Truck Trails in California

[Kyle & Kari Frink]

A series of questions:

• What designates a trail as a truck trail/Where did this first originate?
• Why are so many truck trails private roads?
• Does anyone think that truck trails which are private should have a change of name, so as to not give a false sense of a traversable route?

 

[SubeeBen]

Hey Kyle can you explain ? I have done a lot of off-roading in the San Diego/desert areas & maybe I haven’t noticed but can’t think of any trails that said truck trail. Like I said just in so cal not sure of any trails/roads north of temecula. But sounds like a good valid question. Just my ✌Cents.

 

[Kyle & Kari Frink]

@Jku Ben

Here are three examples:

1. El Captain Truck Trail which turned out to be a private road.
2. Otay Mountain Truck Trail which you can get to from the other side but this entrance shown there are signs posted by the U.S. Border Patrol that no trespassing is allowed on a border patrol access road, but is listed as a Truck Trail.
3. Green Valley Truck Trail is also a private road.

Just a little back story/explanation to when we lived in the state of Washington a "Truck Trail" was typically a type of Forest road/fire route/ just plain unpaved road to the middle of nowhere that was open to the public pretty much everywhere. So with that being said, now living here in Southern California it appears that the title "Truck Trail" is not quite the same as other states.

Now there is one great spot that is accessed by Black Mountain Truck Trail in the Cleveland National Forest north of Ramona that is open to the public, so it seems hit or miss to us and just wanted to see what others had to say.