Day One

Leave SF by noon

• Last pit stop · Chevron - 38 W Carmel Valley Road and Village Drive in Carmel Valley
• Nearest grocery store · Jerome's Carmel Valley Market - 2 Chambers Lane in Carmel Valley
• Pick up a deli sandwich or snack from Jerome's!

Park at China Camp and hike Pine Ridge Trail to Church Creek Trail

• It's a 5.3 mile one-way hike, with 843 feet of elevation gain, to Pine Valley
• Power up on snacks, layer on sunscreen, bug spray, and fill up your water bottles (at least 1.5 L)
• The first quarter mile of trail was covered by high chaparral on both sides, but quickly opens up to views of the Church Creek Valley
• This section of the Pine Ridge Trail is lively with critters, including alligator lizards, western fence lizards, whiptails, and snakes
• Descend into Pine Valley, entering healthy groves of Ponderosa Pine, flanked on either side by a rock climber’s dream of sandstone formations

Arrive and set up camp in Pine Valley

• Once you arrive, there are 4 to 5 sizable campsites pleasantly positioned between the headwaters of the Carmel River. Sites are first-come, first-serve.

Explore Jack English's Cabin

• Once you reach Pine Valley, if you explore the area, you'll see Jack's Cabin on your right
• Jack English and his family purchased a small parcel of land in Pine Valley in 1976 after having been enamored with the area his whole life
• The cabin became a well-known staple of the Ventana Wilderness, as did Jack’s reputation as a kind, skillful and resourceful human being. Sadly, Jack died at the age of 96 in 2016, but the cabin remains.

Cook up dinner

• You did it! Enjoy your first night in the Ventana Wilderness.

Car to camp: 5.3 miles - 843 feet of elevation gain - 3 to 4 hours

The Ohlone, Esselen, and Salinan are believed to be the first Native American tribes to live in the wilderness area.

Day Two

Make brekkie and day hike to Pine Falls

• It's a 1.4 mile round-trip hike, with 315 feet of elevation gain, from Pine Valley to Pine Falls
• Pack lunch, a water bottle, water filter, towel, sunscreen, bug spray, and a swimsuit
• The hike down to Pine Falls is easy enough to follow, though it is semi-technical. The route climbs and falls, frequently requiring attentive grappling and a handful of creek crossings.
• The water is cold and isn't deep enough to dive in, but you can do a playful jump off the ridge underneath the falls

Enjoy lunch by the falls

• Relax and unwind to the sound of rushing water

Return to camp and make a meal

• Cook up your last dinner in the Ventana Wilderness

Day hike: 1.4 miles - 1,138 feet of elevation gain - 2 hours

Jack English's cabin is located more than 5 miles from the nearest road so the foundation was completed in 1977 and the final stone was laid in 1980

DAY THREE

Pack up and leave camp around 8 AM

• Cook up brekkie, pick up any random pieces of litter around camp and save some snacks for the return trek
• Layer on sunscreen, bug spray, and fill up your water bottles!

Hike 5.3 miles back to China Camp

• It's about a 5.3 mile one-way hike, with 843 feet of elevation gain, back to the China Camp parking lot
• Take Church Creek Trail back to Pine Ridge Trail and head towards the parking lot

Drive to In-n-Out Burger in Salinas for lunch

• Diners love their burgers and milkshakes
• Located at 151 Kern Street in Salinas
• Open everyday · 10:30 AM - 1 AM

Head home!

Camp to car: 4.1 miles - 3 hours

California has the second largest number of wilderness areas in the country (Alaska has the most)