We are building this site as a repository of information on the trails of the Klamath Mountains in northern California, including current trail conditions.
These mountains include three major groups--the Marble Mountains, the Siskiyou Mountains, and the Trinity Alps--and a number of lesser ranges. For the present, the focus will be on furnishing information on trails administered by the Orleans and Lower Trinity Ranger Districts of the Six Rivers National Forest. The Orleans District is also responsible for trails in the Ukonom Ranger District of the Klamath National Forest. These areas include trails in the western part of the Marble Mountain Wilderness, the southern part of the Siskiyou Wilderness, the northwestern part of the Trinity Alps Wilderness, and nearby areas along the Klamath, Trinity, and Salmon Rivers.
Before starting your trip, it is always prudent to check with the office for the ranger district in which trails you plan to use are located for any further information they may have--but understand that staff may themselves not have full, up to date information on all trails, so do your homework. For trails in the Orleans and Ukonom Districts, contact the Orleans Ranger Station at One Ishi Pishi Rd., Orleans, Calif. 95556, (530) 627-3291. For trails in the Lower Trinity District, contact the Lower Trinity Ranger Station at 580 Highway 96, Willow Creek, Calif. 95573, (530) 629-2118. When doing so, mention to staff the revision date of the PDF document you obtained from this site.
We always appreciate receiving corrections and additions to the information in these pages--or even just your confirmation that information on one of the trails here remains current and correct. We would also appreciate receiving your GPX tracks, for use in improving the KML files in these pages. Please send any information to us at CPVR144@gmail.com. And feel free to contact us if you have questions. Thank you!
The following documents are currently available (follow the links):
o Trail Descriptions and Conditions, Orleans Ranger District . PDF, updated regularly with new information on trail conditions and maintenance status. This document covers Ukonom and Lower Trinity District trails, as well. Some of the major trails described include the Haypress Trail, the trail to Monument Lake, the Wooley Creek Trail, the Horse Trail Ridge Trail, and the trail to Mill Creek Lakes.
o Trail Report, Trinity Alps Wilderness, Shasta-Trinity National Forests Portion . PDF, dated 9/22/16, published by the U.S. Forest Service, unfortunately no longer being updated.
A few notes on how to find information on trail conditions in neighboring ranger districts:
o Gasquet R.D. (Smith River National Recreation Area)--Detailed information on selected trails is on the Smith River Alliance's trail guide at http://smithriveralliance.org/trail-guide/ . A KMZ file with paths that can be displayed with Google Earth Pro and compatible products is available here. However, the site is not regularly updated with reports on current trail conditions.
o Mad River R.D.--This district currently has no recreation staff. We know of no good source for written information on current trail conditions.
o Weaverville R.D. (including the former Big Bar R.D.)---This district had an active trail maintenance program for over 30 years--doing maintenance on about 200 miles of Trinity Alps Wilderness trails during the 2018 season. Unfortunately, the program was much reduced as of 2019. The maintenance backlog is likely to build quickly, as the district has hundreds of miles of trails. Staff do receive some help from packers. The then-manager of the wilderness program, Jim Holmes, formerly maintained a PDF file with information on the condition of Trinity Alps Wilderness trails within this district. This has not been revised since he retired at the end of the 2016 season. You can find the most recent revision on this Web site (see above). The district formerly offered recorded information on trail conditions available by telephone, but seems to have discontinued this. The telephone number for the ranger station is (530) 623-2121. Two Facebook groups, now private and requiring signup, receive a fair number of postings on Trinity Alps trail conditions, though they are the chaos typical of Facebook.
o Salmon-Scott Rivers R.D.--This district, with hundreds of miles of trails, has an active trail maintenance program. There is a "Recreation Conditions Report," updated frequently, at https://www.fs.usda.gov/recmain/klamath/recreation . Scroll down the page to find the report. The report is very useful, but unfortunately lacks detailed information on the conditions of trails in the interior parts of wilderness.
Here's some selected information on Salmon-Scott Rivers Ranger District's trails:
(1) A CCC crew logged and brushed out the Little North Fork Salmon Trail, and made tread repairs, spring 2023, from the lower trailhead to Uncles Creek. From there to the intersection of the tie trail from the Cherry Creek Road end, the trail hasn't been worked since 2018. That winter, the trail washed out "in an impassable way" at Snowslide Gulch. The Forest Service has "ambitions" to make repairs, but funding hasn't been secured. Summer 2023, the Forest Service crew worked the tie trail, and the Little North Fork Salmon Trail from the end of the tie trail all the way to English Peak Lookout.
(2) Summer 2023, the Forest Service crew "began pecking away at the Snowslide Trail, opening approximately one-third mile from the bottom and one-half mile from the top. That leaves at least two miles in the middle that is impassable." The district has plans "to reclaim this portion, perhaps as early as the second week in September if all goes well." In the mean time, use the alternate route of the Little North Fork Salmon Trail past Hamilton Camp.
