Horse Trails and Stock Facilities • Historic Trails
We in Klamath, Lake, Modoc and Siskiyou Country know what you're looking for when you want to ride horseback: a beautiful trail and plenty of room to move around. That's all. And you'll find it here, where local horse enthusiasts have teamed up with federal and state rangers to develop a network of camping and trail facilities geared to equestrian pursuits.
Here you'll find directions to some of Southern Oregon and Northern California's most popular trails for day rides as well as longer pack trips. The terrain varies from relatively flat and open pine forests on the edge of the high desert to rugged wilderness areas in the Cascade Mountain Range.
The trails identified here are located near some of the region's most spectacular natural attractions. Crater Lake National Park offers unrivaled scenic splendor, and sleeping volcanoes such as Mount McLoughlin dominate the horizon. Opportunities for fishing, wildlife viewing and hiking are everywhere.
Food and lodging are available near most trails, while feed and tack are sold in many communities throughout the region.
As you enjoy the spacious public lands in Klamath, Lake, Modoc and Siskiyou Country, please be careful to follow the highest standards of trail etiquette and backcountry manners. Travel in small groups, picket your stock away from lakes and streams, pack out your trash. More guidelines for a having a clean and enjoyable trip are available at Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management offices throughout the area. Stock use rules vary from place to place.
From Bly, OR, 1.5 mi. E on Hwy. 140 to first county road on left, N 1/2 mi. to Forest Service Rd. 34, E 19 mi. to Rd. 3372, N 9 mi. to Rd. 015, left to trailhead.
Starting point for treks into the Gearhart Wilderness. Access to Blue Lake and trail No. 100, a 13-1/2 mile route through heart of wilderness area. Additional access at Lookout Rock and Boulder Creek.
Information: Bly Ranger District, (541) 353-2427.
From Silver Lake, OR, S 10 mi. on County Rd. 4-11 and Forest Service Rd. 27.
This recently remodeled campground is geared for horse use. 17 camping sites, including barrier-free and group units. Head east or west on nearby National Recreation Trail.
Information: Silver Lake Ranger District, (541) 576-2107.
From Silver Lake, OR, S 10 mi. on County Rd. 4-11 and Forest Service Rd. 27, W 4.5 mi. on Forest Service Rd. 2804, S & W 5 mi. on Forest Service Rd. 7645, S 2.3 mi. on Forest Service Rd. 036, S 0.6 mi. on Forest Service Rd. 3038038 to trailhead.
A new trailhead and campsite designed to provide access to 24,000-acre Yamsay Mountain backcountry. Facilities for five horse camps and one backpacker camp. Day use area available.
Information: Silver Lake Ranger District, (541) 576-2107.
From Klamath Falls, OR, W 40 mi. on Hwy. 140, N 1.5 mi. on Forest Service Rd. 37, W 1.5 mi. on Rd. 3738. Turn left to campground.
This new facility offers ten camp sites, with four small corrals at each site. Five mile ride to wetlands with watchable wildlife. Water troughs, potable water and restrooms. Reservations required for this campground. About $6 per night.
Information: Butte Falls Ranger District, (541) 865-2700.
From Bly, OR; 1.5 mi. E on 140; 1/2 mi. N on first County Rd. on left; 15 mi. E on Forest Service Rd. 34; 1.5 mi. W on FS 012.
Gearhart Wilderness is two miles to the north. Campground has horse facilities (corrals hold up to four animals; hitching rail)
Information: Bly Ranger District, (541) 353-2427.
From Klamath Falls, OR, W 32 mi. on Hwy. 140 to Lake of the Woods Visitor Center, N 6 mi. on Rd. 3661 to Fourmile Lake Trailhead.
The Rye Spur Trail offers great views of Upper Klamath Lake or try a loop ride into nearby Sky lakes Wilderness. Horse camping facilities and loop trails are new.
Information: Klamath Ranger District, (541) 885-3400.
From Lakeview, OR; 24 mi. W on 140; 7 mi. N on, paved Forest Service Rd. 3870.
High mountain lake has horse camps and trailhead. Corrals, water and feed troughs at trailhead/campsite. Twelve miles of marked trail.
Information: Lakeview Ranger District, (541) 947-3334.
