Piedra Blanca Trail from Reyes Creek Campground

Bored one weekend Dan Thompson and I decided to take a road trip to the Reyes Creek area. If you have not visited this place I highly recommend you do so. The Reyes ridge along the backside of Pine Mountain has some of the best scenery in my opinion that the Southern Los Padres Has to offer. Loaded with a rich mix of confers, oaks, pines, alders and cottonwood it really is a site to behold. This adventure started as mostly a scouting trip of the Reyes Creek Campground to see if it would be a nice place to take the family sometime and the stream that runs through it I heard might have some fish in it.  Always looking for a place to cast my line in the water I heard this stream was stocked with trout during spring when water levels are high enough to support them. So naturally of course I had to see for myself. Located at 26901 Camp Scheideck Rd, Maricopa, CA 93252 off Highway 33 and Lockwood Valley Rd, this 26 site camp offers creekside spots shaded by oaks and cottonwoods. Right before the Campground is the small community of Camp Scheideck. This was the homestead of Eugene Scheideck founded in 1988 the property now hosts The Reyes creek bar and grill (awesome to be able to get a good burger and beer after a long day of hiking and or camping). You also find below the camp some kind of small Ghost town. I'm not exactly sure of the history of this place but it was sure neat to stumble upon it. I had no clue it was there. All and all I was impressed with everything this little campground had to offer. Hiking, camping, fishing, a bar and grill and ghost town no doubt enough action to keep the family entertained. I will for sure be returning with the wife and kids sometime for a weekend excursion here. This place is run by parks management for  the forest service so Adventure passes are no longer required. Camping is 20 dollars per night and 10 dollars per vehicle for day use.77% of the sites are on a reservation system, 23% are available first come first served basis. For more info or to book a spot visit https://www.recreation.gov/.

                     

After visiting Reyes Creek Camp we took off on the Gene Marshall-Piedra Blanca Trail, which is located on the west side of the campground along the paved road just over a small rise. There is ample parking here and a toilet. The first couple miles of trail climbs out of the canyon ascending an unnamed drainage through oak and chaparral to the top of a saddle. Through this stretch of wilderness you are afforded stunning views of Pine mountain and the chance to look back down the canyon and gaze upon the hills of the Cuyama Badlands.

Descending from the saddle  at about  the 3 mile mark you reach Reyes Creek and  Upper Reyes Trail Camp. Water flow here is mostly year around at this 2 camp site. There are a couple stoves and an immense amount of shade from the surrounding Cedar and oak forest. Situated at an elevation of 4624 ft. This was a very nice spot for us to take a break and then do a little exploring.

From here the trail ascends again  southeast  another 1.5 miles to a saddle before descending down to Beartrap camp at about the 5 mile mark. This stretch of the trip was by far my favorite as far as scenery is concerned. Thick confir, cedar and alder forest make you feel like you've been transported to another realm. The creek here usually flows year around and Beartrap sits at about 5100 ft elevation mark and has access to 5 camp stoves. Not only are the views here amazing but the camp has some interesting yet at the same time sad bit of history. Beartrap got its name from the grizzly bears that used to roam this area. Reports say the Reyes family used this camp to trap them back in the 1800's. At that time many thousands of grizzlies made there home in the backcountry of California. Hunting decimated this poor species and its said that the last remaining grizzly bear was shot in 1922 at a ranch in Tulare County. :( 

               

Because we got a late start on this day Beartrap was our turn around point for this trip. However you can continue on Piedra Blanca trail if you want all the way to the Sespe River. The next campsite about 3.5 miles further you would come to is Haddock camp at 6100 ft elevation. This site has 4 stoves and  good seasonal water, mostly reliable in the summer months.100 percent I will be returning to complete the trail from Reyes Creek Camp down to the Sespe. This place is absolutely magical and definitely warrants a visit if you have the time. 10 miles was our total mileage for the day out and back. A nice stroll it was.

Download GPX File (For GPS Units)

Download KMZ File (For Google Earth)