Los Padres National Forest · California

Tower OHV

2.3 mi of trail, end to end · native material surface · trail No. 16E24 · trail class 3 · typical grade 10-12% · tread 60-96 inches wide · hiking, bike, atv, e-bike · motorized use allowed

Begins at the forest's mile 0, 35.3511, -120.3521 - no trailhead mapped Drive to where the trail begins

Turkey Flat OHV Campground/Staging Area/Trailhead the Forest Service's write-up

Concession-managed by the Parks Management Company for the Forest Service. $10 day use fee at staging area per vehicle. $30/night for camping.

The site is located on Navajo Road, one quarter of a mile off Parkhill Road. The trailhead parking serves Motorcycles ATV’s. Open daily and year-round, Turkey Flat Campground has an open area of campsites that include picnic tables and two vault toilets. You should plan to be completely self-sustainable for the duration of your trip. There is no potable water (drinking water) onsite. There is no dump station. Near the fee/information boards is a staging area to offload gear.

There is a vault toilet and several picnic tables in a flat area under large oak trees for shade. Powerline and La Canada trails leave from the northwest edge of the area and split beyond the wide sandy stretch of trail. There is a small warm-up/kids track that can be entered from just beyond the vault toilet.

The trailhead and day use area is open all year. However, this area could be closed at times during rainy season to protect roads and trails.

The Turkey Flat Staging Day Use Area is no longer an Adventure Pass recreation site. This site is managed by the Parks Management for the Forest Service. $10/day use fee for parking. $30/camping overnight.

Natural Features

Oak, conifer and various chaparral trees dot the landscape in this rider's paradise. The terrain is mostly rocky and hard packed. On a clear day, take in the expansive views of the coastline and the Sierra Mountains, as well as peaks such as Pozo Summit (elevation 2,635 ft.) and Black Mountain (elevation 3,622 ft.).

Recreation

Appealing to ATVs, quad runners, dual sports and single track riders, visitors will find access to 45 miles of marked and rated trails geared toward the beginner to experienced rider, and all accessible from your camping spot or the day use staging area. The facility even has a kids track for those beginner riders.

Restrictions Pack out all trash. 14 day stay limit.

This trailhead on fs.usda.gov

Every trail in Los Padres National Forest

All 343 trails in Los Padres National ForestFind a trailForest on fs.usda.gov

About this trail's facts

The lines are the US Forest Service's National Forest System trails layer (public domain), read 2026-10-16 and simplified for the map; the length is the line's, end to end, and the class, surface, grade and tread width are the forest's own entries where it publishes them - a forest that publishes the centreline alone has none. The trailheads and the points along the way are the Service's recreation points, and the write-ups its own recarea text, unedited. Heights come from USGS 3DEP through Terrain Tiles on AWS (Mapzen/Tilezen), read along each line and rounded; a short trail on steep ground can be off by a few tens of feet. Closures change: check the forest's own site before you go.