Wrecking Ball
Trail name: Wrecking Ball
Trailhead location: 34o25'19.0"N, 116o28'26.1"W
Length: 1.0 miles
Elapsed time: 4 hours
How to get there: Wrecking Ball's trailhead is located one major drainage to the north of the end of Jackhammer. The trailhead is on the other side of the low ridge visible to the east from the lakebed. There are several ways to get there but the fastest is to follow the route toward the Sledgehammer/Jackhammer trailhead until you get past the ridge and then turn left along the ridge's base. Once into the small basin defined by the ridge and the main body of hills to the east, the wash that contains Wrecking Ball heads northeast up out of the basin.
The trail: Wrecking Ball was formerly known as the X-Trail and many aficionados consider it the most difficult trail in Johnson Valley. It is, without a doubt, an extreme trail. The rocks are bigger, the climbs are higher, the requirements for good stout equipment more pronounced. It would be pointless to try and describe the major obstacles, as they are pretty much a continuous event. In the few gaps between major obstructions, the trail is "paved" with rocks so large that high centering a differential or skid plate is a constant danger. Since a rock crawling contest was run over it last year, there are several locations with duplicate routes. It doesn't matter which one is chosen, none looked any easier. The trail difficulties end in a small saddle and the road continues up from there to a great viewpoint of Clawhammer. The road then drops off the point and joins the Clawhammer at its exit. |
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