon is gorgeous with the trail heading S-SW under a constant stream of filtered sunlight and several interesting boulder groups easier seen on the descent. Had to take the long way around to this trail from Frazier Mtn on Mil Potrero Hwy since Lockwood Valley was closed to through traffic (mudslide). Hwy 33 still has active reconstruction with several short delays but not too bad. Logged 12.8 miles/3528 vertical ft with Gaia.
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Solo day hiked Thurs 3/14/2024 – Highly recommend the Chorro Grande Trail before the heat! Hiked it in the afternoon in sunny but cooler weather after a morning trek up Frazier Mtn. The trail has a nice, classic slope climbing layout that takes you from a start in the chaparral off Hwy 33, through small oak groves via switchbacks and then to a northern finish in the pines at Pine Mountain Road (Forest Road 6N06). The elevation gain on the way up was constant but well distributed over the trail distance. Much thanks to caretakers of this trail who have trimmed back most of the bushy segments and removed the fallen trees. There are several small stream crossings, a few muddy areas and some slightly overgrown grassy segments, all of which can be easily crossed or bypassed. Extended the trek at the northern end by heading east on Pine Mtn Road and then using micro spikes to directly ascend the SW slope of Pine Mountain. Going down Chorro Grande in the late afternoon is gorgeous with the trail heading S-SW under a constant stream of filtered sunlight and several interesting boulder groups easier seen on the descent. Had to take the long way around to this trail from Frazier Mtn on Mil Potrero Hwy since Lockwood Valley was closed to through traffic (mudslide). Hwy 33 still has active reconstruction with several short delays but not too bad. Logged 12.8 miles/3528 vertical ft with Gaia.
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Solo day hiked Thurs 2/29/2024 – Chose this hike to stay out of the increasing gusts at the higher elevations and it was a gentle one with great views. Started on forest road 9N34 from Mil Potrero Highway heading north and then east to San Emigdio Mountain for a nice sunrise. Next, west on 9N34 to 9N52 and further west to Brush Mtn and Brush Mtn – North peaks. Went up 8 provincial peaks (bus stops/bumps with views) along the way since they’re on the east-west route. Great weather and only a few snow patches left from the last storm. 9N34 is in the best shape of any forest road I’ve been on in the last year which would be a great snowshoe route just for fun after the next snowfall. The only steep part of this route is a short section of 9N52 going out to the Brush Mtn peaks, before and after the Marian Campground area. Forced myself to relax for a much longer than normal lunch break on Brush-North and enjoy the great views out towards Cerro Noroeste, Grouse, Sawmill and Mt Pinos peaks. Some strong winds started coincidentally with my leaving the summit but disappeared shortly after dropping down a bit. Very pleasant hike in a beautiful area that would be perfect for taking a group on an easy hike/stroll through the forest, with or without snow. There is a nice dirt parking area on the north side of the highway, a few hundred yards east of the locked forest road 9N34 gate. Logged 14.1 miles/2546 vertical ft. with Gaia.
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Road to Dough Flats was closed down to flood debris. Hiked the creek at the closure point east. Bear and deer sign, no trail, only way through was to hike knee deep in the creek. Not for beginners.
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The hike had some nice views of the county. It was one of the highest points around. The views of the Morro’s were a highlight.
The road was mostly hard dirt. It was a bit of surprise to me that cars were allowed there. The east side of 101 they are not. There were several transient like encampments on the route. It looks like they are allowed.
I think next time I will take the trails from Calpoly going up and avoid the road atmosphere.
