Golden Eagle Trail - Liebre Mountain - #GoldenEagleTrail-LiebreMountain

Socal - Los Angeles County - Antelope Valley NickNames: #GoldenEagleTrail-LiebreMountain

Take I-5 North of Castaic to 138. Drive about 4 miles and turn right on Old Ridge Route road. At three way intersection with Pine Canyon road, park at the dirt parking lot on your right.

15 Review(s)8 Photo(s)Login

• Trail UpdateSweet-Fantastic day on Golden Eagle! Though there were lots of sandy patches up the fire road, all three top sections were great. Especially enjoyed the middle section on the south side of the fire road. A little brushy at the fast section, but really not bad. I did 5 deer last week and THAT is brushy to the point of being ridiculous. GE is really in great shape!
  Sparktheyank a 37 year old Weekend Warrior riding a 2011 Giant trance X3 from Saugus, Ca.

  Posted:06/14/2012

• Trail UpdateGolden Eagle Brushy Ride...-The Golden Eagle dirt is in great shape (no ruts etc). The bottom third of the trail is starting to be overgrown and needs more use or some pruning. I had a slower descent than I would have liked. The brush drew lots of blood. The trail is still fun...don't let some brush deter you from visiting. I suggest durable longsleeves. Watch out for 2 YUCCA plants encroaching on the trail near the trailhead.

  Minus some brush, this is a fantastic secluded trail with great views of Pyramid Lake, Quail Lake, Whittaker Peak, Mt. Pinos, the 5, the Antelope Valley, and the old Ridge Route to name a few. I drove up the old Ridge Route road and parked at the "End County Maintained Road" sign; the trail can't be missed here.
  EyeLookrocks a 25 year old Cross-Country Rider riding a WS Giant Ranier from Palmdale, CA

  Posted:07/16/2011

• Trail UpdateGolden Eagle-I did this trail today! It is in great shape. The trail needs a little work on the bottom 1/3 it's getting a little tight in there..Other than that this trail rocks!
  Matt W a 51! whew! year old

  Posted:09/06/2010

• Trail UpdateTrail Is In Great Shape-Rode yesterday 4-5-09. Flowers are out and should reach peak levels in the next week or two. Pretty windy yesterday on the ride up the fireroad but once you topped out on the ridge it eased up quite a bit. Singletrack is in great shape. One downed tree near the beginning at the fenceline but the rest is clear of major issues. Some plants are encroaching into the trail but nothing super bad and the lower section is clear enough to have a blast on.
  Matt a Cross-Country Rider from Newbury Park

  Posted:04/06/2009

• Trail UpdateBest Trail Around-strenuous and challenging climb with beautiful views over Castaic, Santa clarita valley, pyramid lake, quail lake, Antelope valley, Mojave desert and Mt Pinos.

  weather was perfect - very rare patches of snow here and there

  Return vis Golden Eagle trail is by far the best singletrack around : start slowly winding through oak trees, nice narrow track, one side of the crest then the other by crossing 7N23, then back to crossing 7N23 for a faster, steeper 3 miles all the way back to the parking lot.
  Trail is in very good shape, vegetation not overgrown but does not need to grow much more...
  
  brunosalomon a 34 year old

  Posted:02/02/2009

• Trail UpdateGolden Eagle-rode this...no one on the trail this sat. morn. trail was fairly loose do to motorcycle poachers!
  matt w

  Posted:08/23/2008

• Trail UpdateTrail Is Perfect-Conditions could not be better. We were up there on Sunday 4/8 and it was cool and foggy. Once on the ridge the fog blowing through the trees made for a very surreal experience. The fire road up was not very sandy and tons of poppies are out right now, though they were closed because of the fog. The single-track that starts at the fence line about 10 miles into the ride is in fantastic shape. Only a few branches in the way and very easy to avoid the growth on the sides of the trail. The lower section as well is very clean right now and only a few scratches here and there. Only saw one other group of riders and a few vehicles on the road. Yet again another perfect day for the mostly ignored yet fantastic ride.
  Matt a 38 year old Cross-Country Rider from Newbury Park

