Deer Lake, Gold Valley

This is not a trail to take lightly. I would rank the trail to be something more like a 6 to 8. Drove it in a 2017 Toyota Tacoma lifted and running on 35” tires. Found some spots to be pretty tight and had to use at times my 4L and rear lockers.

This is NOT AN EAST TRAIL. The loop to avoid snake lake trail is definitely a 5-6. Rear locker and 33s recommended. I was by myself on my 3rd gen 4runner, fully locked. I had no problem, just had to get out and spot 6-7 times while my sister drove. I came down from bassets station so it was much easier than coming up from Graeagle.

We had a club group on this trail. The Gold Valley OHV trail was much more difficult than the 2 rating given by OnX between the lower Snake Lake intersection and the upper Snake Lake Intersection. We had a Renegade Jeep SUV unexpectedly join us and it ripped its front bumper off on a large exposed root. A stock Forerunner had a very difficult time. The lifted Jeeps had no problems.

3rd gen 4runner 33s. Came from Sierra buttes, Made it about half way, a little past eagle lake and had to turn around because of deep snow which is spotty but I just didn’t want to winch. I ll give it another week or two and it will be good to go

From Johnsville, trail blocked just past USFS campground at intersection. Deep snow and downed trees.

Ran trail end to end. Trail is a 2 up to Deer Lake and pretty easy. After that, it’s about a 3 u til you descend down into the valley, where it’s 4-5 the whole way through until you climb back out and up the other side of the canyon. I’m on 33’s with a Gladiator Rubicon and my skid plates took some hits. Might have been avoidable with a spotter, but I just had to scout and go for it. Short wheelbase vehicles would benefit probably. Also expect lots of pinstripes with the overgrowth. Very narrow. Overall a lot of fun. Took a little over 4 hours all the way through to Graegle. A bit more than usual traffic due to hunting activity.

This trail is definitely a 4 after you pass Deer Lake, maybe a 3 to that point. There's a fairly steep descent between Deer Lake and the connector for Snake Lake that you'll need a spotter for if you're short on ground clearance as it's a blind drop and there's a couple of rocks you'll need to navigate. We steered into Snake Lake from there, so can't say how things were past that point. Amazing views! The view of Deer Lake is amazing and worth the trip down if you have the time to dip in the water.

Large obstacles, and large side camber in spots. A few spots where 4 low was required

Trail rating no longer accurate. Most of the trail proper is a 3-4 with a 5 rated rocky climb at 39.654067, -120.704967. We encountered Sprinter vans who tried to enter this trail and had to turn back bc they were misled by the incorrect rating. Also, the trail submission from the Fun Treks info shows the trail stretching from withing Plumas Eureka SP all the way to Packer Saddle. This is misleading and should be broken up into at least three separate trail submissions. We encountered Sprinter vans who tried to enter this trail and had to turn back bc they were misled by the incorrect rating.