Hollister Hills State Vehicular Recreation Area (SVRA) is celebrating its 50th anniversary this month. On Oct. 1, 1975, the park in the Gabilan Mountains, south of the town of Hollister, became the first property to be specifically acquired as an SVRA. Today, the park embodies State Parks’ leadership in providing an opportunity for safe and sustainable off-highway vehicle (OHV) recreation, offering nearly 200 miles of OHV trails for all vehicle types and skill levels, while actively managing its many natural and cultural resources.

Hollister Hills’ OHV roots go back to the early post-World War II area, when jeeps and off-road motorcycles were used to get around what was then ranch- and farmland. The foundation of Hollister Hills as an OHV park were laid by Howard Harris, who in 1959 became the last private owner of the property. In the years that followed, Harris built many of the park’s trails and roads and opened them up for private OHV activities. In the early 1970s, he managed the land as a motorcycle park for public OHV recreation until he sold the property to the State of California, making it Hollister Hills SVRA.

Today, the park is divided into four major areas. The largest one, with about 3,000 acres, is the Lower Ranch, off the main entrance. With its narrow trails winding through oak woodland, the Lower Ranch, is designated for motorcycle and all-terrain vehicle (ATV) use only. It also features four of the park’s campgrounds, moto-cross practice tracks, kids tracks, and an intermediate and beginner areas. The Upper Ranch and Hudner Ranch areas are more open grasslands, set aside for side-by-sides and other four-wheeled vehicles with steering wheels. The trails of Hudner Ranch offer panoramic views of the surrounding area, while Upper Ranch features three specialized areas that provide a range of challenges and obstacles, from beginner to advanced.

The park also reserves a large area for nonmotorized recreation. Mudstone Ranch is a 850-acre buffer area between the park’s OHV trails and its neighbors. It offers over 13 miles of nonmotorized trails for hiking, horseback riding and mountain biking. And the 280-acre Nature Area, located in the Lower Ranch, features a network of scenic trails that invite visitors to experience the park’s rich plant and wildlife.

“Hollister Hills’ low density of trails is good for wildlife,” says Senior Environmental Scientist Wes Gray.

The park is home to many species of threatened and endangered animals, including California tiger salamander and California red-legged frog, and to native plants like Gairdner’s yampah and western azaleas. The park’s commitment to protecting these species, while providing high-quality sustainable OHV recreation opportunities, requires active resource management. A native plant nursery on-site grows about 10,000 plants annually, all from locally sourced seeds to preserve the plants’ genetic integrity. And the park’s invasive-plant species management involves timed mowing, herbicide, hand pulling and using cattle grazing as a tool to sustainably maintain the oak woodland and grassland habitats. This helps not only with invasive plant removal but also minimizes the severity of wildfires through fuel reduction.

With its sustainably designed trail system, Hollister Hills is “a model for sustainable recreation,” says Gray. “It has the feel of a state park that happens to also include OHV recreation.”

The rolling grasslands of Hollister Hills have come a long way since jeeps and off-road “tote-gote” motorcycles traversed the land amid Howard Harris’ walnut orchards more than half a century ago. Since then, the park has grown to be a valuable part of the OHV and surrounding communities, and it continues to combine sustainable natural resource management with off-roading enjoyment for future generations.