Pleasant Canyon/South Park 4x4 Loop

Overview: A scenic, high elevation trail. Many mines and structures along the way, especially at Clair Camp. Briggs Cabin is, by far, the most elaborate and best stocked of all the Adopt-a-Cabins. Briggs and Stone cabin are maintained by volunteers (Friends of Briggs). The cabins are on private land owned by C.R. Briggs Corporation which graciously allows you to use the cabins for free. Street-legal vehicles only inside Death Valley N. P. For information on this route and possible closures, contact the BLM in Barstow at (760) 252-6000. For park portion, contact Death Valley National Park at (760) 786-3200 or go to ww.nps.gov/deva.

Rating:

Difficult. Most of this trail is easy to moderate; however, the steepest, narrowest sections of both Pleasant Canyon and South Park Canyon are susceptible to water damage and rock movement, sometimes creating difficult conditions. When we drove the trail, stock SUVs would have had difficulty negotiating these stretches. South Park Canyon is quite steep and is always difficult going up from west to east. A narrow wooden bridge above Briggs Cabin has a weight limit of 3 tons. Large vehicles loaded with gear can easily exceed this weight limit. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CROSS THIS BRIDGE IF YOU HAVE ANY DOUBT YOUR LOADED VEHICLE WEIGHS MORE THAN 6,000 LBS. Some tight brush in places.

This trail is one of 75 trails from the book, Guide to Southern California Backroads & 4-Wheel Drive Trails, by Charles Wells, and is available at www.funtreks.com.

Tips: In February, we found snow on the road to Rogers Pass and elected to take the lower bypass route. This trail may close unexpectedly from rock slides and poor trail conditions. Repairs are usually made in due time. Best to call ahead and check. Very hot in the summer. Carry plenty of water and clothing for sun protection.

Trail conditions can change without notice. FunTreks, Inc. and its owner and employees are not responsible for injury, death, or vehicle damage as a result of using this guide. The content of this guide is the property of FunTreks, Inc. and is made available to the user pursuant to EveryTrail’s Terms of Service (http://www.everytrail.com/tos.php).