Manzana East Trail

Dogs Unknown

Features River/Creek

From the NIRA Campsite, the Manzana East Trail heads eastward. Soon after leaving the camp, you'll cross Manzana Creek and then start to climb up the north side of the creek along the trail. After switchbacking up a nearby ridge, the trail arrives at the Lost Valley Camp. Avoid taking the Lost Valley Trail that departs the camp and climbs up the mountainside. Instead, follow the Manzana East Trail along the edge of the creek for another 2 miles.

At this point along the trail, you'll be able to look across the creek and see the Fish Creek Camp, where Fish Creek and Manzana Creek meet, a great place for fishermen to camp because of how many trout are present in the area. Continuing further along the Manzana East Trail, you'll hug the north canyon wall before the canyon becomes more narrow, at which point the trail will angle to the creek.

The Manzana East Trail then crosses the creek before crossing over again 1/2 of a mile later. The canyon then continues to narrow, and you'll cross the creek a few more times. After this, the trail will reach Manzana Camp, a great spot for fishing, swimming, and finding a dependable water source. Following the trail further, it steeply switchbacks up the north wall of the canyon and then flattens out to a more gradual grade.

The trail will then wind through the hills and start to lose some elevation before reaching a juncture with the Hurricane Deck Trail. Stay to the right to follow the Manzana East Trail further east. You'll soon be running along the South Fork of the Sisquoc River until you reach a "T-intersection" with the Sisquoc Trail. At this point the Manzana East Trail comes to its end. You can either follow the same route back to the NIRA trailhead or link up with other trails in the area to extend your run.

Thanks to John McKinney, The Trailmaster, for sharing this trail description. To learn more about trails in California, check out his guides at The Trailmaster Store.