Trail Overview
Fir - Forest Road 13042 is a there-and-back trail open to all vehicle types, but it ends at an ungated ORV trail. This trail makes up the southern portion of the FIR route and runs from its intersection with Forest Road 13043 and Forest Road 34615 to its endpoint at FIT South. This trail is a moderately maintained forest road with a loose sandy base. The trail has many blind corners, as well as gentle rolling hills across the trail. There are many baseball-sized rocks scattered throughout the trail's surface, which can make for a bumpy ride depending on how the rocks are grouped. The trail is just over one vehicle wide for most of its length but does have room in most areas for vehicles to pull over and pass. The trail's difficulty remains the same when traveled from either direction. When traveling west to east, the trail's surrounding scenery is mostly mature pines and hardwoods, scattered across a gently rolling landscape. As the trail continues further east, the scenery is dominated by wind-torn trees, thanks to a tornado that affected this area in the summer of 2026. Cell service in this area is very limited, and traveling with downloaded maps is recommended.
Difficulty
The trail can be easily navigated by all experience levels. The sandy base will challenge 4x4s or small crossovers with less power and less aggressive tires, but this trail is still easily completed by that category of vehicle. Sight lines across the trail are generally good, but can be obstructed at times by undergrowth along the trail's edges.