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Solo day hiked Fri 12/15/23 – Early start on the Condor Summit/Mt Pinos dirt road to the Mt Pinos summit and then the Condor Observation Site. No register on Pinos, just the survey benchmark and the Edwards range antenna/solar panel array. From here, it was down the Vincent Tumamait Trail into the Chumash Wilderness and up to the spectacular summit cairn on Sawmill Mountain which was a great place to watch the start of a nice sunrise. The north-south-east views from the summit were equally spectacular since it was a clear weather morning. Found a faint use trail that departed the main trail which went south all the way up to the Sawmill West summit which had only views to the south. After getting back to the main trail and heading northwest for a bit, there was a well-defined spur trail that led up to both the Lower Grouse Mtn south summit and the official Grouse Mtn summit which is marked by a branch teepee with the register tucked into its side. It was a long descent from here to the saddle between Cerro Noroeste and Grouse Mtns and then the steep ascent up to Cerro Noroeste Road. While this part makes you work, the trail is nice but with a few tree crossings. Once at the road, there is a short, lesser used gully trail heading west, directly up to the Cerro Noroeste Summit which is much shorter and safer than going up the road. After walking around the summit through the trees and the Campo Alto campground, I found a 6 ft high boulder stack that seemed to be the high point so I climbed it for fun but didn’t find a register before heading back down. Taking the same route back to the Chula Vista trailhead meant a little extra work on the steep ascents that had allowed for the earlier fast descents. Some extra calories and a steady pace made it a pleasant hike back. Took an out and back detour to Sheep Camp on the trip back and found that the Sheep Camp Spring pipe still had a steady trickle of water coming out of it. While I don’t have a dog, this seems like a great trail on which to bring your canine friend. Didn’t see anyone else on the trail during my trip. Highly recommend this trail and it would’ve been nice to camp for a night before the hike instead of the drive in from Temecula but wasn’t an option for me this week. Logged 15.4 miles/3513 vertical ft. with Gaia.
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Solo day hiked Fri 12/15/23 – Early start on the Condor Summit/Mt Pinos dirt road to the Mt Pinos summit and then the Condor Observation Site. No register on Pinos, just the survey benchmark and the Edwards range antenna/solar panel array. From here, it was down the Vincent Tumamait Trail into the Chumash Wilderness and up to the spectacular summit cairn on Sawmill Mountain which was a great place to watch the start of a nice sunrise. The north-south-east views from the summit were equally spectacular since it was a clear weather morning. Found a faint use trail that departed the main trail which went south all the way up to the Sawmill West summit which had only views to the south. After getting back to the main trail and heading northwest for a bit, there was a well-defined spur trail that led up to both the Lower Grouse Mtn south summit and the official Grouse Mtn summit which is marked by a branch teepee with the register tucked into its side. It was a long descent from here to the saddle between Cerro Noroeste and Grouse Mtns and then the steep ascent up to Cerro Noroeste Road. While this part makes you work, the trail is nice but with a few tree crossings. Once at the road, there is a short, lesser used gully trail heading west, directly up to the Cerro Noroeste Summit which is much shorter and safer than going up the road. After walking around the summit through the trees and the Campo Alto campground, I found a 6 ft high boulder stack that seemed to be the high point so I climbed it for fun but didn’t find a register before heading back down. Taking the same route back to the Chula Vista trailhead meant a little extra work on the steep ascents that had allowed for the earlier fast descents. Some extra calories and a steady pace made it a pleasant hike back. Took an out and back detour to Sheep Camp on the trip back and found that the Sheep Camp Spring pipe still had a steady trickle of water coming out of it. While I don’t have a dog, this seems like a great trail on which to bring your canine friend. Didn’t see anyone else on the trail during my trip. Highly recommend this trail and it would’ve been nice to camp for a night before the hike instead of the drive in from Temecula but wasn’t an option for me this week. Logged 15.4 miles/3513 vertical ft. with Gaia.
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Solo day hiked Fri 12/15/23 – Early start on the Condor Summit/Mt Pinos dirt road to the Mt Pinos summit and then the Condor Observation Site. No register on Pinos, just the survey benchmark and the Edwards range antenna/solar panel array. From here, it was down the Vincent Tumamait Trail into the Chumash Wilderness and up to the spectacular summit cairn on Sawmill Mountain which was a great place to watch the start of a nice sunrise. The north-south-east views from the summit were equally spectacular since it was a clear weather morning. Found a faint use trail that departed the main trail which went south all the way up to the Sawmill West summit which had only views to the south. After getting back to the main trail and heading northwest for a bit, there was a well-defined spur trail that led up to both the Lower Grouse Mtn south summit and the official Grouse Mtn summit which is marked by a branch teepee with the register tucked into its side. It was a long descent from here to the saddle between Cerro Noroeste and Grouse Mtns and then the steep ascent up to Cerro Noroeste Road. While this part makes you work, the trail is nice but with a few tree crossings. Once at the road, there is a short, lesser used gully trail heading west, directly up to the Cerro Noroeste Summit which is much shorter and safer than going up the road. After walking around the summit through the trees and the Campo Alto campground, I found a 6 ft high boulder stack that seemed to be the high point so I climbed it for fun but didn’t find a register before heading back down. Taking the same route back to the Chula Vista trailhead meant a little extra work on the steep ascents that had allowed for the earlier fast descents. Some extra calories and a steady pace made it a pleasant hike back. Took an out and back detour to Sheep Camp on the trip back and found that the Sheep Camp Spring pipe still had a steady trickle of water coming out of it. While I don’t have a dog, this seems like a great trail on which to bring your canine friend. Didn’t see anyone else on the trail during my trip. Highly recommend this trail and it would’ve been nice to camp for a night before the hike instead of the drive in from Temecula but wasn’t an option for me this week. Logged 15.4 miles/3513 vertical ft. with Gaia.
