Pleito Creek 9N19A and Dome Springs BC109

[Russ Chung]

I'd like to explore some of the other trails (besides Lockwood/Miller/Yellowjacket) in the Mt. Pinos Ranger District this Saturday, September 8. Meet at the Flying J at 8:30 am, depart at 9:00 am.
Pleito Creek is rated "most difficult" (black diamond);
Dome Springs is rated "easy" (green circle).
We may explore other trails if time permits such as Halfmoon which is rated "most difficult" (black diamond). Plan on spending all day on the trails.

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[SAR Jeeper]

Can't make it, but here is a pic of my GPS route



Note the stop sign in the pic...illegal to go past that point (no stop sign out there though!)

Its a fun area...have fun!

[Mr. Orange]

Hey Russ....that sounds like a fantastic idea...I was just talking about going up to that area....

I'm totally in, or want to be. But I have a night job tonight, and don't know exactly when I will be out, maybe 2 or 4 am...

Here's what I am going to do...
I have Joe's # in my phone...I will call him later tonight (at a reasonable hour, Joe, don't worry) and let him know....or I will post early Sat morning if I can meet or not..
Will that work Russ... I will just send a PM to you if you prefer, that way it won't get lost in the posting world...

Hope to see you guys tomorrow!!

[maddmike]

anyone know of any fire roads or more moderate trails which could connect me back to civilization to the west or south of the forest at the end of the day? i was looking at the maps of the area, but there are many trails but also appear to either be dead-end or have red gates (impassable?)

looking for something other than miller as an option to explore in case i'm on my own.



EDIT: even though it's paved, i was just talking to someone familiar with the area whom recommended taking the 33 back to Ojai for incredible scenery through the mountain range.

[Russ Chung]

EDIT: even though it's paved, i was just talking to someone familiar with the area whom recommended taking the 33 back to Ojai for incredible scenery through the mountain range.

Yes, we can check that out too, since Hwy 33 is only about three miles from the BC109; although it's not the fastest way out. I have a friend who lives in Pine Mountain Club, and when he goes to visit his client in Ojai, he takes I-5 to Hwy 126; he says that it's faster than taking Hwy 33.

[Russ Chung]

I'm totally in, or want to be. But I have a night job tonight, and don't know exactly when I will be out, maybe 2 or 4 am...

Dave, I think that's why they make Red Bull...
[SIZED]http://www.redbullusa.com/img/product.jpg[/SIZED]

[Schmo]

Hey Guys,

I spoke with David this afternoon and it sounds like he's in . . . he might need a six pack of Red Bull as he's working til 2-4am! Also got a PM with a maybe from Double G so hopefully he'll be able to join us as well.

Hey Mike . . . I've been thru the 33 from Ojai to Frazier Park on my Harley . . . it is scenic . . . but long. It felt like someone took a sledgehammer to my butt by the time I got to Frazier Park. Luckily, the seat in the Jeep has more than a 1/2 inch of padding!!!

See you in the morning,

Joe

[maddmike]

See you in the morning

work crept into the weekend so i had to bail on the run, unfortunately. maybe next time.

[Schmo]

work crept into the weekend so i had to bail on the run, unfortunately. maybe next time.

That's a bummer man . . . hope to see you next time!


***Russ and I will be meeting at 7:30am at the Carls Jr right off the I-5 at Lyons in Valencia, in case anyone wants to meet us there and caravan up the hill.***

[RAT]

Russ,
I know you'll post pics. I want to see where this is. I flew over the area last week and it looks like some awsome terrain out there. There is a road that leaves out of the Lake Hughes area that winds up to a ridge with a bunch of granite slabs. Sound familiar to anyone? Looks like fun!
Rat

[Russ Chung]

Pleito Creek Trail (9N19)

The Mt. Pinos District of the Los Padres National Forest extends from approximately I-5 on the the east, Highway 33 on the west, the San Emigdio Mountains on the north, and Highway 126 on the south. There are also two Wilderness areas (i.e., non-motorized) areas in the district; the Sespe Wilderness area in the southern half of the district, and the Chumash Wilderness area in the western portion of the district.

The Lockwood/Miller Jeep Trail is the most popular 4wd trail in the Mt. Pinos district, but there are many other 4wd trails in the area. Unfortunately, these other trails dead-end for 4wd vehicles (although ATV, motorcycles and hikers can get through to connect to other trails). I've run the Lockwood/Miller trail eight times in the past two years, so I wanted to explore some of these other trails for a change.

