Federal Court Closes 2,200 Miles of Mojave Desert Off-Road Trails

 7 min read

Mojave Desert Trail Closure: What the Court Ordered

The Mojave Desert trail closure took effect after a federal judge ordered roughly 2,200 miles of off-highway vehicle routes shut down across the Western Mojave. Senior U.S. District Judge Susan Illston issued the order on January 23, 2026. The ruling protects the desert tortoise and a rare desert plant. However, it does not lock riders out of the region entirely. Roughly 3,800 miles of routes and 271,661 acres of open area remain available during the interim period.

This decision matters to anyone who rides the Western Mojave. For decades, the area has drawn off-roaders, overlanders, hunters, and campers from across Southern California. Because the change carries a court order behind it, enforcement holds real weight. Still, the scope stays narrower than several early headlines suggested.

Two competing stories spread quickly online after the ruling. One framed the order as a permanent lockdown of the desert. Another argued the alarm was overstated. Meanwhile, the facts sit between the loudest voices. Below, you get what the court decided, what stays open, and why the desert tortoise sits at the center of the case.

Key Facts at a Glance

The numbers below summarize the ruling and its scope. Each figure comes from the court order and reporting on the case.

Detail	Value
Court	U.S. District Court, Northern District of California
Judge	Senior U.S. District Judge Susan Illston
Order date	January 23, 2026
Compliance began	March 24, 2026
Routes closed	About 2,200 miles, near 37%
Routes open	About 3,800 miles, near 63%
Open acreage	271,661 acres
Species protected	Desert tortoise; Lane Mountain milk-vetch
Legal basis	NEPA, FLPMA, and Endangered Species Act violations
New plan deadline	2029

What’s Closed and What Stays Open

The order closes about 2,200 miles of OHV routes inside designated critical habitat. Specifically, those routes fall within desert tortoise habitat and Lane Mountain milk-vetch habitat. The Bureau of Land Management began marking the affected routes with signage and fencing where needed, starting March 24, 2026.

The open side of the ledger is larger. About 3,800 miles of routes stay legal for motorized travel. In addition, 271,661 acres of open area remain available to off-roaders, hunters, anglers, and campers. Therefore, the Western Mojave stays open for riding, even though the legal route map has shrunk.

Two well-known areas sit outside the closure. Johnson Valley, home to King of the Hammers, falls outside the affected critical habitat. The Mojave National Preserve is managed by the National Park Service under separate rules, so it is not part of this Bureau of Land Management order. Before any trip, check current Bureau of Land Management maps, because signage and route status change as crews finish the rollout.

Why the Desert Tortoise Drove the Ruling

The desert tortoise sits at the legal core of the case. The Mojave population is federally listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, a status it has held since 1990. In 2025, California uplisted the same population to endangered under state law. Conservation groups spent years arguing the routes cut through habitat the species needs to survive.

Judge Illston agreed the routes posed an ongoing problem. As Courthouse News reported, she cited a significant ongoing cause of harm to the desert tortoise and noted closing areas to OHV use benefits tortoise survival. The same order protects the Lane Mountain milk-vetch, a rare plant with its own federal critical habitat in the region.

For riders, the species status explains the legal weight behind the order. Because the Endangered Species Act sets firm duties for federal agencies, courts hold real power to force closures when those duties are missed. As a result, this is not a discretionary policy choice the agency made on its own.

Access advocates push back on the science. Groups including the BlueRibbon Coalition argue ravens, disease, and drought drive more tortoise deaths than motorized routes do. The court did not rank every threat. Instead, it focused on whether the agencies met their legal duties when they mapped the routes.

Background on the West Mojave Route Network

The dispute centers on the West Mojave Route Network Project, the travel plan the Bureau of Land Management uses to manage motorized routes across the region. In 2019, the agency revised the plan and added close to 1,000 miles of new routes. Conservation groups challenged the revision in court soon after.

The plaintiffs included the Center for Biological Diversity, Sierra Club, Defenders of Wildlife, and several desert conservation groups. In October 2024, Judge Illston ruled on liability. She found the Bureau of Land Management violated NEPA and FLPMA by failing to show how it minimized harm to vulnerable species. She also found the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service violated the Endangered Species Act.

