The Happy Camp Canyon fire road is pretty much what it says it is, a fire road. If you like fire road riding then this would be a good trail for you because it goes quite a ways and you definitely get your exercise riding up it. Once you get to the top it becomes more of an up and down ride so you get your breaks here and there. At the beginning of the trail it is very sandy and the conditions change depending on the time of the year and also on how many horses travel along the trail as well. During prime time horse season it can get really rough and it makes it a chore to ride on the lower sections. As you go up the road it will get less sandy but it can be a little difficult at times dealing with the incline and the sand at the same time. If you do decide to make a long ride out of Happy Camp fire road then you can take it all the way into Simi Valley even though it's not officially called Happy Camp all the way there but actually turns into Middle Range fire road along the way.

Happy Camp Trail Reviewed, Filmed and Rated by

Review Date: 2/21/2013
Trail Ratings
 Fun Factor:
2 Star Rating: Recommended
 Technical: 2 Star Recommended

Happy Camp Canyon Fire Road Video

Happy Camp Canyon Fire RoadReview

Happy Camp Canyon fire road is a nice ride to do if you just want to go out and do some exercise and have a little fun on the way back. Since the hill is kind of on the steep side you can get going pretty fast on the way down. One thing to be aware of is the sand as you get closer to the bottom. If you are going pretty fast then it can get kind of slippery especially around the curves. If you hit it at the right time of the year and the conditions are nice the downhill ride gets pretty fun. After it rains then it gets pretty rutty too and they can get pretty deep. The terrain doesn't change much throughout the ride but you get some nice views of Moorpark and Simi Valley as you go along. You will even run into some cows most likely since there is ranch property along the road. Just be careful not to take a wrong turn and end up on private property. Happy Camp is a good ride to do if you want to get some uphill conditioning. There is a side trail that you can take to the lower part of Happy Camp that will take you back out through the valley. The trail going down to this road is kind of rutty and rocky and a little on the technical side. Once you get down to the bottom though it's pretty much flat and you avoid the main downhill ride that you came up.

Happy Camp Canyon Fire Road Pictures

Directions


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To get to the Happy Camp Canyon fire road you will need to get to the 118 Freeway heading towards Moorpark. Take the Princeton exit and head east until you hit the stop sign at Campus Park Dr. and take a left. From there take the road all the way to the golf course and park in the golf course parking lot. The road begins right where you pulled into the parking lot and you will be riding past the golf course for a little bit so watch out for stray golf balls! Stay on the main road and at one point while on the trail it will split off and go left or right so make sure you stay to the right and that's where the hill climb will begin.

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