The Road -- Hidden Forest Road to Sheep Pass

From Hidden Forest Road, Alamo Road heads north for 14.7 miles across a broad, flat valley before climbing to Sheep Pass between the Desert Range and the East Desert Range, for a total of 29.6 miles from Corn Creek.

This part of the road is graded from time to time and usually is suitable for high-clearance vehicles. After storms, however, the road can be badly washed out at the many little wash-lets that cross the road, and rills across the road can sneak up and threaten to break axles of the unwary.

This part of Alamo Road provides access to campsites, White Rock Rd, White Dirt Camp, Deadhorse Road (with campsites), and grand scenery north and south from Sheep Pass.

Link to map. See Alamo Road for GPS coordinates.

Alamo Road

Continuing north from Hidden Forest Road, Alamo Road bends slightly left (more due north) as it runs out across a broad, nearly flat valley. Alamo Road passes Pine Canyon Road (Site 1226; 15.9 miles; service road only) to the east and then Slate Mine Road (Site 1227; 16.9 miles; service road only) to the west. Throughout this area, the wildflowers can be spectacular during good years. At the bottom of the valley, Alamo Road passes White Sage Road (Site 1228; 19.7 miles; service road only) to the west. White Sage Road runs out onto a playa at the base of the Desert Range to the west.

Continuing across the bottom of the valley, Alamo Road passes White Rock Road (Site 0455; 20.6 miles), on the right. White Rock Road is a rough 2WD-HC road that runs up the bajada for 3.0 miles to the mouth of White Rock Canyon at the edge of the Sheep Range. Rocks in that area appear to be formed from volcanic ash, hence the white rocks. There is an undeveloped campsite at the end of the road.

In the bottom of the valley, watch for Badger burrows in the roadside cutbanks.

As Alamo Road passes White Sage Flats on the left, it passes the toe of a ridge on the left. Just before a large rocky outcrop on the left, Alamo Road passes White Dirt Camp Spur Road (Site 0738). Except for fencing and a stone fire ring, this is an undeveloped campsite tucked against the hillside with nice morning sun.

Not far past White Dirt Camp, there is a small, undeveloped campsite with a fire ring on the left.

Continuing past the rocky ridge, Alamo Road continues north across a gentle bajada to Deadhorse Road (Site 0552; 23.6 miles), on the right. Deadhorse Road is a 4WD road that runs for 9.2 miles up into the Sheep Range. In several places, the Deadhorse Road runs in a wash with deep, soft gravel. One time when I was several miles out, a soft bit of gravel at a narrow spot in the wash swallowed my Suzuki Samurai; I shifted into 4WD and drove out, but that would have been a bad spot in a 2WD. The road runs east 8.5 miles to a broad, open area with a big campsite and two trails (old roads). The road turns north and continues down a canyon for another 0.8 miles to a small campsite on the edge of a wash.

Continuing across the valley, Alamo Road runs north to pass the east edge of another mountain. The road wraps around the base of the hillside heading west, then turns north again and starts winging up the bajada towards the major canyon ahead in the distance.

Alamo Road runs up into this broad canyon, which separates the Desert Range on the left from the East Desert Range on the right. At the top of the canyon, Alamo Road crosses Sheep Pass (Site 0553; 29.5 miles) with a campsite. The pass is unremarkable, but this is the highest point on Alamo Road. Although unremarkable atop the pass, short walks north or south down the road provide grand views into the valleys below.

Return to Alamo Road or continue to the next road segment.