Trail Overview

Helester is a Forestry Service road that connects Texas Hill Road to the defunct wildfire lookout atop Helester Point. The majority of the trail will be maintained, with many opportunities to pull off and enjoy the scenery. The latter 2 miles become increasingly challenging, with few spaces to turn around or pass. Helester is a good trail to incrementally increase skill challenges for beginners. While the trail is maintained, fallen trees are common along the latter half of the trail, and it is advised to bring basic trail-clearing tools.

Photos of Helester - FS 19-016

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Difficulty

The majority of the trail is quite easy and traversable in 2WD when dry. The trail changes dramatically at about the 6-mile point, where all-terrain tires and AWD are quite necessary. At about the 7-mile point, the trail becomes much narrower, and the terrain transitions between loose dirt, deep ruts, slick rock, and some slick tree roots, which may prove impassable for many AWD systems. The trail requires 4WD much earlier when wet.

Technical Rating