60 mi. N of Klamath Falls, OR on Hwy. 97 and 62.
Two parking lots are suitable for horse trailers. One is near Mazama Village where the Pacific Crest Trail crosses Highway 62. The other is where the PCT crosses the north entrance road. Horses are restricted to designated trails in the park. At one point a trail leads to within a half-mile of the rim.
Information: Crater Lake National Park,
Rim (541) 594-2211.
From Likely, CA, E. 23.5 mi. on Forest Service Rd. 64, left on Rd. 39N01 for 2 mi. to campground.
Parking lot suited for trailers. Water available. Great access to South Warner Wilderness. Many unmarked roads outside wilderness boundary. Area boasts plenty of streams, springs and wildlife.
Information: Warner Mountain Ranger District, (530) 279-6116.
From Likely, CA, E 8 mi. on Forest Service Rd. 64, left on Rd. 5 for 5 mi., right on Rd. 40N24 to campground.
New corrals hold up to nine animals. Horse trailer parking separate from campground parking. Stock water at corrals. Suitable for fifth-wheelers. Mill Creek Trail leads to great vistas, links up with Summit Trail in South Warner Wilderness.
Information: Warner Mountain Ranger District, (530) 279-6116.
The Woods Line begins at the Sycan Siding near Beatty, OR. Trail is 48 mi. long.
The Woods Line spur of the OC&E State Trail travels north through the Fremont National Forest. This section of the trail offers Five Mile Creek, Merrit Creek Trestle and Sycan Marsh. It is suitable for foot traffic, wide tire bicycles, cross-country skiing and equestrians. The wildlife and waterfowl viewing is exceptional.
Information: Collier State Park, (541) 783-2471.
Looking for something more challenging than a day trip and a picnic? Here are a few ideas to make your ride more memorable:
Horse Trails and Stock Facilities • Historic Trails
Want to retrace the frontier history of the West? Southern Oregon and Northern California are crossed by historic routes emigrants followed on their way west. Rediscover these highways of history.
Imagine the difficulty of the wagon trek across the unforgiving terrain of the high desert, and over the treacherous peaks of the Cascades and Siskiyou Mountains. Raiding parties and highwaymen added to the natural obstacles.
From crude wagon trails of yesterday to the swift and scenic highways of today, visitors can get a glimpse of how it appeared to the first Anglo explorers and settlers.
Travel through the region is much easier now than it was for the 50,000 emigrants of the last century. And while the hardships are long gone, the natural beauty and splendor of the region remain.
Historic trails parallel some of the region's modern highways, from US 395 to Hwy. 299, Oregon 66 to Interstate 5. It's easy and fun to follow the steps of the pioneers.
Tread Lightly and respect the historic nature of these sites. Remember that removal of artifacts is forbidden. Also, keep in mind that some sections of these historic trails are on private property. Landowner permission is required before crossing their land.
Between Surprise Valley, CA and Ashland, OR
Also known as the South Road, this National Historic Trail was laid out by the Scott-Applegate party in 1846 and served as a popular southern route of the Oregon Trail. From the Trail's beginning near Nevada's Humboldt River, emigrants followed the Applegate on their way to Grants Pass and the Willamette Valley.
Contemporary accounts of the trek describe the hardships of the terrain and encounters at such places as Bloody Point, Surprise Valley, and Fandango Pass.
Oregon Hwy. 66 follows one section of the Applegate over the Cascades between Klamath Falls, OR and the Ashland area. Numerous sites in both states are marked and portions of the trail are accessible from highways or roads. There is an Applegate Emigrant Trail Monument off Hwy. 97 at the California/Oregon border.
Stop at the Klamath County Museum before setting out on your trek, for more information.
Information: Klamath County Museum, Klamath Falls, 1-800-445-6728, or Bureau of Land Management, Alturas Resource Area, 530-233-4666 or, Modoc National Forest, 530-233-5811.
Hwy. 97 S of Klamath Falls, OR, to Grass Lake.
As a branch of the Applegate Trail, this trail opened the Northern California border region to gold-seekers after the discovery of the precious metal near Yreka in 1851. The 73-miles of wagon road wound through rugged Siskiyou County from its start near Lower Klamath Lake, and crossed present day Hwy. 97 near Grass Lake.
