The scenic and varied terrain includes beautiful oak woodlands, rolling hills, lush canyons, and seasonal creeks. The area is in the Gabilan Mountains, and has elevations ranging from 660 feet to 2,425 feet above sea level. It has a history of providing ATV trails and UTV trails to California outdoorsmen and women that began in 1947 when Howard Harris founded the Bird Creek Hunting Club. The land was then passed down through generations from Howard’s great-grandfather, Jesse Whitton, who was a civilian surveyor for the John C. Fremont expedition in 1846, and who then returned to the area and bought 600 acres for $50 a pop. Howard was the last private owner of the property, and in 1975 the area was sold to the state and became the Hollister Hills State Vehicle Recreation Area.