Nelson Trail Details

Activities
- Mountain Bike
- Hike
- Trail Running
Riding Area

Northern Sequoia National Forest
Kernville, California
AKA

Nelson
Difficulty Rating

Black Diamond rate
Trail Type

Singletrack
Bike Type

DH, AM
Direction

Downhill Primary
Popular direction shown
Season

April-December
Dogs Allowed

Yes
TTFs on Trail

Bridge, Drop, Jump
Global Ranking
#11949 in Mountain Biking [+]
- #54508 in Hiking
Local Popularity
5 in Mountain Biking [+]
- 5 in Trail Running
- 5 in Hiking
Land Owner

USFS

The top of the Camp Nelson trail is located right off highway 190 at the turn-out where the Summit Trail crosses the road. The trailhead is at the meadow/turn-out about 1/2-mile below Quaking Aspen Campground. The trail ends in the McIntyre Tract at the end of Nelson Drive in Camp Nelson. The uppersection of the trail is rocky, steep and there are a lot of roots, making it more difficult and technical than the lower section.
There are a couple small climbs and about a dozen creek crossings along the way. Some are ridable, others you must carry your bike across a fallen tree that spans the creek. Trail speed on Camp Nelson will put a big smile on your face, but be aware that this is the most popular trail in the area for all visitors and it's not unlikely to see a family hiking or a group of equestrians coming up the trail. This it the kind of trail that makes you want to do it again and again.

Traditionally Indigenous Territory

More Stats for Nelson Trail mountain bike trail trail

Altitude change

-1,809 ft
Altitude min

5,073 ft
Altitude max

6,891 ft
Altitude start

6,883 ft
Altitude end

5,073 ft
Grade max

-49.351%
Grade min

43.138%
Distance climb

4,862 ft
Distance down

3 miles
Distance flat

240 ft
Avg time

01:01:46
Avg reverse time

01:40:08
view trail stats

status	date	description
	May 2, 2022 @ 11:33pm May 2, 2022	Very significant fire damage to majority of trail. Really not going to be rideable for some time.
	Aug 23, 2021 @ 9:03pm Aug 23, 2021	Closed due to SQF Complex fire at least until December 2021. See here for closure map: https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd926055.pdf
	Dec 14, 2020 @ 8:43am Dec 14, 2020	Recent Fires heavily affected the area. Many downed trees and deep ash throughout the whole trail. Basically unrideable. Very sad.
	Jul 4, 2020 @ 7:01pm Jul 4, 2020	Multiple trees down along the trail.
	May 6, 2020 @ 2:51pm May 6, 2020	running primo

title	distance
Nelson Trail Shuttle	5 miles
Nelson Trail from Shuttle point	5 miles

Nelson Trail

Supporters, Builders, Maintainers & Land Managers of Nelson Trail

Nelson Trail Details

Traditionally Indigenous Territory

More Stats for Nelson Trail mountain bike trail trail

Nelson Trail Trail Reports

Recent Ridelog Activity on Trail

Technical Trail Features (TTF)

Photos

Routes with this trail

4 Reviews & Comments

Videos

Nearby Trails

Northern Sequoia National Forest