Exploring The Los Padres National Forest

Over 1000+ Cataloged Locations

Location specific weather reports, recent camp and trail surveys, water data and much more.

Hiking Trails

Explore the hiking trails of the Los Padres National Forest. Combine trails to make loop trips, discover new trails for backpacking, or find new areas to explore.

205 Hiking Trails

• Little Sur Trail
• Lion Canyon Trail
• Stonehouse Trail
• Jesusita Trail
• Madulce Trail

View All 205 Trails →

Camps and Campgrounds

This updated list on camps enables you to find a new camp to visit anytime; we have included all car campgrounds and trail camps in this section.

293 Camps

• Pine Valley Camp
• Buckeye Camp
• Los Prietos Campground
• Rocky Creek Camp
• Manzana Schoolhouse Camp

View All 293 Camps →

O.H.V. Trails

We got you covered on the O.H.V areas, including Google maps view of all trails, slope gains and losses, so you can be prepared for your next off road adventure.

56 OHV Trails

• Ballinger Route 19 OHV…
• Ballinger Route 54 OHV…
• Ballinger Route 10 OHV…
• Queen Bee OHV Trail
• Ballinger Route 49 OHV…

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206 Dirt Roads

• Lime Canyon - Forest…
• Branch Mtn - Forest…
• Cachuma Mtn - Forest…
• Miller Canyon - Forest…

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111 Peaks

• Puerto Del Suelo Peak
• Pine Ridge
• Little Pine Mountain
• South Ventana Cone
• Whiteacre Peak

View All 111 Peaks →

174 Springs

• Chokecherry Spring
• Cobblestone Spring
• Agua Caliente Spring
• Monjas Spring
• Big Spring - Cuyama

View All 174 Springs →

Latest Camp Reports

Please click on a report below to view the survey

Sykes Hot Springs Survey - 10-1-1996 - by Los Padres Forest Association

Link:	Sykes Hot Springs
Date:	10-1-1996
Surveyor Name:	Los Padres Forest Association
Camp Description:	A story about a missed chance at visiting Sykes from 1996. Worth a read: https://www.latimes.com/lifestyle/story/2025-03-03/big-sur-wildfire-threat-camping-survival-story-between-a-rock
Water Source:	Flowing
Water Source Details:
Weather Conditions:

Mono Campground Survey - 1-1-2024 - by Los Padres Forest Association

Link:	Mono Campground
Date:	1-1-2024
Surveyor Name:	Los Padres Forest Association
Camp Description:	Historic video showing the construction of the Mono Debris Dam from 1936, enjoy! https://archive.org/details/CCCAtMono1936
Water Source:	Flowing
Water Source Details:
Weather Conditions:

Happy Hunting Ground Camp Survey - 05-04-2025 - by Luna

Link:	Happy Hunting Ground Camp
Date:	05-04-2025
Surveyor Name:	Luna
Camp Description:
Water Source:	Flowing
Water Source Details:	trickle at camp, but better flow a few hundred feet upstream
Weather Conditions:

White Ledge Camp - San Rafael Wilderness Survey - 05-03-2025 - by Luna

Link:	White Ledge Camp - San Rafael Wilderness
Date:	05-03-2025
Surveyor Name:	Luna
Camp Description:	Camp is in beautiful condition. Shade for your tent and early and late sun for the creek.
Water Source:	Flowing
Water Source Details:	good flow, pools a few feet deep
Weather Conditions:

Three Mile Camp Survey - 05-01-2025 - by Anonymous Surveyor

Link:	Three Mile Camp
Date:	05-01-2025
Surveyor Name:	Anonymous Surveyor
Camp Description:	Camp is in good shape. Clean. Quality water right at camp. Trail in decent condition.
Water Source:	Flowing
Water Source Details:
Weather Conditions:

Pine Mountain Lodge Camp Survey - 05-01-2025 - by Anonymous Surveyor

Link:	Pine Mountain Lodge Camp
Date:	05-01-2025
Surveyor Name:	Anonymous Surveyor
Camp Description:	Main camp was pretty trashed from previous use by a “Bushcrafter” We destroyed the sleeping area they built under a juvenile cedar and packed out two bags of garbage left behind. Hope they got stuck in the snowstorm the prior weekend! Inexcusable. Camp was in much better condition upon our departure two days later and let’s hope it stays that way. Trail was in good shape coming from Three Mile and great shape headed to Piedra Blanca.  P.S. Brian I have your engraved knife you left behind…
Water Source:	Flowing
Water Source Details:
Weather Conditions:

