Ventana Wilderness Forums

Another shot of the bridge from a kayaking trip a few years ago.

And a view from the west side of the bridge. It is a punishing hike from Tassajara (we were scouting officially for the Forest Service). And the Marble Peak Trail is in bad shape.

Here is the aerial view of the bridge. Courtesy of the USFS.

May 10, 2016. There's a small stream down there somewhere.

This bridge will never, EVER be rebuilt. There is neither the money nor the political will to rebuild forest infrastructure once it is damaged or destroyed. And even if there were, the project would be buried in EIRs and EISs for the next ten years. The history of the Los Padres over the past 25 years demonstrates that pretty clearly. You can have your memories of the Arroyo Seco, but you can forget about access now. Cherish them.

The ventana has been too rough for horseback riders for a long time, it’s time to move on.
Instead of a horse bridge maybe a backpacker bridge is called for, and some new picnic tables

This is heart wrenching!

Hopefully the forest service will decide to fund a project to rebuild the bridge or find an alternative route. Without the bridge the wilderness is virtually inaccessible from the east especially with the slides occurring on Tassajara Rd.

It's remarkable that a series of storms could eliminate access to many (if not most) of the trail heads into the Ventana.

This post is to inform all folks entering the Ventana Wilderness from Arroyo Seco Campground the well-known Horsebridge has collapsed after the recent storms. Whether it will be repaired, replaced or a new crossing made is unknown at this time.

Be safe out there.