Trail Overview
Nestled within a sunny, open pine forest featuring a healthy understory of vibrant green shrubs in the Tahoe National Forest, Hills (FS 0089-036-04) serves as a pleasant and highly accessible backcountry connector. Branching directly off of Sagehen Hills Road, this single-lane route links various forest tracks while providing essential throughput deeper into the local OHV trail network. Outdoor recreationists, off-road enthusiasts, and campers frequent this trail to enjoy a scenic woodland drive, ride ATVs or dirt bikes, and access several spacious roadside dispersed campsites. The driving surface consists of a narrow dirt and gravel track interspersed with mild rocky sections. Regardless of the chosen starting point, the pathway features a gentle uphill climb that briefly transitions from soft dirt to a firmer rocky gravel base before returning to packed earth. Along the journey, travelers will discover multiple inviting dispersed camping clearings, with the largest pullouts capable of comfortably accommodating up to five vehicles. Because this corridor is actively shared with side-by-sides and motorcycles, drivers should remain alert for oncoming recreationists. The trail ultimately concludes at a multi-way junction, allowing for seamless continued exploration of the surrounding wilderness.
Difficulty
This woodland connector features a generally flat and well-defined dirt and gravel foundation. Technical off-road obstacles such as deep mud holes, large high-clearance boulders, steep shelf drop-offs, and deep washouts are completely absent under normal dry weather conditions. Non-technical terrain considerations are strictly limited to navigating scattered embedded surface rocks, managing very gentle inclines, and sharing the narrow single-track corridor with oncoming OHV traffic. Drivers can comfortably maintain a steady cruising speed while utilizing the frequent camping pullouts and widened shoulders to yield to passing trail users.