Haddock Camp Survey - 04-30-2025 - by Anonymous Surveyor

Link:	Haddock Camp
Date:	04-30-2025
Surveyor Name:	Anonymous Surveyor
Camp Description:	Camp was in good condition. Typical trash and glass in the main fire ring from previous users, but overall pretty clean. Plenty of places to sleep, decent downed wood for fire, and flowing pools of water next to camp.
Water Source:	Flowing
Water Source Details:
Weather Conditions:

Beartrap Camp Survey - 04-30-2025 - by Anonymous Surveyor

Link:	Beartrap Camp
Date:	04-30-2025
Surveyor Name:	Anonymous Surveyor
Camp Description:	Main camp in its usual excellent condition. Plenty of water. Upper camps were a bit run down, but could be straightened up in half an hour. Trail up and over to Haddock was brushy but straightforward and fairly easy to follow. Took about two hours with breaks. Beautiful Trees
Water Source:	Flowing
Water Source Details:
Weather Conditions:

Upper Reyes Camp Survey - 04-30-2025 - by Anonymous Surveyor

Link:	Upper Reyes Camp
Date:	04-30-2025
Surveyor Name:	Anonymous Surveyor
Camp Description:	Good water. Clean camp. Be nice with a kid in the summer.
Water Source:	Flowing
Water Source Details:
Weather Conditions:

Chorro Grande Camp Survey - 04-28-2025 - by Anonymous Surveyor

Link:	Chorro Grande Camp
Date:	04-28-2025
Surveyor Name:	Anonymous Surveyor
Camp Description:	One fire box and one stone fire ring were setup at the camp. A bit of snow was left on the ground the first day. I could hear significant wind gusts in the trees during the night, however the campsite is very well sheltered from the wind so it was not a problem.
Water Source:	Trickle
Water Source Details:	Plenty for filling water bottles
Weather Conditions:	60F during the day and low 30s at night

Latest Trail Reports

Please click on a report below to view the survey

Santa Barbara Canyon Trail Survey - 05-03-2025 - by Ian Jackson

Link:	Santa Barbara Canyon Trail
Date:	05-03-2025
Surveyor Name:	Ian Jackson
Trail description:	Hiked from Madulce down to the trailhead and the trail is in pretty great shape.  - The new switchback section on heartbreak hill is amazing with excellent tread and clearance. - Middle section of the trail has some brushy spots but to be expected with how much time it spends along the creek bottom.
Mode of transport:	Hike
Trail condition:	Good shape and easy to follow

Madulce Trail Survey - 05-02-2025 - by Ian Jackson

Link:	Madulce Trail
Date:	05-02-2025
Surveyor Name:	Ian Jackson
Trail description:	Hiked from Buckhord Rd. down to Madulce. Trail was easy to follow but getting pretty brushy throughout.  A big downed conifer halfway between Buckhorn and Madulce was a little tricky to get around.
Mode of transport:	Hike
Trail condition:	Needs some work

Johnston Ridge Trail Survey - 04-30-2025 - by Tom Fritz

Link:	Johnston Ridge Trail
Date:	04-30-2025
Surveyor Name:	Tom Fritz
Trail description:	Hiked this in its entirety from North to South, from the intersection with the StoneHouse trail, down to the intersection with the trail to Shady camp. The Mutau Creek had good flow. No water at the intersection where the trail to Little Mutau splits off. The unnamed creek coming out of the watershed/canyon that's to your right as you're heading down-ridge was running clear and cold. The trail wasn't too bad, but needs some work. It's getting tight in some places. Permethrin was the word of the day. Once you've left the split to Little Mutau, where the big-iron-motorbike trap is, the trail to the top of the first ridge has a shrub or two growing up out of the tread causing some work-arounds in the trail. Once you've hit the top of this first ridge (1.2 mi from the SH/JR intersection), the scrub starts to close-in. In .3 mile, the trail takes its first switchback off the old firebreak you notice you've started hiking on. Looking down this switchback, the washed out trail and the manzanita overgrowth at that point forced my hand to continue down the old firebreak. In another .1 mi, the trail switches back to the right (off the firebreak, and down into a small meadowy-pocket). This is the area where those weird oval-shaped, "salami-cut," trail signs are located. That portion of the trail has been slowly filling with brush over the past several years. Looked like a thrash – so I kept to the fire-break for another .1mi, and then dropped down to rejoin the trail where one can clearly see it heading south, appearing as an old road. The trail is in fairly good shape until you reach that portion where the trail is on the southwest-facing portion of the ridge (where you've lost sight of peneplains to the east). That's where the brush starts to squeeze-in again. Judicial lopping in places has helped (and is gratefully appreciated!! – Thank you!!), but it'll soon need more attention. Once I reached the bottom, I had the entire hot springs area to myself. Enjoyed a soak and continued on my way down-canyon. Poison oak is more than abundant in the usual spots heading down to the creek-crossing before Sespe camp, and the rest of the way to the metal "Trail 20W12" sign. Blue-bird skies with puffy clouds made for a beautiful hike.
Mode of transport:	Hike
Trail condition:	Needs some work

