Mountains to Desert - Green Valley Lake to Hesperia - Trucks 4x4 @ Off-Road.com
Trucks & 4x4 »

Price and Compare Vehicles:
New, Used, and Powersports    Go button

Mountains to Desert - Green Valley Lake to HesperiaGreen Valley Lake to Hesperia
Publish date: Jul 1, 1997
By:  ORC STAFF
Source: Suzuki/Geo at Off-Road.com

Note: An Adventure Pass may be required.

Unplanned trips are getting to be a habit. It seems that I never know when I can get away for a little wheelin', and that when I do get away, I never end up where I started out to go.

I was originally thinking of going via 3N16 and a couple of other roads in the San Bernardino National Forest to Holcomb Valley and Big Bear Lake from Green Valley Lake, but then this other way looked sorta interesting?

The start of this trip was from Green Valley Lake Road. You can reach Green Valley Lake Road by ascending from either the western end of San Bernardino on Waterman Canyon Road to Rim of the World Drive (California 18), or from the eastern end of San Bernardino on City Creek Road (California 330). On either route, pass through Running Springs on the way towards Big Bear Lake, and in Arrowbear you'll find a left (north) turn for Green Valley Lake Road. Some ways down the road is another left (to the north-northwest) onto Crab Flats Road (3N16).

From there, the table below list way-points and mileage, and the occasional brief note.

Miles between pointsTotal MileageNotes
3N16
0.0		0.0Start of 3N16 (street legal vehicles only) at Green Valley Lake Road.
1.81.82N12X and 2N54 on right. This is a designated ATV staging area. 2N12X is restricted to ATV (50" width limit) and motorcycles only.
0.72.53N160 on left.
1.23.73N16 continues to Big Pine Flats Campground (8 miles). 3N34 heads left to Crab Flats Campground (1/4 mile) and Tent Peg Campground (1 mile) ultimately to Deep Creek's T6 crossing which will return you to Lake Arrowhead via Cedar Glen. See Deep Creek Wild Trout Area for notes on the T6 crossing.
3.06.73N93 is on the right. This is a boulder strewn out-wash, labeled by the Forest Service as "Most Difficult." It's motorcycles and 4WD only, and looks like it might make a nice run for people equipped for rock-crawling. It ultimately connects to 3N14 southeast of Big Pine Flats.
2.28.92N06X on the right, 4WD only.
3.3

Left turn
onto 3N14

12.2I turn left (west) onto 3N14 at Big Pine Flats Campground. There's a number of roads that meet here, and there's even a very short paved section. 3N14 (street legal vehicles only) crosses 3N16 from the west turning southeast. 3N11, open to all motorcycles, 4WD and ATVs continues to the northeast. 1W17 is a brief distance to the west down 3N14 and is for ATV (50" width limit) and motorcycle use. Also nearby are 3N04Y, 3N92 and 3N97.
3N14
2.7		14.93N41 on left. The beginning of a burn recovery area. This marks the beginning of the "desert" portion of the trip.
1.716.6An old cattle pen on the left.
0.917.53N96 on left.
0.2

Left fork

17.7I take the left fork (west) staying on 3N14. 4N16 on the right continues to the Lucerne Valley (12 miles) via Horse Springs Campground. 3N14 continues to Apple Valley (15 miles).
2.2

Left fork
onto 3N59

19.9I take the left fork (west) onto 3N59. 3N14 (right fork) continues to Apple Valley. 3N59 is not designated as "Difficult", but will quickly connect to 3N59A which is rated as "Difficult". See the next note about 3N59.
3N59
0.9

Bear right
onto 3N59A

20.8Bearing right, I turn onto 3N59A. Continuing on 3N59 will eventually cause you to have to reverse course in a 4WD vehicle. It eventually connects to 2W01 a motorcycle only (24" width limit) route to Devil's Hole Crossing on Deep Creek, and the other connecting roads are currently closed to all motorized vehicles.
3N59A
1.5		22.3Beginning of BLM land. There's a road (unmarked as far as I could tell) on the right.
2.524.8What at first appears to be an unmarked fork actually has a marker (look sharp and you'll find it) for 3N59A. 3N59A continues to the left. The road to the right is undesignated as far as I could see. 3N59A is now designated as "Easy".
0.225.0Deep Creek Hot Springs. Left will continue on 3N59A, again designated as "Difficult", and eventually (about 6 more miles) to Deep Creek Road in Hesperia. There really are hot springs here, and I am told it's not a bad place to stop. Wish I had time that day. A right will place you on a private road that leads to the Bowen Ranch. Be advised that you could be charged $3 per person. Believe it or not, this is California's oldest continually operated Toll Road (serving their campground) and has been in existence since 1924. (You can guess which way I went, right? I missed the marker?)

Deep Creek Hot Springs

  • On public land
  • No glass containers
  • No campfires
  • No camping at the springs
1.726.7The Bowen Ranch
6221 Bowen Ranch Road
Apple Valley CA 92308

"Gateway to Deep Creek Hot Springs"

Thanks to Mike Castro for the info sheet and the conversation!

Rates and Rules
  • Ranch speed limit is 5MPH
  • $3 per person per day (day trips)
  • $4 per person per day for overnight camping.
  • Bring good hiking shoes
  • Bring any food you'll want
  • Bring water (this is a dry campground, there's no water available
  • Bring a trash bag to carry out your trash
  • No fireworks
  • No guns
  • No tan lines?
5.231.9Bowen's Ranch Road out to Roundup Way (county road) in Apple Valley. Left on Roundup Way is the shortest way back to Interstate 15, via Hesperia.

Off-road distanceApprox. 32 miles
Elapsed time (off-road)About 4 hours (with no hot springs stop)
Thomas GuideSB County (1996)
pp. 519, 4658, 4660, 4568, 4567 and 4478
post a comment
Please complete the form below to post your comment.
Bold = Required
Email Address Your email address will NOT be published.
Display Name appears with your comment
City
State
Country
Remember me: YesNo
Comment read our privacy policy
Note: does not support HTML
All comments submitted are subject to review, and may be delayed before posting. We reserve the right not to post comments.
About the Author
Untitled Document
Sponsored Links
HOLY CRAP Or Your Money Back -
Once you try it - we dare you to drive without it. To learn more click here.
Off-Road Videos -
Check out over ten years of extreme 4x4 action, product testing and the Off Road Nation at play. Baja racing to rock crawling, ATVs in the sand to motorcycles in the dirt, it's all here. Rate them, share them and upload your own.
ATV Reviews -
Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha, Polaris, Kawasaki, Can-Am. First rides to long-term tests, check out the latest in ATVs, UTVs and Side-by-Side vehicles of every make and model. Read expert opinions and follow custom project vehicles.
Own your very own Off Road Superstore.....
How many times have you pondered the idea of owning your very own off road shop? Let the staff at Off Road Innovations, one of the largest aftermarket off road accessory dealers in the US, help turn your hobby into a profitable career. Go to www.offroadinc.net for more info or just call 800-809-6088.
MSD Ignition Rebate!
Fire up with MSD Ignition and receive Cash for Cruising! Click on the link to find out the latest cash back rebate from MSD.

Enewsletters

Stay on Top of All the Action:
Sign up for Off-Road.com's Enewsletters

You'll need to upgrade your Flash Player to view the GoodYear Tire Search
Source: Suzuki/Geo at Off-Road.com, 7/1/1997
Click here