Good News, Bad News

Posted: June 4, 2025 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , | Leave a comment

The good news is that the gate on Forest Road 03 has been opened. That’s the first gate off Highway 89 going up Blackwood Canyon. The gate was supposed to be opened on the 1st but was not. I’m not sure when it opened.

The bad news is that the gate on our OHV trail 15N38, the Middle Fork Trail, is still closed. This gate should have been opened for use of the trail on June 1st.

So, change of plans, I headed out to the Rubicon in search of another side trail. I headed up the Buck Lake Trail, 14N40. It’s not an overly difficult trail except for one short, but steep, section.

I wasn’t the first, but I was the first since a significant snow melt.

There was one tree across the Trail. Now you see it…

Now you don’t…

I did drop into the Buck Lake campground area. There are a few trees down blocking the campground. Sorry, but I didn’t take the time to clear them.

Here’s the difficult section. There is a winch post installed above this section because it is that difficult.

Have I mentioned the great views from this trail?

Here’s where my travels ended today. I tried it slow. I tried it fast. But I kept getting pushed off to the right. I could have winched through it but I figured someone was trying to tell me to turn around. I imagine there are more snow drifts along the Ellis trails.

With that snow drift shortening my day, I decided to drive home through South Lake Tahoe and stop at the Forest Service office and ask why the Middle Fork Trail is closed.

Maybe another day.

I did send an email on Monday asking about the gates still closed after their opening dates. I will send out another tonight.

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Rubicon Ronin

There’s Still Snow!

Posted: June 1, 2025 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , | Leave a comment

The plan was to go in through Blackwood Canyon and up the Middle Fork Trail (15N38) and clear trees to the summit. If we had time, we were going to head down the Red Cabin Trail (upper hobbit/Barker Meadow OHV Trail, 16E79) and then down the actual Hobbit Trail (16E76).

Well, the gate at the bottom of Forest Service Road 03 was still locked. Long story for later. So, we headed over to the Rubicon to go around the back way.

When we got to the intersection of the Rubicon and Forest Road 03-04, we took 03-04 toward Barker Pass. It wasn’t too long before we found trees that needed attention. This is actually the third tree we removed. The first was on the Rubicon and people had stacked rocks to get over it!

Some were so rotten, we just pulled them to the side. So many times I forgot to get out the camera.

This one took some rigging for the winch to be able to pull it to the side.

As we got around the north side of Ellis Peak, the snow became deeper. The snow wheeling was actually pretty fun. The snow kept traction as long as you were going stupid slow.

We made it past Bear Lake but the northern aspect protected the snow and it was becoming quite a side hill.

Here is the guy in front of me dropping down the last hill we went down.

We finally came to a downhill section we decided we didn’t want to crawl back up. We turned around and headed home. The side hill was pretty steep right here but it doesn’t show.

We never made it over to any of the three trails we were trying to get to. I will be looking into the situation with the locked gates.

On the way out, We stopped at the Rubicon intersection and met two side-by-sides going out 03-04. They were locals who had been clearing trees on a bunch of side trails for the last three weeks! Awesome.

I need to thank Stan and John for hanging out today. Always safer with others. Maybe we’ll get out next week and clear more trails.

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Rubicon Ronin

Clearing Trees, Finding Snow

Posted: June 16, 2024 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , | Leave a comment

Today was supposed to be my annual spring tree clearing trip for the side trails along the Rubicon Trail.

When I got to the bottom of the Middle Fork Trail, I found the gate still locked. It was supposed to be unlocked on June 1st. The gate on the paved road to the top of Barker Pass was also locked. It was supposed to be unlocked on June 15th.

I’ve already sent an email to the Forest Service complaining.

So, not able to clear 15N38, 16E79 and 16E76, I headed for the Rubicon. I went up the Sourdough Trail and cleared eight trees from the trail. I was the first 4-wheeled vehicle to the top this year. But it looked like a pair of motorcycles had already made the journey.

Work smarter, not harder. Fewer chainsaw cuts and more winching.

My reward for clearing that first tree was three down in the same area, right around the corner.

With time on my hands, I tried my luck up the Ellis Lake/Peak Trail. It is quite narrow these days. I was able to get to the area with the open meadow.

This one/group was on the Ellis Peak/Lake Trail. I left it as it was quite large and the go around was not crazy off trail.

Further up the Ellis Trail the snow became more than I was willing to take on. I had already busted through a few drifts and winched over one.

The trail is under all that snow as it goes into the trees! Think side hill on slippery snow, sliding into the trees. No thanks.

I also popped up the Buck Lake Trail but only to the lake, not above. Maybe next week I’n try again, but the FS needs to open a few gates.

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Rubicon Ronin

Seasonal Trail Closures

Posted: November 7, 2023 | Author: | Filed under: Access, Travel | Tags: , , | Leave a comment

As many are now reporting, the USFS has started closing gates for the winter. This happens every year.

The Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit (LTBMU) is the first to close Rubicon area trails, by closing Forest Road 03 in Blackwood Canyon, June 15th – November 5th. This is the paved road to the summit of Barker Pass. The (second) lower gate is just past the river crossing before you head up the hill. There is a gate at the top that should also be closed. It reopens June 15th, depending on road conditions, typically, it’s a late opening due to snow.

I should mention that the Forest Service does not have the best record for closing the gates on BOTH ends of a trail. Just because a gate might be open at the top, do not expect the gate at the bottom to be open if it’s past the closure date.

Other LTBMU trails around the Rubicon SHOULD be open through November 15th: Noonchester Mine Road (14N34A), Buck Lake Trail (14N40) no upper gate, Ellis Peak (14N40B), Middle Fork Trail (15N38).

Forest Road 03 should close on November 16th but is typically left open to the river late, so people can collect Christmas trees, FS permit required. Forest Road 03 will close to wheeled vehicles for the winter, but is a ‘Winter Sno Park’ area for snowmobiles. A parking permit is required to park at the Kaspian Campground parking lot.

Many roads around the Rubicon are open until January 1st: Forest Road 03-04, Upper Barker Meadow (16E79), Lower Barker Meadow (16E76), Long Lake Trail (16E12), Ellis Lake Trail (16E18), Richardson Lake Trail (14N39).

It is the user’s responsibility to know the closure dates and to know where you are at all times.

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Rubicon Ronin

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