Where to Run · Texas
Barnwell Mountain Recreation Area
TXMTRA-run park outside Gilmer, about 1,850 acres and 65 miles of trail rated green through black. East Texas red clay, hills, and mud pits are the terrain, a real change of pace from the western desert parks. A day fee applies.
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Air down
- 18-22 psi
- Season
- Year-round, worst after heavy rain
- Mapped trail
- 31 mi
- Elevation
- 280 ft
Trail map & conditions
31 miles of motorized routes within twelve kilometres of the anchor point, drawn from OpenStreetMap. Green lines are the network; zoom for detail.
Drive to
Barnwell Mountain Recreation Area main office/entrance
6284 N. SH 155, Gilmer, TX 75645
- Search in your maps app
- “Barnwell Mountain Recreation Area, Gilmer, TX”
- GPS (entry)
- 32.79764, -94.87401
Private park with limited office/gate hours (Thu noon-10pm, Fri-Sat 8am-midnight, Sun 8am-6pm); entry after office closes is not allowed; day/camping fees apply at check-in.
Entry info: barnwellmountainra.com
The rules of this place
The red clay turns to axle-deep soup after rain and stays that way for days, so check trail conditions before you tow three hours to get there.
Also worth the trailer miles
Glamis / Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area
The proving ground. Oldsmobile Hill, Razorback, Comp Hill, and China Wall separate the trucks from the trailer queens. Gecko Road and Wash Road are the mellow on-ramps if you are new to sand.
Johnson Valley OHV Area
Home of King of the Hammers, roughly 96,000 acres of open BLM land, free, no permit. The fast desert washes and graded roads out of Hammertown are Raptor territory; Backdoor, Sledgehammer, and Chocolate Thunder are built for buggies on 40s, not full-size trucks.
Moab
Slickrock and ledge country. Fins & Things and Hell's Revenge are doable in a full-size on 35s if you pick your line; Poison Spider, Top of the World, and Gemini Bridges are fine on the easier bypasses. Pritchett Canyon and the tightest slots on Hell's Revenge are not — a Raptor is too wide and the recovery bill is real.