(3) Summer 2023, the Forest Service crew logged out Garden Gulch Trail from the junction with the Little North Fork Salmon Trail down to the vicinity of Chimney Rock, but the segment remains brushy. The rest of Garden Gulch Trail hasn't been logged out or brushed since the 2017 fire. Reportedly, parts of it are difficult to follow. However, starting no higher than "Jims Camp," at the first meadow below the saddle above Mud Lake, through to Ahlgrens Cabin, the trail can be followed pretty easily, though it is pretty brushy. From the cabin to the vicinity of Chimney Rock, the trail is more apparent, but has not been logged out in 2023.
(4) Summer 2023, the Forest Service crew worked the Pine Lake Trail.
(5) July 2023, the Bigfoot Trail Alliance logged and brushed out the Haypress Trail from the Pacific Crest Trail west to the junction of the Wooley Creek Trail.
(6) For the condition of Wooley Creek Trail, see the Orleans District conditions PDF file on this Web site.
(7) Big Meadows Trail was logged out and worked, summer 2020, but hasn't received maintenance since.
(8) Summer 2022, a CCC crew worked many other trails, including the North Fork Salmon Trail all the way along the river, and the Right Hand North Fork Trail, but didn't get to many of the lake spurs or high country ridgeline trails.
o Happy Camp-Oak Knoll R.D.--This district's trail maintenance program is unfortunately much reduced in recent years. This district also uses the "Recreation Conditions Report" described above under the Salmon-Scott Rivers R.D. We recommend contacting the Salmon-Scott Rivers R.D. for further information, as that district's staff have assumed the bulk of the responsibility for maintenance on the Happy Camp-Oak Knoll R.D.
Here's some selected information on Happy Camp-Oak Knoll Ranger District's trails:
(1) Essentially all of the trails mentioned in this paragraph burned over in the 2021 McCash Fire.
(2) The southern half of the Ukonom-Onemile Lakes Trail was brushed out in 2020.
(3) Pre-fire, due to heavy brush, the northern half of that trail was considered impassable by some, and was certainly impassable for stock, though some hikers were pushing their way through. We have received no report as to post-fire conditions, but they are likely to remain difficult
(4) The available alternate route is an old trail--not officially maintained, but passable and traversing open country--that crosses the low point in the ridge to the northeast and connects with the Cuddihy-Onemile Lakes Trail.
(5) During the 2022 season, the Siskiyou Mountain Club performed full maintenance of the Johnsons Hunting Ground Trail, from the trailhad to its end at the junction with Tickner Hole Trail.
(6) Pre-fire, the Tickner Hole Trail was recently logged out to the junction with Johnsons Hunting Ground Trail. Packers had cut logs on the Johnsons Hunting Ground Trail prior to the Siskiyou Mountain Club doing work. We believe that they also at least minimally logged out the top of Tickner Hole Trail and the rest of the route to Ukonom Lake.
(7) Elk Creek Trail from Norcross, and the lower part of Granite Creek Trail, were logged out early summer 2022. The maintained route crosses Elk Cr., ascends the east side of the creek, and then crosses Elk Cr. again via the Hummingbird Camp Tie Tr. to continue up Granite Cr. The other route, the part of Granite Creek Tr. that stays on the west side of Elk Cr., has not been recently maintained.
(8) Summer 2022, the Forest Service had a CCC crew that planned to complete work on the remainder of Granite Creek Trail (which had been in rough shape, post-fire) and the south end of Ukonom-Cuddihy Lakes Trail to the junction with Haypress Trail, so we believe that job has been completed. The crew may also have worked the rest of Ukonom-Cuddihy Lakes Trail continuing north to its end.
(9) The Rainy Valley Trail above the junction with the trail up the east side of Elk Creek near Hummingbird Camp has not been worked in recent years, and per staff there are "many logs blown down."
o The Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forests have considerable trail information on the recreation pages of the forests' Web site. Visit https://www.fs.usda.gov/rogue-siskiyou . The organization of the site may be a bit confusing, so you may need to hunt for information.
o The Siskiyou Mountain Club does considerable trail work in the Siskiyou Mountains and in the western part of the Marble Mountains. The SMC maintains a very useful public record of the status of work it has performed at https://siskiyoumountainclub.org/trailfinder/ . From that page, follow the link, "Check out the updated work log here." When up to date, which isn't always the case, this is quite a good supplement to other sources of trail condition information.
o For the Pacific Crest Trail, there are scattered condition reports on the Pacific Crest Trail Association's Web site at https://www.pcta.org . However, the association is not good at keeping these reports up to date.
