P
Pete
I shared the following with Scott Bosso and I thought some of you might be interested as well (if you live in southern Calif., that is).
I took a trip last weekend on the southwest side of the Sierras which I would recommend for a day's escape. My truck is stock except for 30x9.50 BFG AT tires, and I didn't have any trouble. We went up Rancheria Road with the intent of taking Sawmill Road down to Lake Isabella. This area is east-northeast of Bakersfield about 15 miles or so, in the Sequoia Nat'l Forest. If you get the big yellow Forest Service map of the area you'll see it. It's also in the DeLorme atlas.
Well, the ranger at the Greenhorn Ranger
Station was wrong and the road was closed before the cutoff, so we had to take 20S604 down to Keyesville and then to the lake. 20S604 is a Forest Service/fire road that becomes the Black Gulch Jeep Trail. Had a couple 18" deep creek crossings and busted some snowdrifts which was lots of fun. Got
some good air with one rear wheel a couple times. Beautiful scenery and some great overlooks of the lake and surroundings from about 6000' elevation. Lots of big pines, spruces, etc. and clean air. Lots of old
mines to check out (according to the maps) and supposedly an old sawmill or two.
There are some very gnarly descents. I would NOT recommend traversing this route in the reverse direction without at least one locker or a winch. Also, if you have a showroom paint job, stay off this trail
since the trees/bushes are close to the trail in some parts. I now have some buffing to do after this ride...
This is a great short day trip - it took about 6 hours which includes time
to get out and scout the route, time spent backtracking, look at scenery, have lunch, and just generally relax. There is plenty of undeveloped camping up there if you wanted to make it a weekend trip. There is a fire lookout along the way at Oak Flat
which was closed but, when open, affords outstanding views and is well worth the stop.
Just wanted to pass it along - if you live in the central valley or the surrounding area it's a great day trip for Explorers and drivers of all levels. There also were a couple side routes that I didn't take because they were too challenging for me/my truck. I'll wait 'til it's paid off before tackling those....
I took a trip last weekend on the southwest side of the Sierras which I would recommend for a day's escape. My truck is stock except for 30x9.50 BFG AT tires, and I didn't have any trouble. We went up Rancheria Road with the intent of taking Sawmill Road down to Lake Isabella. This area is east-northeast of Bakersfield about 15 miles or so, in the Sequoia Nat'l Forest. If you get the big yellow Forest Service map of the area you'll see it. It's also in the DeLorme atlas.
Well, the ranger at the Greenhorn Ranger
Station was wrong and the road was closed before the cutoff, so we had to take 20S604 down to Keyesville and then to the lake. 20S604 is a Forest Service/fire road that becomes the Black Gulch Jeep Trail. Had a couple 18" deep creek crossings and busted some snowdrifts which was lots of fun. Got
some good air with one rear wheel a couple times. Beautiful scenery and some great overlooks of the lake and surroundings from about 6000' elevation. Lots of big pines, spruces, etc. and clean air. Lots of old
mines to check out (according to the maps) and supposedly an old sawmill or two.
There are some very gnarly descents. I would NOT recommend traversing this route in the reverse direction without at least one locker or a winch. Also, if you have a showroom paint job, stay off this trail
since the trees/bushes are close to the trail in some parts. I now have some buffing to do after this ride...
This is a great short day trip - it took about 6 hours which includes time
to get out and scout the route, time spent backtracking, look at scenery, have lunch, and just generally relax. There is plenty of undeveloped camping up there if you wanted to make it a weekend trip. There is a fire lookout along the way at Oak Flat
which was closed but, when open, affords outstanding views and is well worth the stop.
Just wanted to pass it along - if you live in the central valley or the surrounding area it's a great day trip for Explorers and drivers of all levels. There also were a couple side routes that I didn't take because they were too challenging for me/my truck. I'll wait 'til it's paid off before tackling those....