Piedra Blanca Trail Survey - 04-30-2025 - by Anonymous Surveyor

Link:	Piedra Blanca Trail
Date:	04-30-2025
Surveyor Name:	Anonymous Surveyor
Trail description:	Three night trip from Reyes to Piedra Blanca. Typically good trail conditions as far as Beartrap. Decent water at most crossings, but warming up on the Cuyama side. Saw one rattler about an hour into hike. Didn’t see another until a mile from Piedra Blanca four days later.  Trail from Beatrap to Haddock was overgrown and brushy, but easy to follow and overall not as bad as we had expected. Took about two hours with breaks to get to Haddock. Minimal poison oak thankfully. Haddock was in good condition with ample water and sleep areas. Trail from Haddock to Three Mile was pretty straightforward, but you need to pay attention in several spots to not lose the trail. Tread in good condition with minor brush. Section from Three Mile to Pine Mountain Lodge was in good shape and easy to follow.  Spent two nights at PML. Camp was trashed by a “Bushcrafter” but we cleaned it up and spent some quality time in camp waiting out a thunder and lightning storm. Water was plentiful and close to camp. Day hiked to junction of Fishbowls trail and Cedar Creek. Extremely dry up high. We saw no flowing water and only two stagnant puddles the whole way. Gonna be a dry summer. Trail was in excellent condition and easy to follow. Beautiful rocks, trees and views on top.  Trail down to Piedra was in amazing condition thanks to the recent work from the LPFA
Mode of transport:	Hike
Trail condition:	Needs some work
Condition details:	Reyes to Piedra Blanca from Camp Scheideck

Sisquoc Trail Upper Survey - 04-30-2025 - by Ian Jackson

Link:	Sisquoc Trail Upper
Date:	04-30-2025
Surveyor Name:	Ian Jackson
Trail description:	Report from Mansfield to Alamar Saddle: - Trail is in good shape and easy to follow from Mansfield to Heath camp. - From Heath to Lower Bear, the trail is easy to follow, just getting a bit overgrown in spots. Nothing too bad. - The Devil's Slide zone is in pretty good shape. Could use tread work in some spots. - From just before Middle Bear to Upper Bear is a bit of an obstacle course. Quite a bit of deadfall and brush to navigate. -Trail is good from Upper Bear to Alamar saddle
Mode of transport:	Hike
Trail condition:	Needs some work

Fishbowls Trail Survey - 04-29-2025 - by Tom Fritz

Link:	Fishbowls Trail
Date:	04-29-2025
Surveyor Name:	Tom Fritz
Trail description:	Hiked the entire length of the Fishbowl trail from the Pine Mountain Lodge/Cedar Creek intersection to the Trailhead at Grade Valley Rd. No blowdowns to report. Water was flowing well at Fishbowls Camp. Although some of the crossings have been "rearranged" with all the water flow in the past couple years, they pretty much follow the course and aren't difficult to navigate.
Mode of transport:	Hike
Trail condition:	Good shape and easy to follow

Stonehouse Trail Survey - 04-29-2025 - by Tom Fritz

Link:	Stonehouse Trail
Date:	04-29-2025
Surveyor Name:	Tom Fritz
Trail description:	Hiked the Stonehouse trail from where the Mutau Creek meets up with the Piru, southwest to where the intersection with Johnston Ridge Trail.   Trail was in good shape. No large blowdowns. It seemed as though the area is seeing less quad/moto activity as in years past – when it was starting to feel like I was walking through an OHV area! Having said that, I followed a single motorcycle track the entire way. Water flowing well out of Alamo Creek into the Mutau. And the Mutau was flowing the entire way out of Mutau Flats – it hasn't gone underground yet near the big sandy crossing. All stream crossings were straight-forward.
Mode of transport:	Hike
Trail condition:	Good shape and easy to follow

