Lily Pond–Castle Valley East OHV Trail, 5 sights is a 15.8-mile out-and-back near Norden, CA. The route passes Castle Pass before reaching Lily Pond at the turnaround, 7.9 miles in. It climbs 2,183 ft and is mostly dirt. It scores 76/100 on the Ambleway Wildness scale: genuinely wild.
Elevation
0 mi7,274 – 7,983 ft16.1 mi
Getting there
Trailhead: Castle Valley North Road 39.34100, -120.34760
Nearest town Norden, CA
Directions
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Lily Pond–Castle Valley East OHV Trail, 5 sights
15.8 mi · ▲ 2,183 ft · 6 hr 21 min
Elevation 7,273–7,984 ft
Out & Back
Trailhead: Castle Valley North Road · 39.34100, -120.34760
Weather Sep 20: sunrise 6:48 AM · sunset 7:03 PM
Parking lot at the trailhead
- Start on Castle Valley North Road, heading NW.
- 0.6 miBear right onto Castle Valley East OHV Trail, heading N.
- 0.4 miSharp left onto Pacific Crest Trail, heading NW.
- 1.2 miPass Castle Pass.
- 0.9 miTurn left onto Sand Ridge Lake Trail, heading N.
- 0.4 miTurn right onto Hole in the Ground, heading NW.
- 2.2 miBear right, heading S.
- 0.7 miSharp right, heading W.
- 1.6 miReach Lily Pond, then turn around and head back the way you came.
- 1.6 miSharp left, heading E.
- 2.8 miTurn left onto Sand Ridge Lake Trail, heading SE.
- 0.4 miTurn right onto Pacific Crest Trail, heading NE.
- 2.2 miSharp right onto Castle Valley East OHV Trail, heading SE.
- 0.4 miBear left onto Castle Valley North Road, heading S.
- 0.5 miArrive back at the trailhead.
Each distance is the walk from the previous step. Tap a step for a map of its junction.
Trail surface
73% dirt27% unspecified
Weather
Sunrise 6:48 AMSunset 7:03 PM
Sunset
The best sunset spot on this hike is 2.1 mi in (~69 min). Leave by 5:34 PM for the 7:03 PM sunset. Back at your car by 8:10 PM, after dark — bring a headlamp.
Good to know
- Parking lot at the trailhead
Other ways to reach this destination
More from Castle Valley North Road Trailhead
- Sand Ridge Lake–Castle Valley North Road, 3 sights 10.2 mi · ▲ 1,551 ft
- Snowshed East Face–Snowshed, 11 lakes 10.6 mi · ▲ 1,177 ft
- Signal Hill–Lake Angela, 9 lakes 11.3 mi · ▲ 1,390 ft
- Red Mountain–Castle Valley East OHV Trail, 7 sights 16.1 mi · ▲ 4,018 ft
- West Lakes–Castle Valley East OHV Trail, 3 sights 4.1 mi · ▲ 361 ft
- Warren Lake–Castle Peak Trail, 5 sights 13.8 mi · ▲ 3,858 ft
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