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The road turned to dirt and rubble right after the trailhead gate. Fist-sized rocks, a loaded bike, and 3,200 feet still to climb—it was clear the Ojai Rim Loop wasn’t going to be a casual weekend ride.
Route Overview: Ojai Rim Loop
Ojai in Southern California, roughly one and a half hours by car northwest of Los Angeles, is mostly known as a hub for yoga retreats, spa experiences, and meditation centers. However, it also borders the rugged Los Padres National Forest to the north with some challenging trails and unforgiving terrain. It felt like every retiree in town had taken up mountain biking or trail running.
My goal was to bikepack the Ojai Rim Loop, a 67-mile route from the southern end of town circling around the area in a counter-clockwise direction via various dirt road and trails, promising expansive views of the surrounding areas from as high as 6,700 feet.
Climbing Sulphur Mountain Road
The route starts with a gentle climb up Sulphur Mountain Road, an 11-mile gated dirt road, so exclusively reserved for hikers and bikers with no interference from motorized vehicles.
From the trailhead in the southern outskirts of Ojai, it weaves its way gingerly up the slopes of Sulphur Mountain (2,697 ft). Being mostly fully exposed with little to no tree cover, it was even more important I picked a spring weekend (in late April) to do this ride. On the ascent, an aerial view of Ojai valley opened up to the north, while from the high point I caught glimpses of the Pacific Ocean to the south.
Along rows of (undoubtedly very expensive) houses behind gates and wooden fences to obstruct views, it was a downhill on a well-paved road all the way to the junction with Hwy 150, running in an east/west direction through Ojai, connecting Santa Paula with Carpinteria on the coast.
A brief stint on the highway, past ranches and farmland, brought me to the fairly new looking Ventura County Fire Station 20 and my first rest stop – fully equipped with a bench to rest, a bike repair stand with tools, and a fire hydrant (painted with a stars and stripes motif) with a spigot to fill up on water.
Entering Sisar Canyon
While the first climb called for about 2,500 feet of elevation gain, the next section on Sisar Road was a very different ballgame. The road, leading into Sisar Canyon and then up towards Nordhoff Ridge, turned quite rough right away, with fist-sized rocks littering the path. Most hikers were already on their way down — all smiles, presumably because gravity was now doing the work for them. I, on the other hand, was just getting started.
The first half mile leads through the canyon with Santa Paula Creek gently rumbling on my right. It felt refreshing and reassuring to have water close by. It even meant two creek crossings had to be navigated.
Less biking, more hiking
After the second crossing, the real uphill (battle) began. The road climbs roughly 3,400 feet over 9 miles. Some sections hit 10–12%. For me, with the heavy mountain bike setup and gear, some sections were simply unrideable and meant a lot of hike-a-biking. At least the views did not disappoint.
“One foot in front of the other,” I told myself. Instead of my quads, my calves were burning from all the walking uphill and the forearms and shoulders from pushing the bike uphill by the handlebars.
As soon as the grade picked up and the road ascended from the canyon, solitude set in. Occasionally I could hear fellow outdoor enthusiasts talking down in the canyon, but I did not encounter anyone from this point on until I descended back down into town the next day.
As I continued onwards and upwards I met a crew from the local Fire Department, doing some drainage repairs and road work. Further up, there was more heavy FD machinery parked, waiting to be used for more road repair work. A good excuse to stop, take some photos and enjoy the view.
Nordhoff Ridge and Changing Conditions
The original plan and route called for a right turn after reaching Nordhoff Ridge, continuing on for a few miles to the wilderness boundary, dropping the bike, and then hiking for another one and a half miles to Hines Peak.
I dropped the idea.
The extra miles to the peak weren’t happening—I was tired, low on energy, it was now late afternoon and misty clouds started rolling in. From one minute to the next, the temperature dropped significantly.
“Time to head down,” I mumbled to myself and descended down a few hundred feet to make it to a campground roughly six miles west from the junction. More and more clouds started wafting over me at this point, further dropping the temperature, making me shiver in my largely sweat-drenched clothes.
Camping in Los Padres National Forest
I reached the campground around 6:30pm, put on most of the layers I brought with me, set up camp and enjoyed a very quiet evening under a half-lit moon.
The next morning I was greeted again with heavy mist, the tent and equipment covered in moisture as if it had rained overnight. In my usual fashion, the morning routine pace was slow. I gingerly made breakfast, packed up the tent and continued west along the route.
Gridley Trail: Exposure and Limits
In a little over a mile I reached the entrance to the Gridley Trail, a single track chiseled into the east-facing slope of Nordhoff Peak. It was an exercise in knowing my limits and sticking with a “better safe than sorry” mantra. While some sections I was comfortable riding, others were just too harrowing with a straight drop either to my left or right – especially when there were technical parts.
After exiting Gridley Trail and getting closer to the outskirts of Ojai, the route shifted abruptly. The rest of the way largely called for riding on serious local mountain bike trails, which were very technical and steep. Again, very little chance of riding this with a fully loaded mountain bike, which usually compounds my frustration levels.
At some point, it stopped feeling like riding and started feeling like hauling equipment and myself through terrain they weren’t comfortable with any longer. I eventually cut the route short by using what was technically a hiking trail, which meant pushing the bike up and over some large rocks and steps in the trail.
Returning to Ojai via Ventura Bike Path
After some lifting and cursing, I ended up on Shelf Road, which eventually turned from dirt to pavement and North Signal Street taking me straight back to civilization and downtown Ojai, where things were bustling on a Saturday early afternoon.
From there, I connected with the Ojai – Ventura Bike Path, a 15 mile paved trail connecting the two cities car-free. After all the the intense up and down from the past one and a half days, this was a gentle closing section back to the start at Sulphur Mountain Road.
Tips for Bikepacking the Ojai Rim Loop
There are plenty of accommodation options in Ojai for bikepackers traveling from out of town. I stayed at the Oakridge Inn, offering some modest rooms at a reasonable price.
Water comes at a premium on this route. The spigot at the fire station is the only proper fill up point until descending back into town. There are two ponds to pump and filter water from in a pinch, but when I did the route, it looked very stagnant. Thankfully I had brought just about enough (about 6.5 liters carrying capacity) to get me back down into Ojai the next day.
As described, this is a challenging route, especially if attempted over two days. Stretching it out over three days is likely the less stressful and more relaxed and enjoyable option.
Final Thoughts
The roughness of the terrain reminded me of other bikepacking trips I did in the past with a similar setup. It isn’t a route you ride cleanly. It’s one you negotiate—with the terrain, the weather, and your own expectations. And sometimes, the smartest move isn’t to push at all cost but knowing when to swallow your pride and step off the bike and keep moving forward anyway.
Planning the Ojai Rim Loop Bikepacking Trip
GPX/Navigation
The plan was to ride to full Ojai Rim Loop route as posted on BIKEPACKING.COM. However, as described above, the route turned out a bit too demanding for me to complete in the two days I had allotted for it. I ended up cutting it short, ending up with a total distance of just over 50 miles.
Getting to Ojai and the starting point
Driving Ojai from the San Francisco Bay Area takes roughly six hours and about 90 minutes from downtown Los Angeles. The closest airports are Santa Barbara Airport (SBA), Oxnard Airport (OXR), Burbank Airport (BUR), and Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).
The starting point is the trailhead on Sulphur Mountain Road, which offers plenty of roadside parking. I stayed at the Oakridge Inn, which is only a five minute drive away from the start of the route.
Food and water considerations
Water can be a bit of a challenge on this route. I had fully filled up my 6.5 liter carrying capacity before starting out, which was a bit unnecessary because I could fully refill at Ventura Fire Department Station 20.
From that point onwards, water is harder to come by. Before the ascent towards Nordhoff Ridge, the stream crossings offer an option to fill up. However, once on the ridge, the only somewhat feasible water sources were two ponds with stagnant water, which meant proper treatment before consumption would be a must.
Ojai has an abundance of grocery options, so it is fairly easy to stock up on provisions locally before attempting the route.
Bike and gear recommendations
I rode a hard-tail mountain bike with 2.8-inch tires, which were slightly overkill for the terrain. The sweet spot is likely somewhere between 2.1 and 2.5 inches tire width.
Besides that, I carried my standard bikepacking gear and camping equipment. Even if temperatures in the valley are warm, it is advisable to carry multiple clothing layers for the part on the ridge. Conditions can be very different at an elevation of 5,000 feet.
Further resources
Trip Reports & Articles
- Ojai Rim Loop (original route on BIKEPACKING.COM)
- Route on Ride With GPS
- Ojai, CA 10-Day Weather Forecast (Weather Underground)
Other useful resources
- 6 places in Southern California to try bikepacking, a rugged adventure on wheels (Los Angeles Times)