  Posted:04/09/2007

• Trail UpdatePing!-read below!
  Matt W a 46 whew! year old

  Posted:01/26/2006

• Trail UpdateSweetest Singetrack In SO. CAL !-Did this trail 2-day Jan 1st! With approximately 30 other riders!..WOW what a great way to start off the New Year! I have done this trail about 6 times over the past 10 years. It has been 3-4 years since I have been on this ride...all I can say is WOW!! The single track is in perfect condition as the trail does not get much poundage, therefore the trail remains Soooo Smoooooth (i,e, NO wash board effect from heavy downhill use & brakeing!)

  The trail at this point is very beautiful! It rolls thru scrub oak areas, big oak trees & there is a section that turns into a heavy oak tree forrest canopy & then just plain BLASTS to the bottom!

  What I really like most about this ride is that it is all dirt road to the top thus it makes it difficult for shuttle/downhiller riders to get to the top as it is time consuming to drive to the top & then drive back down. :) Plus there is some pedaling as you traverse the ridge with the slight accent & decent tendancies of the trail at the top! PLUS it is off the beaten path of all the other rides in the L.A. area!!!!

  The trail is amazing!!!! I PROMISE if you go up to this trail in the next 3 months you will go back!...It is described in one trail book as "The Sweetest Single Track In all of the Saugus District"!

  YOU NEED TO RIDE YOUR BIKE TO THE TOP & CHECK THIS PERFECT TRAIL OUT!
  Matt W a 46 whew! year old Die-hard Enthusiast riding a Ellsworth Moment on some Spinergys

  Posted:01/01/2006

• Trail UpdateDirtshark ?-I have ridden this trail 4-5 times over the past 10 years....How is the shrub condition? It has probably been 3 years since I have done this & I want to go back b-4 spring....p.s. I live in Santa Clarita so it is not that far of a drive.

  Posted:02/19/2005

• Trail UpdatePerfect December Conditions-for this ride. Sunday 12/19 drove up and parked at the old Sandburg Inn plaque. There was one other car parked here. A few hunters were in the area. Dudes wearing there camo. Headed out on the old ridge route to the start of the climb. A steady breeze from the east was blowing but not too bad. Climbed about 6-7 miles to the double track that leads right off to the giant oak tree. And I do mean GIANT! This thing is incredible. The trail starts right below the tree and is quite a scream. Tunnels and open meadows lead back to about 2 miles below the turnoff. Crossover the main road and continue down on rollercoaster turns and switchbacks. Good traction and a fairly good condition trail, considering it rarely gets used, takes you all the way down the mtn and close to the parking. This is my third time up there. Twice to ride it, once to run it and it is quickly becoming one of my favorites
  Ride rating: Intermediate
  Dirtshark a 42 year old Cross-Country Rider riding a Landshark/Yeti from Santa Clarita

  Posted:12/21/2004

• Trail UpdateA Picture...-...is worth a thousand words. Late autumn on the Golden Eagle Trail...
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Tom Kenney a 33 year old Cross-Country Rider riding a Klein Attitude from Reseda, CA

  Posted:12/04/2000

• Trail UpdateSweet And Fast-Rode this Sunday 7-02-00. We started at 8 am, the five of us, meeting at the foundations of the old Sandburg Inn. This is on the Old Ridge Route from Bakersfield to Los Angeles before I-5 existed. Probably a pretty popular stop, but little left, but the concrete remains.

  Pedalling up the Old Ridge route, it's amazing how much of it still exists. While not in great condition, it's still very much negotiable with a car. There are alternating sections of concrete and asphalt, and it's apparent that the mountains changed the course of the road, as some of the concrete, runs straight into the hillside.

