Bradshaw's Trail

Total Miles 69.3
Technical Rating
2 Easy
Best Time Spring, Fall, Winter
Trail Type Full-Width Road
Accessible By
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Bradshaw's Trail trail photo

Trail Overview

Bradshaw's Trail is roughly a 70-mile-long trail stretching from Blythe, CA, to the eastern side of the Salton Sea. The trail runs east to west although it can be traveled from either end, and goes through the Chuckwalla Mountains and the Chocolate Mountain Aerial Gunnery Range. The main trail is a periodically maintained dirt trail with soft sand washes and gravel areas requiring 4WD. There are many side trails that stem off from the main trail, so try to stay on the most trafficked path to avoid going in the wrong direction.

Photos of Bradshaw's Trail

Difficulty

The main trail is pretty flat with the occasional sand washes or gravel sections.

History

The Bradshaw Trail was first used as a gold mining route that connected San Bernadino County to La Paz, AZ. The trail was first blazed by William Bradshaw in 1862, who wanted to connect the goldfields in La Paz to southern California. It became to be a very popular overland stage route that was used to haul miners and their gold from Riverside county to the Colorado River.

Technical Rating

2

Status Reports

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Kepler Kramer
Mar 19, 2026
Open
Some washboarding. Some soft sand. Stock Wrangler with all- terrains was fine.
Disco Overlander
Feb 02, 2026
Open
Trail's in good shape. Recently graded a few washboards but not too bad. Stunning views of the whole area
Ronnie Gutierrez
Jan 31, 2026
Open
Started from the Salton Sea side (west) and went all the way to the Eagle Mountain Railroad Bridge. It was pretty empty, saw 2 vehicles and a group of SxS the whole day.
Miles Fenwick
Dec 27, 2025
Open
Bradshaw is easy, it's been groomed recently and you notice it. Smooth.
Daniel Wallace
Oct 12, 2025
Open
Miles Fenwick
Jun 07, 2025
Open
Great easy trail! Seems to have been maintained recently, or I aired-down too much. Definitely some washboards, but I've seen worse on the trail. Said "Hi" to Lenny! ❤️ (if you know, you know!) Otherwise stop at the bridge to learn more.
Dan Jessup
Apr 04, 2025
Open
Cat Food
Mar 22, 2025
Open
It's a fun trail, lots of washboard, like miles and miles of it. I decided to run just the Bradshaw trail this time. There are offshoot trails, which might be funner. Nothing wrong with the trail at all. It was just single fireroad. There are beautiful views of course! Ate lunch at the trestle bridge. Great views from the top of the bridge. Of course, SxS's are thrashing the trail, wish they were the same width at standard trucks/jeeps/suv. Some of the trail is rutted from sxs's so be careful. Picked up lots of trash. Please clean up after yourselves. To long a drive to this trail for me to run any time soon (over 2.5 hours to trailhead).
Andrew Bate
Feb 06, 2025
Open
This was the first overnight trip for me and my daughter and proved to be a perfect way to begin our over-landing adventures together. :) We started at the Salton Sea with a steep (for us newbies) incline and headed east to Blythe. Overall it was a very straight forward and enjoyable trail. There’s lots of side trails though if you’re more experienced and want to take on something more challenging. We chickened out of a trail promising to lead to a gold mine, but will definitely be coming back to explore further in the future.
Miles Fenwick
Jul 25, 2024
Open
Trail was open from SR2013 Red Canyon Jeep Trail to Salton Sea
Adam Juhasz
Jun 20, 2024
Open
Forestry Ranger was at the gate when I arrived and said it was temporarily closed. Didn't state why
Alexandro Valdivia
May 11, 2024
Open
Peaceful trail. Lengthy, so plan accordingly. IG: @Puddles392_ReptarBraptor
Miles Fenwick
May 07, 2024
Open
Typical Bradshaw, not hard, just long. Saw my first desert tortoise on the side of the trail. Big guy, size of a soccer ball! Very cool!
Fredo O
Apr 29, 2024
Open
RC Bitting
Apr 14, 2024
Open
Easy wide dry river bed via the west side of the trail. We did not traverse the East side.

Bradshaw's Trail Trail can be accessed by the following ride types:

  • Single Track
  • High Clearance
  • Full Width

Bradshaw's Trail Map

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