o Sometimes very useful trail condition reports can be found at https://www.hikingproject.com (REI's "Hiking Project"), but coverage is very spotty.
o Except as noted, the Forest Service Web pages with trail descriptions are not recommended. Most of the information is severely out of date, and there are errors. It's best to steer clear of the Forest Service's online "Recreation Site Status Map." It's full of misinformation.
o Ukonom Ranger District Trail Mileage Chart . XLS, covering trail mileages in this portion of the Marble Mountain Wilderness.
o Recommended Day Hikes, Orleans, Ukonom, and Lower Trinity Ranger Districts (PDF)
o Fowler Cabin Journal, 2003-2018 . For many years, a journal has been kept at Fowler Cabin on Wooley Creek Tr. in the Marble Mountain Wilderness. Visitors are welcome to write something about themselves or their travels. The old journal, which was full and was deteriorating badly, was taken out at the end of the 2018 season, and has been replaced with a new volume. Here is a PDF scan of the volume that was in the cabin from 2003 through 2018.
The following are KML files. These contain paths in KML format, tracing recreational trails, that can be opened in Google Earth Pro and compatible products. Once you save a file, and open it with Google Earth Pro, you can display paths selectively. If you have added a map layer, you can print maps including those paths.
Several sources of topographic map layers for Google Earth Pro are available. The one we like best is Earth Point. Go to http://www.earthpoint.us/TopoMap.aspx. Click the "View On Google Earth" button to download a small KML file. When you open this in Google Earth Pro, it will dynamically download the topographic map layer for the area you have displayed. The Web page identified above includes further instructions for use of the topographic map layer. All topographic maps, including historical maps, are available in KML format at the USGS Web sit
Paths from the KML files can be converted to GPX tracks for use with most GPS devices. Most GPS applications for mobile phones will import KML files directly. Otherwise, you can find facilities on the Web that will convert KML files to GPX tracks. (Google Earth will not do this directly.) In the other direction, GPX tracks and many other GPS track file formats can be imported directly into Google Earth Pro, and converted to paths to be stored in KML files.
Note that KML files imported into GPS applications, or mapping applications other than Google Earth, may not display all colors and other information correctly. It's up to the developer of an application to assure compatibility with Google Earth, since Google invented the KML format. Not all have been 100% successful at it.
Here is a brief explanation of the format of the paths in the KML files:
o Trails on the current official U.S.F.S. list that should be regularly maintained are in red--bright red if we have personally done a careful job of plotting the routes, and dark red if we have only copied tracks of doubtful accuracy created by the U.S.F.S., or have only traced routes as shown on maps, which may not be correct. Please note that despite this classification, substantial parts of these trails haven't received maintenance in many years, and can be in very difficult condition. Please refer to the "Trail Descriptions and Conditions" document for the most recent known information on conditions.
o Trails shown in dark blue are unmaintained, unofficial, temporary bypass, or doubtful routes, or disappeared historical routes. Do not expect routes in dark blue to be usable--most are not. Trails not officially maintained shown in bright blue have been confirmed to be usable, but may be rough and the locations shown may not be very accurate.
o Trails shown in pink are private, or lead to private property. Please respect property rights.
o Routes shown in green are suggested cross-country routes, not trails. These should be considered very rough guides for cross-country travel--please don't complain if they don't work out for you (although your feedback is always welcome).
o Routes shown in black are roads that are not shown on most topographical maps. Most are probably suitable for passenger cars, but please understand that forest road conditions fluctuate from year to year and season to season.
o Routes shown in brown are jeep trails that are not shown on most topographical maps.
As to all trails depicted in these files, please understand that the routes have been compiled from a combination of sources, including maps, personal observation, GPX tracks personally created or contributed by others, and aerial imagery. In many cases, this information has been deficient, and due to timber or brush cover, fire damage, or very light recent trail use, it has not been possible to discern locations accurately from aerial images. Therefore, please consider the paths in these KML files to be only a guide, and not the last word as to correct trail locations. They are not a substitute for good routefinding skills. However, we believe that by and large, these paths are more accurate than any published maps. Please note that many published maps of these areas include huge mistakes.
The following KML files are currently available (save or open in a helper program, will not display in browser):
o Marble Mountains trails (now virtually complete for the entire wilderness, and adjacent slopes to the rivers); you can also view this set of paths at https://caltopo.com/m/9DJG
o Western Trinity Alps trails (the "Green Trinities," virtually complete)
o Siskiyou Mountains trails (virtually complete for the Siskiyou Wilderness and adjacent areas, doesn't cover the Red Buttes)
o Other Lower Trinity Ranger District trails
o Kalmiopsis Wilderness trails (virtually complete)
o New! Trails of the Red Buttes Wilderness and adjacent areas
This is not an official U.S. Forest Service document.
Compiled by Chris Valle-Riestra
Revised August 8, 2023