The Forest Service describes the Pleito Creek trail (9N19) as a "steep challenging four-wheel drive road down a deep wooded canyon. A dead-end route." It is approximately 3.5 miles in length. It is rated a blue square for motorcycles and ATVs, and black diamond for 4wd. To reach the trailhead, start from the Flying J truck stop at I-5 and head west on Frazier Mountain Park Road, bear right at the Y. Approximately 10 miles from the Flying J, turn on Cherry Creek Road (smooth, graded dirt road). Bear left at the fork; the trailhead is about five miles after you've left the pavement. We had five Jeeps on this trail run:

Sergio (50YJ) in his built white YJ:

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070229.jpg[/SIZED]

David (Highway420) in his orange Rubi Unlimited:

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070230.jpg[/SIZED]

Joe (Schmo) in his black Rubicon:

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070231.jpg[/SIZED]

Gene (Double G) in his built green Unlimited:

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070233.jpg[/SIZED]

and myself in my khaki TJ:

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070228.jpg[/SIZED]

Cherry Creek Road is an easy, graded dirt road, with scenic vistas of Cuddy Valley:

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070235.jpg[/SIZED]

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070238.jpg[/SIZED]

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070264.jpg[/SIZED]

The Pleito Creek trailhead:

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070241.jpg[/SIZED]

On the trail:

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[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070248.jpg[/SIZED]

Pleito Creek campground (approximately 2/3 of the way down the trail):

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070260.jpg[/SIZED]

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070259.jpg[/SIZED]

The dead-end:

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070249.jpg[/SIZED]

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070253.jpg[/SIZED]

We planned to return to the Pleito Creek campground to eat lunch, but the cool, shady canyon attracted a lot of annoying flying insects, so we headed back up to the trailhead for our lunch break. The Pleito Creek trail was narrow, overgrown in places, and there were a few steep sections. Our group's consensus is that in dry weather, the trail is not that difficult, but it could be challenging in wet or snowy weather (the trail starts at 6500' and descends to 4500').

[Sandy R]

So, where after lunch?

[Russ Chung]

Halfmoon Trail (7N13)

After lunch, our group decided to explore the Halfmoon trail. The Forest Service describes the 3 mile long Halfmoon trail as a "four-wheel drive road down Piru Creek drainage to the Piru Creek Trail. Dead-end route for four-wheel drives." (The Piru Creek trail is for motorcycles and ATVs only and it connects to the Miller Jeep trail.) The Halfmoon trail is rated a black diamond for 4wd vehicles.

It was a 28 mile journey from Pleito Creek to the Halfmoon trailhead; about half on pavement and half on easy, graded dirt. We backtracked to the Lake of the Woods "Y", then took Lockwood Valley Road approximately 10 miles to 7N03. Eleven miles on 7N03 took us to Halfmoon campground and the trailhead for the Halfmoon trail.

Halfmoon campground:

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070271.jpg[/SIZED]

Halfmoon trail:

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070272.jpg[/SIZED]

Piru Creek was dry, with a few isolated wet spots.

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070273.jpg[/SIZED]

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070276.jpg[/SIZED]

Sergio on Halfmoon trail:

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070278.jpg[/SIZED]

David followed by Sergio:
[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070287.jpg[/SIZED]

Sergio and Gene:

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070290.jpg[/SIZED]

The Halfmoon trail ends and the Piru Creek trail begins. Unfortunately, 4wd vehicles are not allowed on the Piru Creek trail; if they were allowed, it would be only another 1 1/2 miles to the Miller Jeep trail!

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070293.jpg[/SIZED]

The Halfmoon trail was mostly sand, rock and dust, with a few puddles of water here and there. I think it would be much more interesting early in the year when there is more water in Piru Creek. We retraced our path to Lockwood Valley Road. It was late in the day, so our group decided to wait until next time to explore Dome Springs and we aired up. Front to rear, Joe's black Rubi, my khaki TJ, David's orange Rubi Unlimited, Gene's green Unlimited, Sergio's white YJ:

[SIZED]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b53/UF92134/Frazier%20Park%202007%20Sep/P1070294.jpg[/SIZED]

[Schmo]

As always . . . thanks for the great pics and write up, Russ. It was great to meet Sergio in his Jeep/Mustang beast and to see everyone else again. It was a full day of wheelin and everybody made it thru without any carnage. The trails we ran were easy to moderate (at best), but like Russ said . . . adding a bit of water or snow would make things much more interesting. Great trails for a newbie or if you just want to get out, without risking much damage. Always nice to be up in Frazier Park and have a chance to take in the views . . . and a few breaths of fresh air in between gulps of dust!

So where are we heading next???


-Joe

[50yj]

It was good meeting Russ, Joe, David, and Gene. It was my first time out in Frazier Park and hopefully not my last.

I vote big bear for the next trip. Let me know.