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Solo day hiked Fri 12/15/23 – Early start on the Condor Summit/Mt Pinos dirt road to the Mt Pinos summit and then the Condor Observation Site. No register on Pinos, just the survey benchmark and the Edwards range antenna/solar panel array. From here, it was down the Vincent Tumamait Trail into the Chumash Wilderness and up to the spectacular summit cairn on Sawmill Mountain which was a great place to watch the start of a nice sunrise. The north-south-east views from the summit were equally spectacular since it was a clear weather morning. Found a faint use trail that departed the main trail which went south all the way up to the Sawmill West summit which had only views to the south. After getting back to the main trail and heading northwest for a bit, there was a well-defined spur trail that led up to both the Lower Grouse Mtn south summit and the official Grouse Mtn summit which is marked by a branch teepee with the register tucked into its side. It was a long descent from here to the saddle between Cerro Noroeste and Grouse Mtns and then the steep ascent up to Cerro Noroeste Road. While this part makes you work, the trail is nice but with a few tree crossings. Once at the road, there is a short, lesser used gully trail heading west, directly up to the Cerro Noroeste Summit which is much shorter and safer than going up the road. After walking around the summit through the trees and the Campo Alto campground, I found a 6 ft high boulder stack that seemed to be the high point so I climbed it for fun but didn’t find a register before heading back down. Taking the same route back to the Chula Vista trailhead meant a little extra work on the steep ascents that had allowed for the earlier fast descents. Some extra calories and a steady pace made it a pleasant hike back. Took an out and back detour to Sheep Camp on the trip back and found that the Sheep Camp Spring pipe still had a steady trickle of water coming out of it. While I don’t have a dog, this seems like a great trail on which to bring your canine friend. Didn’t see anyone else on the trail during my trip. Highly recommend this trail and it would’ve been nice to camp for a night before the hike instead of the drive in from Temecula but wasn’t an option for me this week. Logged 15.4 miles/3513 vertical ft. with Gaia.
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Not for beginners! Snakes and bears are prevalent in this area. No cell or radio service. Stunning views of the Sespe Condor Sanctuary in all directions, dramatic rock formations and patterning. Has become a real favorite!
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Alder Creek north from Dough Flat. Left at fork to Cow Springs camp. Very wild trail, Bear sign, rattle snakes, birds and lizards all over. Beautiful hike, not bad hills.
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This track is from the camp ground to Hwy 1. Easily done in a stock 4x4. One lane mostly so watch for oncoming traffic.
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Very exposed trail. Bring more water than you think you need. BEAUTIFUL. And I can’t wait to come back when the water is a little higher for swimming.
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Very exposed trail. Bring more water than you think you need. BEAUTIFUL. And I can’t wait to come back when the water is a little higher for swimming.
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A pleasant dirt road hike. Going out is all up hill but not too tough. Wonderful vista views all the way to the ocean.
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This was the first time taking my stock Pro4x off-roading. The trail was designated as “more” difficult. It is tight in some points and you will get some scratches. Truck made it through with no issues. Would do it again.
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The views are stunning! As we gain altitude, a blanket of clouds was seen from many of the hike points. Isolated trail, hardly any wildflowers, lots of mosquitos, shady with some fully exposed to the sun areas. Bring lots of water and bug repellent.
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Very exposed trail. Bring more water than you think you need. BEAUTIFUL. And I can’t wait to come back when the water is a little higher for swimming.
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This hike takes you through some fairly remote terrain and I didn’t see anyone for my hike. The section between Twin Forks and Haddock is especially beautiful. I encountered a rattlesnake on Piedra Blanca and spotted two bears about a 1/4 mile from camp so bring a Ursack for food protection. Heads up, the trail is faint in some places. Water wasn’t flowing but pooled in areas to easily filter.
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Great hike, beautiful area with great views and almost no snow. Only drawback was that the peaks did not have much prominence but overall a must do for locals in the 805.