The January 2026 order is the remedy phase of the earlier ruling. Rather than vacating the entire West Mojave Route Network, the judge ordered a targeted closure inside critical habitat while the agency rebuilds a compliant plan. Consequently, the Bureau of Land Management now has until 2029 to produce a new travel management plan to meet federal law.

Competing Narratives Over the Mojave Desert Trail Closure

The Mojave Desert trail closure produced two sharply different messages, and riders saw both within days. The BlueRibbon Coalition, an access advocacy group, described the order as a major lockdown and called the decision the work of a rogue judge. Its executive director, Ben Burr, is a former staffer for Senator Mike Lee and is married to a niece of the senator, biographical details the group has not disputed.

Writer Jonathon Klein pushed back in RideApart. He argued the lockdown framing was exaggerated, since roughly 271,000 acres stay open and the closure is temporary. Klein also tied the access fight to a broader public lands debate. The Center for Western Priorities, a conservation group, echoed the same view in its own coverage.

Both characterizations are opinions, not court findings. The neutral facts stay simple. A federal judge found the agencies broke environmental law, ordered a targeted closure, and set a 2029 deadline for a new plan. Readers should weigh the louder claims against those documented details.

What the Closure Means for Riders This Season

For the current season, the practical message is straightforward. Most of the Western Mojave stays open, yet some familiar routes inside critical habitat now sit off limits. Crews continue installing signs and fencing, so route status on the ground keeps shifting through 2026.

I have run desert routes across Southern California, and signage gaps are common in remote terrain even in normal years. During this rollout, a printed Bureau of Land Management map and a current GPS layer matter more than usual. When a route shows a closure sign or fencing, treat it as closed, because enforcement now carries a court order behind it. Good trail etiquette protects both the habitat and continued access.

Plenty of legal options remain for trip planning. Johnson Valley stays open, and the wider region still offers top Southern California overlanding destinations. If you build trips around dispersed camping, our guide to finding free camping on BLM land and our roundup of off-grid camping in Southern California both point toward areas outside the closed habitat.

What Happens Next

The legal fight is not over. On May 5, 2026, the BlueRibbon Coalition filed to intervene in the appeal before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. An appeal might reshape parts of the order, although the closure stays in force during the process.

The longer timeline runs through 2029. By then, the Bureau of Land Management must deliver a new West Mojave Route Network plan satisfying NEPA, FLPMA, and the Endangered Species Act. This future plan will decide which routes reopen and which stay closed for good. Track the official process on the agency’s West Mojave plan page.

Until the new plan lands, the situation stays fluid. For now, the Western Mojave remains a legal place to ride, provided you respect posted closures and verify route status before each trip.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why did a judge close Mojave Desert off-road trails?

A federal judge found the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service violated environmental law when they planned the route network. The agencies failed to show how routes inside desert tortoise habitat minimized harm to the species. As a remedy, the judge ordered the targeted closure.

How many miles of Mojave trails were closed?

The order closed roughly 2,200 miles of OHV routes, near 37% of the West Mojave Route Network. About 3,800 miles of routes, near 63% of the network, stay open. In addition, 271,661 acres of open area remain available for recreation.

Is the Mojave Desert trail closure permanent?

No. The closure is temporary and interim. The Bureau of Land Management has until 2029 to produce a new, legally compliant travel management plan. This plan will determine which routes reopen. An appeal before the Ninth Circuit is also underway.

Does the closure affect Johnson Valley or the Mojave National Preserve?

Johnson Valley, the King of the Hammers site, falls outside the closed critical habitat. The Mojave National Preserve is run by the National Park Service under separate rules, so this Bureau of Land Management order does not apply there. Both stay outside the closure.

Who sued to close the Mojave off-road trails?

Conservation groups filed the case, including the Center for Biological Diversity, Sierra Club, and Defenders of Wildlife, along with several desert conservation organizations. They challenged the 2019 West Mojave Route Network revision. The court sided with them on liability in October 2024.

Where is it legal to ride in the Western Mojave now?

About 3,800 miles of routes and 271,661 acres of open area stay legal during the interim. Johnson Valley remains open. Always check current Bureau of Land Management maps and posted signage before a trip, because crews continue marking closures through 2026.