Trail Discussion: Need advice from the pros

[ECHO]

A few friends and i are going to camp in the big bear area and need some advice. I need help rating some trails in order of difficulty. The trails are john bull, dishpan, white mountain, gold mountain, and rattlesnake canyon. Thanks

[Mike]

Whooo! This one could start quite the debate. IMO, easiest to toughest is:
Rattlesnake Cyn
White Mtn
Gold Mtn
Dishpan
John Bull

[xjkevin]

well im no pro... white mtn is pretty easy, lots of dirt hill climbs.
then id say gold mtn, real rocky with lots of bypasses.
then jon bull, fun trail, bigger rocks than gold mtn, def, more demanding on the jeep..
then dishpan, still pretty easy just a few spots where theres a bit of pucker factor, everyone says its harder than the bull but i like jonbull better,
and rattlesnake cnyn ive never done so cant help ya there,
these are just my thoughts im sure everyones vary, we all have our own idea of how tough a trail is.......

[xjkevin]

guess Mike thinks jonbull is tougher than dishpan also.......

[Mike]

guess Mike thinks jonbull is tougher than dishpan also.......

Hey Kevin! Yeah, I debated on the Dishpan vs. John Bull. I put JB tougher only because it is techical for more of the trail than Dishpan. Dishpan definitely wins for the pucker factor IMO, but I'm like you in that I like JB better.

[FishPOET]

There are multiple lines on each trail. Are you looking for the most difficult lines?

IMHO

John Bull - Toughest all around trail. Biggest rocks. Lots of bypasses. Lots of rock stacking. Lots of traffic on weekends.

Dishpan - Single toughest obstacle. Rather tame other than the waterfall and Chuck's Corner.

White Mountain - Steepest trail. Can cause the most damage to you and your vehicle if you choose poorly.

Gold Mountain - One steep & loose step and the Talus Slope.

Rattlesnake - Mostly a sandy wash. Some big rocks on the edge of the wash but there is wilderness on both sides.

[RAT]

well im no pro... white mtn is pretty easy, lots of dirt hill climbs.
then id say gold mtn, real rocky with lots of bypasses.
then jon bull, fun trail, bigger rocks than gold mtn, def, more demanding on the jeep..
then dishpan, still pretty easy just a few spots where theres a bit of pucker factor, everyone says its harder than the bull but i like jonbull better,
and rattlesnake cnyn ive never done so cant help ya there,
these are just my thoughts im sure everyones vary, we all have our own idea of how tough a trail is.......

Kevin, remember we don't all drive school buses on 40's ...

[Materdaddy]

Dishpan - Single toughest obstacle. Rather tame other than the waterfall and Chuck's Corner.

HA, it's been named!!!

[tony m]

Whooo! This one could start quite the debate. IMO, easiest to toughest is:
Rattlesnake Cyn
White Mtn
Gold Mtn
Dishpan
John Bull

Wow Mike, I will have to agree also, of course, IMO.


But, everybody has their opinion too.

[peteyg]

There are tough trails in Big Bear? Where?

<kidding...I'm kidding>

But seriously, JB is toughest just 'cause it's longest. Personally, I like 2n17x the best, but it's a bit out of the way.

[Mike]

There are tough trails in Big Bear? Where?

<kidding...I'm kidding>

But seriously, JB is toughest just 'cause it's longest. Personally, I like 2n17x the best, but it's a bit out of the way.

Wow! So I'm not the only one that likes 2N17X! I almost suggested that to the original list. Great trail.

As for how tough the trails in the forest are, well, I sorta-kinda agree with your joke NOW. But if you drag a 2-inch lifted, one-locker Jeep on 31s through every Black Diamond trail in the mtns (I have), the trails are not to be taken lightly. Now I like trying to take the lines that I didn't even think were possible back then.

The SB Forest has some of the best trails in the Southland in my opinion. I love being out in the forest, even if it is just a seldom traveled Green-rated trail.

[ECHO]

I really appreciate all of the great opinions. Im the planner in my group and am in charge of deciding the most efficient route to maximize trail time. I want to include some of the tougher ones but we have a newer 4runner with a mild lift and 31ish tires going with so i think jb is out of the question... Or is it?

[peteyg]

A neat combination that I have always had fun with is 2n17x to Pilot Rock to Dishpan. It'll take most of a day and you come out in Lake Arrowhead-ish

[ECHO]

After doing some research here on mjr, and after reading great88's new dixie mine trail report, ive decided to start in landers. The plan will be to run the new dixie mine trail, east to west, over to rattlesnake cyn. We will run rattlesnake from south to north. From the top of rattlesnake, we can catch the main highway and shoot over to jacoby cyn, run it from north to south, then possibly over to jb or gold mt. Thats all i have so far.

[ironbelle]

2n17x----Is this really the name of the trail or just the marker???