Piedra Blanca Trail Survey - 04-28-2025 - by Tom Fritz

Link:	Piedra Blanca Trail
Date:	04-28-2025
Surveyor Name:	Tom Fritz
Trail description:	Hiked from the Piedra Blanca TH to Pine Mountain Lodge (doing a Sespe Loop). Good water flow in all the usual places. The trail was in great shape most of the way. Poison oak is getting thick in the usual spots in the canyon bottom past Twin Forks camp and continuing on up-canyon. The recent trail clearing on the long uphill was amazing! Thank you to the trail crews for the hard work!! Much appreciated!   Brush started to close in up toward the crest where you level out, but I've seen this area in far worse condition – I just pushed through. Water was flowing well at the old PML cabin site. From here I continued on the trail towards Fishbowls camp.
Mode of transport:	Hike
Trail condition:	Good shape and easy to follow

Judell Trail Survey - 04-28-2025 - by Ian Jackson

Link:	Judell Trail
Date:	04-28-2025
Surveyor Name:	Ian Jackson
Trail description:	Awesome canyon! Trail is in pretty good shape, just some deadfall to navigate in the upper third of the canyon and getting a bit brushy in spots, mostly in the lower half of the canyon. - Around 5 spots in the upper canyon with deadfall. You can walk around at one spot, while the others require some duck unders/hop overs. Nothing too crazy. - A bit overgrown in the lower half of the canyon, but it's spotty and the brush is mostly softer stuff. One spot where poison oak was unavoidable. - A couple instances where the trail crosses the creek or comes right down to the bank, where it took a second to pick the trail back up.  - One 20ft section of trail requires a bit of a tight rope walk between dense chaparral and the creek bed 10 ft below
Mode of transport:	Hike
Trail condition:	Needs some work

Alamar Trail Survey - 04-27-2025 - by Horner

Link:	Alamar Trail
Date:	04-27-2025
Surveyor Name:	Horner
Trail description:	Trail overall is severely overgrown, washed out in some spots, and in need of maintenance. -Alamar Saddle to Unnamed Camp at the bottom of the switchbacks (34.68899, -119.60778) is overgrown with whitethorn ceanothus but mostly followable with alternating periods of smooth sailing, crawling, and everything in between. The tread on some of the switchbacks and steeper slopes is very faint and narrow.  -Unnamed Camp to Bill Farris is severely overgrown and slow going with lots of crawling.  -The creek crossing just south of Bill Farris washed out (trail crosses a tributary that comes in from the east). Trail was difficult to pick up here, it looks like water/debris got very high and gouged out new banks, taking out any crossings or trail markers that were here before. This crossing looks very similar to damage I observed in Montecito after the 2022/23 storms. Stay high here and do not cross the main creek. -Bill Farris to Dutch Oven involves less crawling as the trail moves higher into slower growing vegetation types. Still brushy and still needs work, but the chaparral here is easier to move through. There are many small washouts in this section where brush on the uphill side pushes hikers off the tread. Spot treading would be very helpful in this area.  -Dutch Oven to Rollins to Lower Alamar/Tin Shack is severely overgrown and difficult to follow. There are a few sections where you can pick up the trail and make decent time, but we spent most of this section wandering the creek bed looking for signs of the trail. In some places the riparian vegetation is so thick and the banks are so high that the only logical path was the creek bed. I would estimate over 50% of the trail is completely gone between Dutch Oven and Lower Alamar.  We planned for slow going and it was even slower than expected. Never exceeded 1 mile per hour. It took our group of experienced backpackers and bushwhackers a full day of very hard work to travel downhill from Alamar Saddle to Dutch Oven, and most of an additional long day to reach Lower Alamar. All camps had good flowing water. Every inch of the Alamar Trail needs maintenance. With that said, it is still somewhat followable in sections that are above recent high water levels. We couldn’t help but marvel at the effect that quality trail building and maintenance can have - even in the worst of the brush, a wide trail corridor that was cut in years past is still visible to the attuned eye. While crawling through whitethorn is always tough, it is still significantly easier and faster to crawl along the trail than to travel off trail in the thick chaparral.
Mode of transport:	Hike
Trail condition:	Hard to follow