Anyone know any good places to go riding at in Ojai or Ventura? Or closeby? Also, if anyone is in the area and wants someone to go riding with, I'm just starting and would like to go with someone who knows more than me! :worship:
Try posting in the SoCal Wrecking Crew forum. I'm sure there's someone in there that know's of riding opportunities in your area. The closest one I know about is Hungry Valley in Gorman. Good luck!
desterram - you should check out Ballinger Canyon. It is in the Los Padres National Forest, just off of Hwy 33, a few miles south of its intersection with Hwy 166. Its in the extrme NE corner of Santa Barbara County and NW corner of Ventura Co.
Ballinger has a network of marked trails; mostly intermediate. Some very fun sand washes and razor back ridges. I've only been there once, but it was decent and I'd certainly go back. I'll guess 70-80 miles of marked trails. You are supposed to have a forest 'adventure pass' to ride there; you can get one from most big sporting goods stores.
From Ojai, it is probably closer than Gorman/Hungry Valley.
THanks dirt bike dave. I'll check it out! I figure tomarrow I'll go to the ranger staion too, and see if they have maps for OHV's. How do you get to ballinger canyon? Take the 33 towards ventura, go north on the 101?
Ballinger Canyon Road intersects with Highway 33, approx. 40 miles north of Ojai. It is about 3 miles south of the intersection of Hwy 33 and Hwy 166, so if you hit 166 you have gone too far north.
From northbound 33, turn right on Ballinger Canyon Road. The staging area is about 2.5 miles off of Hwy 33. There are some restrooms, but no RV hook-ups. Definitely try to pick up a map before you go - there may be maps on a billboard at the staging area, but don't count on it.
Word of warning - when cresting the blind hills, slow down! Some drop steeply as they roller coaster up and won. As with other USFS riding areas, many of the best trails are the ones that are farthest from the staging areas.
Ballinger would be the closest, with Gorman/Hungry Valley second; the latter requires driving east to Valencia then up the 5, whereas the former winding north up the 33 as DBD said. Rowher Flat/Texas Canyon is another to consider although rather challenging; it's off of Sierra Hwy on the wasy to palmdale. They have trials events there if that gives you a clue as to the difficulty.
There’s not a whole lot around your area otherwise, so expect some driving to get to the finer desert areas, and it would certainly be worth it.
Look in this forum for an upcoming announcement - as soon as some rain falls on Ballinger - or email me at hit-n-miss@(removeToSend)dslextreme.com for advance notice. I’m considering going there rain or shine on the 25th or thereabouts.
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