NEXT EVENT
Lake Quest 2025: Silverwood to Arrowhead
(Pilot Rock and Beyond)
6/21/2025 @7:45am
SCORCH is back after a hiatus with a scenic lake-to-lake ride through the San Bernardino Mountains. This single-day adventure starts near Silverwood Lake, runs along the iconic Pilot Rock Trail, and wraps up at the edge of Lake Arrowhead.
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Kick off the first weekend of Summer 2025 with a flexible ride that will be fun for drivers of all levels. The first part of the day will be spent along the 11-mile stretch of rocky ridge known as Pilot Rock Trail. The beauty of this trail is that like its nearby cousin, Cleghorn Ridge, all the hard challenges are totally optional. Stay on the easy side and watch the bigger rigs tear over short, harder challenges right off the main trail.
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Want more? We've got more. Drivers looking for a shorter commitment will have the ability to bail onto pavement after Pilot Rock trail to make it an earlier day. The rest will continue on into the western edges of the San Bernardino National Forest and essentially circle around Lake Arrowhead to approach it from the eastern side. The main part of this trail will be a little harder than the easy part of Pilot Rock.
The off road forums currently rate Pilot Rock as a 3 out of 10 for difficulty. The loop to Lake Arrowhead is currently clocking in at 4 out of 10. We will report back a week before the ride with an updated trail report from our scouting run. We may recommend intermediate drivers and rigs only for this shorter part at the end of the day.
SCORCHers looking to tackle hard challenges will have plenty of options to go steep and deep on the short, thrilling, and frequent offshoots along Pilot Rock Trail. Most of the challenges on Pilot Rock take place in view of the main trail, so its also a good chance for newer off-roaders to observe more experienced drivers pushing their rigs a little harder.
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We'll take pauses along the way to take in the views, meet other drivers and riders, and have a lunch. Interested riders who stick around to the end are invited to get a bite and a drink in Lake Arrowhead Village overlooking the lake. It's about a 10 minute drive from where we will air up.
We are managing our RSVPs on Meetup. Come on out! Read on for more info.
HOW HARD IS THIS RIDE?
This can be an fun day with a few moderate challenges or a long day full of challenges, or anything in between. The main trail is typically passable by any rig with some clearance. You will occasionally cross ruts left by flowing water from prior rain. They are not deep but it does mean slowing down, picking a line, and flexing a bit. The easiest route is not a rollover threat, but if you do it wrong you could need to get tugged out from high-centering or struggle with low traction.
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Pilot Rock Trail is at its core a usually well maintained ridge road that most of the time can be handled without needing to go into 4x4 mode. There are a few narrow-ish shelves to traverse that will require a sharper attention to steering but should not be a hazard to alert drivers. Due to some potential overgrowth from wild bushes after the wet season, there is also a chance for some pinstriping. It is usually the the kind that just washed off, but consider yourself warned.
If you are looking for some real challenges, there are 7 or so points along Pilot Rock where you can venture just a few dozen yards off the main trail onto parallel offshoots. These can range from mildly intermediate to pretty darned hard. None of them are longer than a mile in length (most are shorter) and all of them rejoin the main trail without needing to double back.
Some of these offshoots have a range of lines to choose from to further customize your challenge level. This also means advanced beginners and intermediate drivers can find an off shoot or two offer a comfortable opportunity to broaden their skills and learn more about the capabilities of their rig. The type of challenges include steep climbs, low traction surfaces, off-camber rock traversing, sharp turns, and narrow clearances.
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The main trail for the second part of the day, when we move into the forest, will offer more of a challenge. One strip of this trail is marked as black diamond but feels intermediate. Pinstriping is also more likely on this side since we are deeper in the woods. This is also typically the type of marks that wash off and do not damage the paint. Your mileage may vary.
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Those of you up for a little more of a technical challenge will break off from the main trail for little adventures. We have not scouted the routes yet but we will be looking at a short but steep offshoot right after we hit the second part of the ride. Later on, an another opportunity exists for a an advanced group to head down the steep, narrow 2N29Y trail known as Stove Flats / Plantation OHV Road then meet up with the main group a few miles later.
WHEN AND WHERE
We are meeting at the Silverwood Lake Pilot Rock OHV Staging Area at 7:45am to air down and be ready for an 8am drivers meeting followed immediately by our departure. It will take a 2-3 hours to move everyone through Pilot Rock Trail to our lunch spot. Anyone who wants to call it a day can hop on the paved 173 and make their way home. The rest will lunch for up to an hour then move on the 3 hour or so romp through the forest. All in, the full day will wrap up around 4:30pm give or take 1-2 hours depending on factors that can't be predicted.
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We'll hit pavement and air up near MacKay Park. Those interested in keeping the day going a little longer will head over to Lake Arrowhead Village for dinner and drinks overlooking the lake.
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CAMPING OPTIONS
Turn this day trip into an overnighter by camping out before and/or after the event.
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There are two campsites near the start of the ride, right on the shore of Silverwood Lake, inside the Silverwood Lake State Recreation Area - UPDATE: These may be booked up. Reserve California website acting wonky.
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There are several camping sites around the Lake Arrowhead area if you want to skip the drive home on Saturday night. There is one spot still open at North Shore Campground right where we finish the extended ride as of 5/16.
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Dispersed camping within San Bernardino National Forest is also an option for those looking to get a little closer to nature.
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WANT TO CARAVAN
Post a request to meetup in your area with other drivers heading to the ride for a caravan. You can do this in the chat section of the event page on Meetup.
BE PREPARED
Here are some recommended items to bring along. We get a little kickback from Bezos if you buy any with our links. You can also visit our store for more gear suggestions.
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Lunch
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VHF Radio ( good one / better one )
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A Camp Chair for Chilling ( good one / better one)
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Sunscreen
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Water
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TRAIL REPORT COMING SOON
We are going to scout the trail the weekend before this event. Make sure to check back here or in the Meetup event chat before the event for a detailed trail report and difficulty assessment.
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THE DISCLAIMER
The organizers of SCORCH meetups are not responsible for any damage done to your person or vehicle at the events, getting to the events, or after the events. We are a group of adults meeting up for an activity that takes a high degree of personal responsibility. All participants must do so at their own risk.
If you act like an asshat, douche, idiot, jerk, or in any way behave or operate your vehicle in a manner that is a risk or annoyance to others or does not respect the rules of the land we are on, you will be asked to leave the ride and be possibly ejected from SCORCH.