Off Trail To The World’s Longest Trestle Bridge | California's Abandoned Railroad

This adventure took me somewhere different—rather than summiting a mountain, I hiked deep into the desert to visit an incredible piece of history: the Goat Canyon Trestle Bridge. This is a historic railroad hiking trail in the desert of California. Spanning over 700 feet, this is the longest wooden trestle bridge in the world, part of the legendary "Impossible Railroad", which once connected El Centro, San Diego, and Baja California. Now abandoned, the only way to see it is through a challenging hike. I took the hard route, starting in the Anza-Borrego Desert near Ocotillo, California. This trek covered ~8 miles round trip with a grueling 2,800 feet of elevation gain over rugged terrain. The route included sections of trail, but much of it was pure desert—just me and the cacti. The final approach required scrambling down to the Carrizo Gorge, navigating 2nd and 3rd class terrain before reaching the bridge. The journey was tough, but the payoff was incredible: stunning desert landscapes, a historic engineering marvel, and an up-close look at a forgotten railroad. Along the way, I also made a detour to Mortero Palms, a hidden desert oasis featuring a large grove of native California fan palms tucked into a remote wash. If you're into hiking, adventure, history, or exploring abandoned places, this is one trek you won’t want to miss! 00:00 - Intro 00:18 - Route overview 01:17 - Starting the hike 01:34 - Entering the Mortero Palms Oasis 02:58 - Climbing the ridge and avoiding cactus 03:59 - Describing the challenges of this route 04:32 - Beginning the difficult decent into Goat Canyon 05:12 - First view of the Goat Canyon Trestle Bridge 05:29 - Tough down-climb into the canyon 06:37 - Approaching the Trestle Bridge 06:44 - At at the Goat Canyon Trestle Bridge - history 07:52 - Going in a sketchy train tunnel 08:39 - More history of the Impossible Railroad 10:03 - The beauty of the Carrizo Gorge 10:23 - Walking the Goat Canyon Trestle Bridge 11:14 - Heading back 11:41 - Final thoughts 12:19 - Outro Note 1: To get to the trailhead, you need a high clearance vehicle. There is about 5 miles across sandy/rocky road to get to the start. I didn't find 4x4 necessary, but this route will still be a challenge for the average stock SUV/truck. There are spots you can park before the trailhead if the road exceeds your comfort level. Just know that add some distance to your day. Note 2: Apparently the nudist resort is no longer a nudist resort. It's now just a resort. Still sounds suspicious to me. #GoatCanyonTrestle #AbandonedPlaces #HistoricRailroads