USA West-Coast Recommendations

Hey friends,
Canuck here hoping to head to the marvellous USA this summer for a camping / light to medium off-roading trip in the Taco and my friends Ranger.
Posting a map of rough route, please feel free to chime in with any suggestions for stops; be it 4x4 trails, hikes, must sees, or anything that comes to mind!
Thank you in advance

 

I'm not sure of off-road trails all throughout your route but there are beautiful hiking and backpacking trails out in Tillamook, OR.

As you head down to central CA, you've got a ton of off-shoots from Highway 1 with places to do some dispersed camping.

There's an awesome OHV park that offers camping called Hollister Hills in CA.

Goes without saying, you should hit up Moab, UT when you start making your way back up north.

Maybe post a new thread when you head out on your adventure? In the event that you come across any obstacles, break-downs, etc. members near you can be tagged in order to offer help.

 

Thanks Kwikvette! Oregon is definitely one that I haven't heard much about so I will look into that

 

TW is a huge community, so you'll never be short on help.

Fyi I added a little tidbit to my post above. I'm sure I'll add more, it's just off the top of my head. I lived on the Central Coast for 10+ years and there's a lot to see out there.

 

You mention summer; I know interior western Canada can get pretty warm too, but don’t under-estimate the heat, both for comfort and especially safety, in the California desert and pretty much all of AZ, UT, and NV in summer. Elevation is your friend, but I have been in Moab twice in summer and had to bail after a day. It’s too pretty there to have to stay inside your vehicle while exploring just to have A/C.

 

Get OnX Offroad and your G2G!

 

Zion and Bryce canyon if you're looking for nice hikes. Lots of trails thru Utah as well.

 

It is hard to tell from your map but it looks like you are just cutting right through the middle of CA on I-5? If so, that won't be very scenic or fun IMO, it's just the quickest way to get through the state. You are better off either going a coastal route (101/1), or further east near Tahoe, Yosemite...take your pick...all depends on how much time you have too and what your interests are. If you go coastal or mountains though expect summer crowds.

 

Avoid Portland.. Sorry, once was so beautiful. Lots of stuff east and west to see though. Unless you're staying on I5 in that stretch.

 

thank you, been once before and you're right its h o t. will have 2 vehicles incase anything goes wrong and tons of water

 

the map is just an outline of what states we are visiting.
we definitely are going to go coastal / interior , but looking for specific input so we can figure out exactly what. thank you for the input!

 

Looks like such a sick loop

 

The Oregon Coast on Hwy 101 is breath taking!!! I've done it many times, southern part (Florence down) is a must!
I have done the entire stretch in one day on a motorcycle... just because.

Going to be a great trip, super jealous.

 

WABDR,ORBDR trail systems from Canadian border on down.

 

Lots to see and do it Utah. Just keep in mind the summer months are quite warm. Like really warm. Northern Utah is more wooded, so tends to be slightly more temperate, and anything past mid-state southbound is the desert southwest you picture in your head. The national parks of Utah are the big tourist traps so just keep that in mind, it can get pretty ridiculous, esp on the weekends.

Bear lake on the UT/ID border is a nice place to beat the heat and take a dip.

Mirror Lake Highway on the east side of Park City is magnificent for a cruise through, and lots of places to camp and hike around.

Brian Head is a neat stopover spot if going between Bryce Canyon / Canyonlands and Zion NP. One of the highest spots in the state, so its nice and cool, even mid-summer.

Bear Lake:




Mirror Lake:



Brian Head (the overlook behind me overlooks the entire valley):



Zion:



Backerei Forscher in Orderville is a must-stop at place.



Long Canyon in Moab is basically just a dirt road, but an Iconic picture:

 

By your map stop #3 looks like around Portland. If you want some light to moderate wheeling check out Tillamook state forest on Highway 6 on the way out to the coast. It's pretty much between Portland and Tillamook. TONS of OHV trails ranging from logging roads to extreme buggy lines. Most of the good trails for trucks are out of the browns camp staging area. Plenty of good easy/moderate trails that are totally runable stock but a set of rock sliders or a good spotter help because they can get tight in a few spots: Powerline (alittle boring but any rig can run it), University Firepower to Cedar Tree (super scenic and fun), hood raiser, and hogsback are among my favorites. You can also dispersed camp throughout the forest for free so lots of camping options.

https://www.oregon.gov/odf/recreation/guides/tsf-ohv-mapside-map.pdf

Then if you're already out that way you can head out to Tillamook on the coast and check out the Dunes at Sand Lake about 15 miles south on the 101. In the scheme of the Oregon Dunes it's one of the smaller OHV areas and you probably only need a few hours in a truck to ride it all but it's still cool and you can drive on the beach.

https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/siuslaw/recreation/recarea/?recid=42689

If you want to spend some more time at the dunes you can head further south to either Florence or Coos bay and the Oregon Dunes National Recreation area. Of the two I recommend Coos Bay, especially in a Truck. Florence has more steeper dunes and in a truck you'll mostly be relegated to a few areas and the beach (but it's still fun). Coos Bay is the largest of the riding areas and is more rolling dunes so it's much more truck friendly and by far the best dunes on the coast to play in. All the dunes have campgrounds near by and sand camping within the dunes themselves. The sand camping is pretty damn fun but is best if you have an RTT opposed to a ground tent. Another perk to camping at the dunes is they rarely have fire bans out there when the rest of the state does. If you really wanted to get rowdy there's also plenty of ATV rental places in the area.

http://www.duneguide.com/sand_dune_guide_oregon_dunes.htm

https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/siuslaw/recreation/recarea/?recid=42465

FYI For all of the Oregon wheeling areas you need an Oregon OHV permit that costs $10 and can be purchased at most gas stations near the riding areas. Also you'll need a flag if you go to the dunes. I've never actually been checked for a permit but it's cheap insurance from a ticket.

You should definitely drive Highway 101 down the coast for some of your trip opposed to I-5 the whole way but I wouldn't necessarily do it the whole way. It is much slower going and would take FOREVER to go 101 the whole way.

Also when you get to Northern California the redwoods are super cool! It can be a bit confusing because it's a collection of many state and national parks ranging in size but the most iconic area to check out is the Tall Trees Grove. It's an easy hike to where the tallest trees in the world stand. I just looked and I guess they changed the permit system. it used to be you just went to the ranger station and they gave you the combination for the locked gate but I guess now you have to apply online so plan ahead and get your permit before hand (I'm guessing this is a covid related change).

https://www.nps.gov/thingstodo/talltreeshike.htm

If you haven't been Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks in Wyoming and Montana are also pretty damn amazing.

I'll try to edit this later to add a few pics

 

fantastic. you're a scholar and an artist thank you for the suggestions! our canadian skin is sure to be hit hard by those insane temps but there's nothing like a novel experience

 

thank you SO much that is very helpful. oregon was not so obviously a 4x4ing place from my limited knowledge but you've opened my eyes!

 

Idaho has a whole hell of a lot of ohv land... Pic any by difficulty and you'll enjoy. Plenty of camping fishing and hiking at most any chunk of land you choose there. While in Oregon, as others have said there's lots to see, Canon Beach, the coast in that area etc.. All that is right in your route..... crater lake, should pull off to hike down into that for sure. The gorge is a sight to see if you ask me, lil out of your way but not if you did a figure 8 and went from Oregon to Idaho or vice versa.
Browns camp offers lots of off road fun. Look up all these places and see what ya think. Also camping at state Parks near Newport is really nice, easy car type camping, also on your route.
If your into fishing, there will be plenty of excellent spots in every state very close to your route.

Edit: besides the Idaho part, all places are in Oregon I mentioned.