South Wilderness Trail

The trail begins along a service road near a junction with the Bench Trail. Continue along the service road for a short distance and look for an obvious trail marked by a sign on the west side of the road. Follow this trail as it moves through a small valley created by Chalone Creek. The trail, for the most part, remains on the west side of Chalone Creek. The trail crosses the creek bed at a couple points, with at least one portion of the trail in the actual creek bed. These crossings are typically dry though there may be times when there is water at these points. The trail ends at a pig fence that runs west to east across the creek bed. A sign is attached to the fence indicating the end of the trail. As this is an unmaintained trail, there are points where the trail is not so obvious, especially when the trail enters the creek bed. Rock cairns typically mark the path. Additionally, as the grasses and other plants are often taller along unmaintained trails, check for ticks after hiking this trail. Ticks love the unmaintained Pinnacles National Park trails.