"Alabama Hills" by Bureau of Land Management California , public domain
![]() | Alabama HillsMap and Guide |
Map and Guide of Alabama Hills Recreation and National Scenic Area (NSA) in California. Published by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).
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covered parks
nearby stays
Don’t Crush the Brush
Desert plants keep the soil healthy and
provide homes and food for wildlife.
While these plants are specially
adapted for their environment, they
can be destroyed easily if walked
on or run over by a vehicle. Stick to
designated trails and roads to keep
your public lands healthy.
The Bureau of Land Management and the Alabama
Hills Stewardship Group care for this area with the
U.S. Department of the Interior
Bureau of Land Management
The Alabama Hills are a formation of rounded rocks
and eroded hills set between the jagged peaks of the
Sierra Nevada and the Owens Valley. The hills consist
of nearly 30,000 acres of public land located west of
Alabama
Hills
Recreation and National Scenic Area
goal of keeping the hills in as close to a natural state
Lone Pine that are managed by the Bureau of Land
Management. In March 2019, Congress designated
18,610 acres of the Alabama Hills as a National Scenic
Area.
Care for and Enjoy the Alabama Hills
The indigenous people of this valley still reside in this
place where their ancestors have lived for thousands of
years. They ask that you respect and care for this land.
as possible for the enjoyment of present and future
Do not disturb or destroy anything that you may find.
generations.
• Pack out all trash. There are no trash services. In the
high desert environment, even natural items like orange
In an Emergency
peels take years to decompose.
• Call 9-1-1
• Travel on existing roads and trails. Vegetation in this
• Inyo County Sheriff (760) 878-0383
climate can take decades to recover when crushed by
• Nearest hospital:
Southern Inyo Hospital (760) 876-5501
501 East Locust Street, Lone Pine, CA
off road driving or parking.
The Alabama Hills is a small Recreation and National
Scenic Area best suited for day use. Here are just a few
things you can do:
• Tour film sites. Explore the locations of over 400
movies that have been filmed here.
• Take pictures. The Alabama Hills scenery has been an
inspiration for photographers for decades.
• Have an adventure. Hike, fish, rock climb, explore
natural arches, mountain bike, ride horses, view the
the number of vehicles, so that the great views are not
wildflowers or find your own adventure.
blocked.
Overnight Use
For More Information:
If that isn’t an option, bury human waste in catholes 6
Bureau of Land Management
Bishop Field Office
351 Pacu Lane, Suite 100
Bishop, CA 93514
(760) 872-5000
https://www.blm.gov/california
camp. There are no restrooms in the hills.
BLM/CA/GI-2015/007+8300+1115 REV 2019
Day Use
• Camp in campgrounds. Using campgrounds reduces
• Use the restroom in town or at nearby campgrounds.
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Tent site at Tuttle Creek Campground near sunset by Josh Hammari
inches deep and 200 feet away from water, trails and
• Have a great time. The Alabama Hills are a great place
to explore natural wonders and experience your public
lands.
Tuttle Creek Campground, located within the National
Scenic Area, offers more than 80 sites for affordable
camping with spaces for tents, RVs, and trailers. The
campground boasts views of Mt. Whitney, and has large
campsites with plenty of space for longer vehicles.
Drinking water and restrooms are available. Tuttle Creek
runs through the campground, providing fishing and
birding opportunities.
Camping is also available at the Portagee Joe
Campground just to the east of the Alabama Hills and
the Lone Pine Campground on the Whitney Portal Road.
Map & Guide
Photographer capturing Mobius Arch by Jim Pickering,
Cover photo of photographers by Bob Wick
Camping in campgrounds helps maintain the area’s
great scenery and recreational opportunities. City of
Los Angeles Department of Water and Power lands in
the area are open for day use only.
y
wa
gh
Hi
Geology
BLM Public Lands
The rounded, oddly shaped contours of the Alabama
of the Sierra Nevada. While both land forms consist
of the same granitic rock, the fantastic shapes of the
Private Lands
hills were formed by a combination of natural chemical
weathering and wind erosion.
Maintained Road
(suitable for passenger cars)
er
Man of Steel
Campground
Point of Interest
bac
Hog
d
kR
Red-tailed hawk
vie
Mo
Plants
or at the Museum of Western Film History in Lone Pine.
Lone Pine Film Festival. This festival features speakers,
Scarlet milk-vetch
Desert needlegrass
Tuttle Creek
Campground
Confederate warship responsible for wreaking havoc
during the Civil War. Prospectors sympathetic to the
Confederate cause named their mining claims after the
Alabama and eventually the name stuck.
Alabama Hills with Mt. Whitney in the
distance by David Kirk
d
oa
sR
The hills were named after the C.S.S. Alabama, a
ow
Inyo
National
Forest
Film
History
Museum
Lone Pine
Reservation
136
Visitor
Center
ead
crews, benefiting the local economy.