  You come to a sign within a couple of miles, pointing out the dirt road that leads you to the Sawmill campground as well as other locations. This is the start of the 10 mile climb. There's about a 2K elevation change, so it's not bad. The first two miles and the last mile are the worst, being steep as heck. There were sandy spots. (the sand is your friend...)
  And I saw numerous horny toads, one of the little guys tried to commit suicide twice, first running between my tires, then doing the same thing to the guy behind me.

  Climbing up through the hills, one got to look out over the oak canyons. Sunday was nice and not too hot early in the morning. The payoff was at the top. We found the trailhead at the 9.75 mile mark, descending down a double track to a fence.

  This is a worthy ride. Zero hikers, Zero horses. What makes it great is, that it continually changes. You ride through dark oak forests, crunching leaves, then suddenly bust out in a sunny meadow, curve around the bend at speed then up through one of many vegetation tunnels. Then back in the dark forest again. The trail is only 6 inches wide, vegetation line to vegation line, sometimes, that 6 inches is a rut. But it's a fast rut. An excellent roller coaster, swooping, bitchen ride.

  Much overgrowth. One bears his helmet at a 90 degree angle more than a few times to deflect good sized branches. At the crossroads, three of the riders didn't decide to deal with the second part of the ride.
  This is even more overgrown, with the trail vanishing at points. But way fun and fast when it isn't. It finishes with a sick, super steep hill, that is soft and has a million baby heads and a big rut through the middle of it all. Add a four inch layer of dead leaves
  and it makes it barely ridable. Only rode 50% of it. But stayed on the bike the whole time. A million gnats, kept close personal company and actually almost breathed one it, gaack!

  At the bottom, it leveled out for some fun jumps and then back to the truck to pick out the vegetation out of the socks and spuds. All in all, a good ride and a good time
  STP a 41 year old Cross-Country Rider riding a Diamondback Zetec from Lancaster

  Posted:07/05/2000

• Trail UpdateShredder!-4 years ago, I tried to ride the single track trail option and it was impossible. Overgrown bushes w/ huge thorns. Nice gradual climb w/great views on the fireroad. This is the first fire road I climbed in my mtn biking career.

  
  Ride rating: Intermediate
  Dirt Road=100%
  Charles a OLD year old Cross-Country Rider riding a fsr xc by specialized. from Pasadena, California

  Posted:10/27/1999

• Trail UpdateGolden Eagle Loop-NOTE - I am adding this trail to warn people not to ride it. It is VERY bushy. In some sections you can just barely push your bike through the brush. I am not kidding. It is very unpleasant, and there are ticks. I was very scraped up from the bushes and luckily found all the ticks before they could dig their head in, BUT... for those that do not believe, here are my notes. For others, the dirt road is a good climb and a fun downhill if you skip Golden Eagle trail. I cannot believe that this trail made it into the book 'Mountain Biking Souther California's Best 100 Trails'.

  Start by riding up 8N04. This is the middle road adjacent to the parking area. The other roads are Pine Canyon (on the left) and a road marked NO THROUGH TRAFFIC (on your right). Ride up 8N04 for about 3.3 miles and take a hard left on 7N23. Climb 7N23 for about seven miles. At this point the road is fairly flat, and then there is a short, steep, rise in the road. At the start of the rise is a double track on the left. Pass this and take the next left double track at the top of the rise. Bear left where the double track splits and see a chicken wire fence. Golden Eagle trail is the deer path looking thing along the fence. Take this to the left. Note, right over the fence is a sign reading 'Bear Camp 2mi' etc, just in case you are not sure. Golden Eagle trail will cross 7N23 and its spur roads a few times. You should be able to pick up the trail on the other side each time. Eventually 8N04 will come into view and will be accessible via a very short spur trail. At this point you will be licking your wounds and wishing you never came here as you ride back 8N04 to your car.
  Ride rating: Intermediate
  Ride distance: 18 miles Elevation change: 2000ft
  Singletrack=60% Dirt Road=40%
  CT Weissman a 32 year old Cross-Country Rider riding a S-Works M2 from Seal Beach, CA

  Posted:10/26/1999