Blue Lake and Zion Hill
It’s pretty prosaic, as trails go, but the Blue Lake Trail is a pleasant hike and a feeder trail to some of my favorite sub-alpine adventures. For instance, it connects with the Beyers Lake Trail to Baltimore Lake and Meadow Lake to the east. The Blue Lake Trail ends at the Grouse Ridge Trail which extends north and upslope from Eagle Lakes, near Fordyce Creek, to the Grouse Ridge lookout then continues north to Sawmill Lake on Canyon Creek, a distance of about eight and a half miles altogether. Virtually all of the trails in the Grouse Ridge Roadless Area connect to this major north-south oriented trail.
Old Man Mountain
The Blue Lake Trail is a relatively easy hike to the glaciated terrain above the mixed conifer-black oak forest, so typical of the west slope of the Sierra Nevada. I usually hike the Blue Lake Trail three of four times a year. It’s an excellent introduction to the geography of the South Yuba River above 5,000’ in elevation and to the intensive water management system that is so much a part of the history of the Yuba River. The Spaulding Dam impounds water from the South Yuba, Fordyce Creek, Canyon Creek and the Middle Yuba and is part of the Yuba-Hydroelectric Project encompassing approximately 400 square miles. Together with the Drum-Spaulding Project the Yuba-Bear Project is considered by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to be “the most physically and operationally complex hydroelectric project in the United States.”
How to get there:
The Lake Bowman Road is 24 miles east of Nevada City, CA on State Highway 20, on the east side of Bear Valley. Drive Lake Bowman Road north for 5 miles to Forest Service Road 18.06. This is also the turnoff for Camp Liahona. Slowly drive this rugged road for 1.2 miles to a large flat that once was a log landing and park here. There are two roads visible from here: the one on the right goes to the campground near the Blue Lake dam and the short trail to Zion Hill, while the Blue Lake trail starts up a rough and rocky road that trends to the northeast. Don’t try to drive it – you’ll reach a locked gate where it’s difficult to turn around.
A Ditch with Rock Retaining Walls and Trail
The Trail:
The road slowly climbs for about a mile and ends at a saddle turned into a landing situated to the northeast of Blue Lake. In the saddle there’s a pretty good view of Blue Lake, which is indeed blue.
The peak across the lake is erroneously mapped as Zion Hill. On 19th century maps Zion Hill is the smaller peak one air mile to the southwest below Fuller Lake and the site of the Zion Hill Tunnel, a water conduit. I only had access to a few Colfax Quad Maps (USGS) and on them I found that the 1898 and the 1902 maps show Zion Hill in its historic location but on the 1938 map it has moved to its current location near Blue Lake. For over 80 years now all subsequent maps have consistently shown Zion Hill at its new location – does this make it so? It makes me wonder how many other cartographic blunders are on modern maps, probably something only a map nerd would care about.
The peak across the lake is erroneously mapped as Zion Hill. On 19th century maps Zion Hill is the smaller peak one air mile to the southwest below Fuller Lake and the site of the Zion Hill Tunnel, a water conduit. I only had access to a few Colfax Quad Maps (USGS) and on them I found that the 1898 and the 1902 maps show Zion Hill in its historic location but on the 1938 map it has moved to its current location near Blue Lake. For over 80 years now all subsequent maps have consistently shown Zion Hill at its new location – does this make it so? It makes me wonder how many other cartographic blunders are on modern maps, probably something only a map nerd would care about.
Pick up the trail along the former ditch that brought water to Blue Lake from a small but perennial stream. It heads northeast from the flat that was carved into the saddle. Blue Lake, along with nearby Rucker and Fuller Lakes, were originally dammed in the 1860’s to provide reservoirs for the hydraulic mines of Alpha and Omega, located southeast of the town of Washington on the South Yuba. The three reservoirs were known collectively as the “Omega Lakes” and they’ve been considerably upgraded in the 20thcentury.
Along the trail you’ll come to a small perennial stream where the ditch segment ends. Remnants of a former rock dam create a small waterfall where the trail crosses the creek. From here the trail climbs a bit and has some ups and downs but nothing serious. In about a half mile you’ll reach another small live stream. After about two miles of hiking in a forest of ponderosa pine, Douglas fir, incense cedar, black oak and canyon live oak you’ll be suddenly treated to a huge view of a body of water in a glacial bowl at the confluence of the South Yuba and Fordyce Creek. To the east are spectacular views of Old Man Mountain, Red Mountain, Brady Mountain, Emigrant Gap and many other mountains and ridges. Recent studies of glacial striations on Old Man Mountain by geographer Allan James reveal that a glacier occupied Fordyce canyon about 14,000 years ago. At that time the tops of Red Mountain and Old Man Mountain were islands that poked through the glacier.
At various places along the trail there is evidence of the indigenous people. Today there is a set of trails that extends from Bear Valley (4,500’) to Meadow Lake (7,300’) and one of those linked trails is the Blue Lake Trail. The fact that all along this trail system are archaeological sites reflecting food processing, tool manufacture and retouching, and petroglyph sites suggest that this trial was used thousands of years ago.
A rewarding ramble overland is to head north on the ridge on the west side of Granite Creek in the direction of Loney Lake. There are gigantic boulders and smooth expanses of bedrock. When I’m hiking in this landscape I feel like I’m in a huge art gallery/park with sculpture beyond human imagination accented with pockets of variously textured vegetation. Be forewarned that there is very little shade and the rocks reflect a lot of heat. The best hiking here is off season and before the rains when the deciduous plants near streams and wet spots turn color.
The Drainage Basin of Upper Granite Creek
The hike out and back is less than six miles (continuing to Granite Creek makes it closer to eight) and fairly easy with an elevation gain of only 600’– but there is always the option to make it a longer day. Pack a hat, a windbreaker, sun protection, enough water and wear sturdy shoes or boots.
On July 20, 2019 we’re planning to walk this trail. We’re based in Nevada City, CA. If you’d like to join us, please contact laura@hiking4good.com.
Zion Hill
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