Information: Goosenest Ranger District, 530-398-4391.
U.S. 395 between Davis Creek and Bieber, CA.
Peter Lassen, leading a group of 12 wagons, pioneered this trail in 1848 from the Applegate Trail at Goose Lake. This monument marks a route popular with 49ers on their way to the gold fields of the Sacramento Valley. There are a number of marked sites along Highway 395/299 where you'll find more information and be able to retrace the Lassen Party's descent into Goose Lake and California. The views are spectacular.
Information: Bureau of Land Management, Alturas Resource Area, 530-233-4666.
35 mi. W of Klamath Falls, OR, on Hwy. 140, N 6 mi. on Forest Service Rd. 3650 to Fourmile Lake Campground.
A section of this old road between Twin Ponds and Summit Lake, once supplied the frontier military camp at Fort Klamath from 1863 to 1899, now serves as a popular recreation trail, intersecting with the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail and providing easy access to the Sky Lakes Wilderness. Camping is also available at nearby Fish Lake and Lake of the Woods Campgrounds.
Information: Klamath Ranger District,
541-885-3400.
Leaves the Lassen Emigrant Trail N of Beiber, CA on Hwy. 91, continues N intersecting Hwy. 139 W of Clear Lake, then connects with the Applegate Trail E of Tulelake, CA.
When word of a gold strike in California reached the Oregon settlements, a party of 150 gold seeking Oregonians with 46 wagons, commanded by Peter Burnett, left the Applegate Trail near the northeastern corner of Rhett (Tule) Lake and struck off southward. Burnett (who would become the first governor of the State of California), reached the Pit River in Big Valley, spotted wagon tracks and decided to follow them. Burnett's party caught up with the struggling Lassen party about 40 miles above the Sacramento Valley. Burnett joined with Lassen, and continued to mark the route of what is known as the California-Oregon Road. The route was "cleared by a brigade of eighty axe-swingers." By luck or design, the trail ended on a ridge that made its way down to Lassen's Rancho, marking the end of the Lassen Emigrant Trail.
Information: Modoc National Forest, 530-233-5811.
Follows Hwy. 44 from Susanville, CA to Anderson, CA.
Noble founded this trail in 1851 when he was prospecting in the area with eight other men. This trail was a cutoff of the Humboldt Trail in Nevada. It crossed the Black Rock Desert and the Northern Sierras into what is now known as Susanville, CA. The trail follows what is now Hwy. 44 all the way to Anderson, CA.
This Emigrant Trail prospered in the mid 1850's since it was a shorter and more direct route to the Sacramento Valley, than the earlier established Lassen Emigrant Trail. Noble's Emigrant Trail became a main thoroughfare of settlers traveling over the Northern Sierras and established Susanville as a major town in the region. Visitors can take a step back in time and follow Noble's Emigrant Trail since present day roads approximately parallel the trail.
Information: Bureau of Land Management, Eagle Lake Resource Area, Susanville, CA, 530-257-0456.
18 mi. W of Klamath Falls, OR, follow the signs to Topsy Campground from Hwy. 66.
Explore the past and enjoy the beauty of the Klamath River Canyon on an old stagecoach route from Yreka, CA, to Klamath Falls, OR. Its condition has not changed much since it was constructed more than 100 years ago. This is a great four-wheel drive or mountain bike adventure.
Information: BLM, Klamath Falls Resource Area, 541-883-6916.
From Silver Lake, OR, S on Hwy 31 for 18 mi., and right on Forest Service Rd. 2901. Proceed 18 mi. to Road 034 left, and 2 mi. to parking area.
Pathfinder John C. Fremont played an important role in the earliest exploration of the West. Many landmarks in Klamath, Lake, and Modoc Country still bear the names given by this adventurer. A rental cabin, that burned in the Winter Fire of 2002, was located on Winter Rim on the Silver Lake Ranger District and commemorated the overlook where Fremont's party viewed Summer Lake some 3,000 feet below.
Information: Silver Lake Ranger District, 541-576-2107.
This website provided by the Klamath-Lake-Modoc-Siskiyou Outdoor Recreation Working Group with support from these partners:
