Rubicon Trail - Trail Summary

Trail Summary

There are entrances to the trail, either at Wentworth Springs or at the Loon Lake spillway. The Wentworth Springs entrance, at Gerle Creek, is the original entrance to the trail, and starts with an obstacle known as Devil's Postpile (not to be confused with Devils Postpile National Monument near Mammoth Lakes). The Loon Lake route is shorter, first crossing the Granite Bowl, a large open rock valley. (The Loon Lake entrance previously had an obstacle known as The Gatekeeper. It was demolished in 2005 to regulate trail erosion).

The Wentworth Springs entrance to the trail joins the trail from Loon Lake shortly before Ellis Creek. After driving through the relatively mild section beyond Ellis Creek the Walker Hill obstacle is encountered. It includes a rocky climb followed by a notch that can either be straddled or side-hilled.

A short distance beyond Walker Hill is the Soup Bowl. The Soup Bowl is a short climb with a series of ledges that are difficult to climb. High clearance and long wheelbases help with this obstacle. After passing the Soup Bowl, the Little Sluice awaits.

The Little Sluice, also known as the Sluice Box or simply as "The Box", is close to Spider Lake. It is the most difficult section of the trail, and as such can be bypassed in two ways for vehicles that cannot ascend the main trail. The most common bypass route is to the left of the obstacle known as the long bypass. The second way to bypass the Little Sluice is to drive up Toyota Rock. Toyota Rock is to the right towards Spider Lake (so named because it resembles a spider from above), just before the large rocks in the Little Sluice, and leads to the slabs that surround Little Sluice. The large rocks in the Little Sluice were reduced in size in the fall of 2012 by El Dorado County in order to reduce concentrated camping and the "spectator" atmosphere at the Sluice. The section is still difficult, but difficulty has been reduced.

After passing the Little Sluice the next obstacle is Thousand Dollar hill (also sometimes called Million Dollar hill). It is a rock ledge followed by a steep grade, facing downhill if driving the trail towards Lake Tahoe. As of 7/15/2012, Thousand Dollar Hill has been closed. This obstacle had a moderately difficult bypass (the original trail), which is now the only route open.

The trail splits again about a half mile past this point, the lower trail continuing on the granite slabs (aka Indian Trail) or the upper trail through the Old Sluice. Both routes lead to Buck Island Lake. The granite slabs are off camber but are an easier and much quicker route to take.

After passing Buck Island Lake the trail continues towards the Big Sluice. This downhill section contains a switchback with a rock drop-off and an off camber rocky section, leading to the Rubicon River Bridge and then into the private property of the Rubicon Springs.

Rubicon Springs is on private property and must be respected as such. A cabin (in the same spot as the former 2-story hotel) houses the caretaker family. A seemingly endless number of camp spots is available around the springs, as well as a helipad for emergencies and for large events to fly supplies in. Most large events will set up base camp in the Springs because it is large enough for hundreds of people to camp. Notable annual events are the Jeepers Jamboree (maximum of 500 vehicles), the Jeep Jamboree (200 vehicles), the Toyota Land Cruiser Association's Rubithon (approximately 150-200 vehicles), and the Marlin Crawler Round-Up (approximately 150-200 vehicles).

After Rubicon Springs is Cadillac Hill. Cadillac Hill is a series of switchbacks up to Observation Point, starting with a rutted out section with many exposed tree roots. After turning a hairpin the trail becomes very off camber and contains a series of boulders to maneuver around or over. After that is a steep waterfall to climb. At the top of the hill is Observation Point, a good place to see where you have just driven and to take a short break before the long dirt road to Lake Tahoe. There are a few small sections of rocks after this but nothing that poses a significant obstacle.