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Camping anywhere in the general Bay Area on a holiday weekend means plenty of car traffic and crowded campgrounds. Clear Lake State Park was fully booked, as expected when I arrived on a Friday night in late May. The smell of campfire and BBQ lingered in the air well after sunset. At the same time, the upbeat Mexican music eventually gave way to the sounds of crickets and the rustling of leaves in the wind.
After being almost eaten alive by mosquitoes during my one-night stay at the campground, I drove to Upper Lake, located slightly northwest of Clear Lake, the next morning. From there, I embarked on a two-day, one-night bikepacking trip to Lake Pillsbury in Mendocino National Forest and returned the following day.
The first seven miles took me from the outskirts of Upper Lake into the National Forest, along dusty and dry High Glade Road, which climbed to the ridge at approximately 4,300 feet. Along the way, two groups of fully kitted-out off-road trail motorbike enthusiasts sped past me (in a very respectful manner), stirring up large clouds of dust.
While it only took them slight incremental turns on their throttle to move their two-wheelers up the incline, I had to work hard for every foot of elevation gained. My efforts, surprisingly, didn’t go unnoticed. One rider in his fifties on an orange KTM enduro bike stopped beside me and gave me a fist bump. “You’re a champion, bro,” he exclaimed before speeding off and wishing me a great day.
Riding along the ridge meant undulating terrain, bobbing up and down on a wide forest road. The dusty and now windy conditions didn’t bring good tidings for my drivetrain. More than once, I had to stop to clean off the worst of the dirt and re-lube the chain.
I passed through remote campgrounds and rolled past dispersed campsites. From the looks of it, this seemed like an excellent place for any OHV (off-highway vehicle) enthusiast, with purpose-built trails for folks to ride and explore. I was now puttering along National Forest Route M1 (also known as Elk Mountain Road) along the spine of Mendocino National Forest. Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument expanded eastward from the ridgeline.
The higher elevation brought cooler temperatures, which I welcomed very much. The vegetation also transitioned from predominantly brown and yellow hues at the bottom to a more green hue, with pine trees lining the forest roads and the occasional Manzanita tree.
One lesson I should have learned from my previous trip to Mendocino National Forest was the lack of opportunities to refill on water. I had brought three large water bottles, which I had emptied shortly after midday. As luck would have it, I came across a spigot next to a makeshift campfire seating area and a portable outhouse on what was very much private property.
With more than twenty miles behind me, I had finally reached the downhill towards Lake Pillsbury, which dropped me out on the west side of the lake by Soda Creek. I passed several campgrounds, as well as Gravelly Valley Airport. Eventually, I settled on Sunset Campground, which had come highly recommended by the reviews I had found online. Jonathan, the camp host in his 60s, originally from Cardiff, handed me the receipt for site 19 after I paid $8. Nearly every site out of more than one hundred was already taken by the time I arrived around 5pm.
The return trip the next day took me back a slightly different way, primarily to check out Pine Mountain Lookout. After climbing back up to about 4,000 feet, I arrived at the turn-off for the lookout shortly after lunchtime.
As expected, it was booked for the long weekend, but the very friendly family of four let me take a look around and check out the building. Constructed in 1934, the lookout can be booked for overnight stays via Recreation.gov.
From there, I traced my way back to Elk Mountain Road and followed it south before an epic, five-mile downhill on very rough and pothole-ridden pavement took me all the way back to Upper Lake.
I originally discovered this route on Gravelmap, as well as on Ride with GPS and is another attempt installment of me exploring the vast network of forest roads in Mendocino National Forest.
Upper Lake is about 2.5 hours away by car from San Francisco, with services (grocery store, gas) in town or in the immediate vicinity. I combined it with an overnight stay the night before my trip at Clear Lake State Park.
If fueling up is needed before the trip, there are both grocery stores on the way to Upper Lake when approached from the south, as well as a grocery store in town. Soda Creek Store by Lake Pillsbury on Elk Mountain Road can serve as a way to obtain provisions along the way, but I would advise to call ahead for exact opening hours.
Bringing enough water is likely the most crucial thing. As mentioned in my report above, I did not plan this well and was lucky to find a privately-owned spigot along the way. Best is to bring enough water to last yourself for a full day of riding until you are able to refill at Lake Pillsbury.
This is a gravel route on wide forest roads on terrain suitable for gravel bikes (with the exception of some sections with larger rocks on the climbing part of day two). While there are some sections on pavement, those are largely quite rough, with broken sections and potholes. A gravel bike with 45c tires is appropriate, given the terrain.
Campgrounds
- Deer Valley Campground (along M1)
- Penny Pines Campground (along M1)
- Fuller Grove Campground (Lake Pillsbury)
- Navy Camp Campground (Lake Pillsbury)
- Oak Flat Campground (Lake Pillsbury)
- Sunset Campground (Lake Pillsbury)
Weather/Conditions
- Upper Lake (Weather Underground)
Other
- Mendocino National Forest (USDA website)
- Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument (BLM)
- Lake Pillsbury Alliance. Non-profit dedicated to the preservation of the lake and Scott Dam.
- Mural dedication honors life of Upper Lake woman, raises awareness of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (Lake County News, May 7, 2023)