High Rock Canyon

The Indian trail through High Rock Canyon was first recorded by Captain John Fremont in 1844. The Applegate brothers guided emigrant wagon trains through the canyon on their way to Oregon's Willamette Valley. In 1849 and into the 1850's it was a well beaten path to the gold fields and towns of California. But today it is far off the beaten path and that fact makes it a particularly special place. When the road is dry, passenger cars can travel a gravel road to the spring at Steven's Camp in the upper canyon. The hike up the canyon from the Camp enters a unique desert oasis. High Rock Canyon east to High Rock Lake is very rugged and remote and can be driven in four-wheel vehicles by experienced and well equipped explorers. The sixteen mile-long canyon is a fine place for hiking, mountain biking and horse back riding. The emigrant signature sites and "Post Office" cave are about two miles from the east entrance of the canyon. This is wilderness country, and except for Steven's Camp, there are no facilities of any kind in or near the canyon.