In early September I had the pleasure of going on an overnight run on Barrett Lake. Barrett has been on my 4x4 trail bucket list for quite some time, so I jumped at the opportunity when Jason from Wheeling, Wine and Whiskey invited me.
I quickly booked a campsite at Wrights Lake campground to have as a basecamp, and I was ready to go. My dad was able to join me as my co-pilot, so we loaded up the Excursion with basecamp and trail camp supplies and hit the road.
Wrights Lake is gorgeous, and I wish we had brought the canoe to enjoy its waters. Instead, we were on a mission to squeeze 500lbs of stuff into a 150lb spot so that we could hit the trail in the morning with Jason, Jimmy, and the others. Fitting 400lbs of spare parts and tools + 2 people worth of food, clothes, and camping gear in a CJ7 is no easy task, but we made it work. The weather treated us right which meant we didn't even use our tent.
The trail head is a short ways past Wrights Lake and is well known for its narrow gate. The gate is ~86" wide, so make sure you will fit before you set out on your trip. You can learn a TON more about the trail on the hi-landers website (the adopt-a-trail club for Barrett).
We hit the trail, which starts off right away in a semi difficult rock garden as a gatekeeper obstacle. Jimmy was nice enough to set up his cameras and capture us going through. None of our rigs had any problems as we were well on our way.
The trail snakes through the forest and rocks, slabs, and small canyons towards Barrett Lake, a high sierra lake only accessible by 4x4, hiking, or horse. I won't repeat what the podcasts and other blogs cover. Just know it is a well loved trail, with a "million dollar bridge" a "S" turn, buggy line, slabs, and other well known landmarks and obstacles.
When we arrived at the lake, the group grabbed the last campsite near the granite at the end of the lake. We had a wonderful group camp. We had whiskey and snacks as the sun settled in the sky and got camp setup before dark.
I slept in my hammock, and my dad slept on a nice set of pads on the ground. Jason and Phil were nice enough to cook up some hot food (discussed in Jason's podcast) and overall it was an uneventful trip. We had an easy return trip the next morning.
Overall, it is a trail 100% worth doing, and is close to the Rubicon trail head, so a good alternative on a busy weekend. It's a short trail, in & out, and very doable in 1 day for a capable rig or a lazy overnight run to enjoy the scenery and peace and quiet. If you'd like more details on the tracks, feel free to download the GPX details from my trip or add the track to your Gaia account.
To see and hear more about the trail check out Wheeling, Wine and Whiskey's podcast. They did a good job of covering our trip in Episode 18. And Jimmy did a great job of capturing parts of the trail on video for his Snail Trail 4x4 youtube channel. His video is below:
Overall, the trail is beautiful, the right amount of difficult, and we had the perfect trip. The weather held out for us, there was almost no one on the trail, and we had no real damage or carnage. 35" tires, lockers, and some driving skill will make for a fun day on the trail.
A few select pictures from our trip.
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