Gunga Din
Temple Site
Barrel cactus
Portagee Joe
Campground
Whitney Portal Road
Horseshoe M
Lone Pine
Campground
Each October, the community of Lone Pine hosts the
Lone
Pine
Information
Kiosk
ad
Ro
Find a copy of the Movie Road Touring Brochure online
the Alabama Hills. The area continues to attract film
1872
Earthquake
Fault Scarp
Townsend’s
big-eared bat
Tuttle Creek Road
Chuckwalla lizard
Iron Man
Inset map
on reverse
on location in the Alabama Hills. During 1993, portions
actors and bus tours that showcase movies filmed in
WD
Riv
Wildlife
1990 Sci-Fi classic Tremors was filmed almost entirely
were filmed in the Alabama Hills.
Technical
4
Movie Site
Information
West Was Won were filmed along Movie Flat Road. The
Generations, Gladiator, Iron Man, and Django Unchained
Chicken Ranch
(Moffat Ranch Road Area)
O w e ns
The Corridors
Classics such as Gunga Din, Yellow Sky, and How the
of Maverick were filmed here. More recently, Star Trek
395
uct
s Aqued
ngele
sA
Autry, and the Lone Ranger, shot it out with outlaws.
Eye of the Alabama
2 Miles
Lo
Movie stars such as Tom Mix, Hopalong Cassidy, Gene
d
hR
nc
a
tR
fa
of
Geologic Feature/Arch
Mobius Arch
1
WD
ical 4
Trail
Beginning in 1920, Hollywood filmmakers began to take
Since then, over 400 movies have been filmed here.
Te
ch
n
Multi-Use Trail
Film & Television
an interest in the Alabama Hills for its natural scenery.
M
Unmaintained Road
Photo from The Lawless Range courtesy of Beverly and Jim Rogers
Museum of Western Film History
0.5
5
39
Los Angeles Department
of Water and Power Lands
Hills form a sharp contrast to the glacially carved ridges
0
450
0
4800
0
500
4500
• Creating new
roads and trails
harms the landscape and is
illegal.
00
52
Alabama
Hills
46
Ro
ad
00
0
460
480
M
ov
ie
0
• Spring and fall are the most
440
0
popular seasons.
00
49
5000
• Be sure to bring plenty of water.
• Remember to leave plants, rocks,
and artifacts ad you found them
for others to discover.
4800
00
Eye of
the Alabama
Los Angeles Department
of Water and Power Lands
Have a great time!
4900
4800
BLM Public Lands
• Most roads in this area are
unpaved and require 4-wheel
drive.
4500
Recreation and National Scenic Area
50
43
4
00
40 and trails.
• Travel on existing roads
0
Don’t park on vegetation
5100
4700
Travel Tips
4600
00
U.S. Department of the Interior
Bureau of Land Management
42
To Moffat Ranch Road
4900
and U.S. 395
(6 miles)
Mobius
Arch
Maintained Road
(suitable for passenger cars)
44 00
nical 4W
ch
Geologic Feature/Arch
45
Bowling Ball
and Pins
The Loaf
Rock Climbing Area
vie
Mo
4900
Tall Wall
Corridors
Parking
4900
51
00
480
4600
5000
D
4W
Motor Bike Trail
52
00
Parking
Paul’s
Paradise
D
Tech nical 4W
4600
Lone Ranger
Canyon
Technical 4WD
Arastra
(Yellow Sky)
55
00
0
Cattle
Pocket
00
0
0
530
0
54
00
56
Seven Men
from Now
00
48
Django
Unchained
00
47
0
440
430
5500
1 Mile
46
4500
Bicycle Trail
4500
0
Horseback Riding
ad
Ro
Hiking/Trailhead
N
0
00
00
How the West
Was Won
Movie Site
46 0
46
00
Te
nical
Tech
0
Arch Loop
Trailhead
43
Tremors
5200
1.5 Mile
D
540
Multi-Use Trail
Trail
2 Miles
Gunga Din
Bridge Site
Unmaintained Road
5300
46
00
Private Lands
5700
4200
0
0.5
430
and
0
1 Miles
No Camping
No Campfires
0.5 Mile
Shark’s Fin
Roa
d
and
and
Start
Mile 0
No Campfires
and
No Campfires
00
4900
46
00
46
No Camping
and
To Tuttle Creek
Campground (1.6 miles)
No Campfires
4500
4400
4400
4400
00
43
51
No warranty is made by the Bureau
of Land Management. The accuracy,
reliability or completeness of these data
for individual use or aggregate use with
other data is not guaranteed.
00
No Camping
4700
To Lone Pine (2.7 miles) &
Portagee Joe Campground (2.4 miles)
Whitney Portal Road
00
No Campfires
45
Pine Creek
L on e
No Camping
Horseshoe Meadows Road
To Whitney Portal (9 miles) &
Lone Pine Campground (4.4 miles)
No Camping
Mov
ie