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Amazing trouble but definitely not for beginners intermediate to advanced need apply only
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Hiked Sisar to white Ledge a few times but always in the dry time. Today, went to Nordhoff Rd. Made it a 7 mile one way. Lots of color and water made it for a great experience.
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Wake up, adjusting to altitude before heading into Sierra. Pine Mountain Club is surrounded by Los Padres National Forest, sadly closed because of fires and fire danger. 8000+ ridges close when conditions permit.
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Adobe trail is located off Hwy 166, in Santa Barbara / San Luis Obispo County. This hike is most enjoyable if started early in the morning before the heat of the day. This part of the Los Padres Nat Forest would be considered coastal mountainous high desert with chaparral & scattered oaks. 6 mile out & back hike. Part the hike skirts a creek but is mostly dry year round.
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Nice place when the weather is right and the water is high. Tough when the temp is over 75.
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Comfortable weather for this exposed hike 3/24-25. Still a well-travelled path; we pitched camp at a site a little too close to the trail to avoid the noise of late comers and goers to the spring. A few nice campsite options along the way. If the water is high enough in hotter weather seems worth camping along Sespe creek just for swimming holes.
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This short out-and-back hike was a really nice surprise. The short hike was well worth the views of the California Coast at the end. We really enjoyed a lot of different plants, many in bloom; on the way up and back. I would definitely recommend this hike. There was even a little picnic bench at the end so you could have lunch and enjoy the view. The trail itself was well maintained and easy to follow. We parked in a nice dirt parking spot on the opposite side of the road.
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Apparently this camp site is closed bc of artillery rounds were found. Probably never to be open for a very very long time 😢
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Jamie on Mosca
Patfish on Tobe
Bunnie on Gretzky
Shayna on Winston
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This was a great ride with a little bit of everything from easy to moderate difficulty. $5 to enter the area was worth the work they have done to the area ( bathrooms, camp area, signage etc etc ). Can be busy but the amount of space made it seem remote. Remember to stay to your side on the corners and watch for criss traffic and you’ll be fine.
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Took this only as far as Willet Hot Spring. Difficult in the heat, lots of sand to hike through on the trail, best bet is to hike out in the morning hours and jump in the creek in various spots along the way at the day progresses. Beautiful area, Willet was clean and incredible.
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It was hot and lots of bugs. Probably wrong time of the year for this area. Also, the views were hampered by the smoke from fires.
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Beautiful views, great for picnics or an overnight. Can be done in a car, Jeep, hike or bike.
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Great day! Was about 82 at the trailhead. Couldn’t get all the way to the trailhead campground. The road ends at the corral.
Saw a fox snag a quail and run off it with. Was pretty wild.
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McDonald is a nice view down into the condor wilderness and some gorgeous terrain! Also
I forgot to finish my track sorry about that >.<
Waypoint for register. Which was eaten up by mice so isn’t really intact
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Great hike and awesome camp grounds for thru hikers. The scramble description from hps doesn’t explain well enough how steel and difficult that is
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One of my favorite local hikes for sure. 360 degree view. You can see from Pismo to ragged point, and on clear days all the way to the sierras.
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This road is paved half of the way, almost to Broadcast Peak. Then it turns into a fun rocky and dirt road. I’m a novice wheeler in a stock JKU and had no problems. Took a little longer than I expected.
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Started at 8 in the parking lot. This is a steady uphill grind for 7 miles. The views on top was very nice.
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Drove in to campground, sauntered over, achieved the peak! Then moved car to Chumash Wilderness and Grouse Mountain followed by Sawmill: no strolling involved on that part.
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Steep grades, good trails, beautiful views with alpine flowers and lots of shade. Only one rattlesnake.
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Lots of thistle on nice, flat part of trail near the campground. Beautiful views, old road.
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Pretty sweet off road trail. Took my 97 4Runner on it stock, except 31” all terrains. Clearance was good except for the trailer hitch. I probably hit that every other bump lol. Good views and trail kept well
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Great trail, will get feet wet crossing over the creek on several crossings.
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Add 2.5 miles or so to the hike because the access road may be closed getting to the trailhead. This hike is very difficult. I had to turn back about 6 miles in, as there was a very long narrow ledge with a steep drop I didn’t think my pup and I would be able to make. Just wasn’t worth the risk to me. It rained often and was chilly in March when I went through in the upper 40’s 😭.
I’ll be back and will take the other trail in instead.
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