Monday, June 29
Start/Stop: Little Bald Hills Trailhead
Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park
Redwood National and State Parks
Daa-naa~-yash K’vsh-chuu-dvn
Unceeded land of the Tolowa Dee-ni’
13.53 miles
2,223′ ascent
2,233′ descent
IF YOU PLAN TO HIKE THIS TRAIL ANYTIME JUNE THROUGH NOVEMBER, BE SURE TO KNOW WATER CONDITIONS AT THE LITTLE BALD HILLS BACKCOUNTRY CAMP.
I start driving north in the dark, passing by the lagoons that are just starting to reflect the morning pastels. On a whim, I decide to drive through Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park and I am rewarded with some elk hanging out nearby in the usual prairie fog. I continue north on Drury Parkway and have the road all to myself at 6:30 am. I cross over the Klamath River at 6:45 and an hour later, I start up the northern end of the Howland Hill Road.
It’s a short distance to the Little Bald Hills Trailhead where I pull in and have the parking lot to myself. Within a half hour of arriving, I have changed my clothes, readied my pack and eaten a second bar for breakfast.
The trail leaves the trailhead and immediately climbs into the redwood forest. There are big trees with fire-scarred trunks and still some blooming Douglas Iris, Pacific Rhododendron and Tiger lilies.
The climbing is continuous but well-graded. I emerge from old growth redwood forest into more mixed conifer stands. Rare Port Orford-cedars start to dot the sides of the trail before I arrive at a stand of spindly Douglas Firs.
The original trail has been rerouted in an effort to save Port Orford-cedars which are highly susceptible to a fatal fungal root disease caused by Phytophthora cinnamomi.
After just over three miles and two hours of hiking, I arrive at the Little Balds Hills Backcountry Camp. I take the short trail down to the camp and find that there is no water at the spigot or horse trough. Well, shoot. I only have two liters of water with me and was planning to camp here tonight after hiking to the end of the trail and back, so I definitely need to find a water source. I check out the whole camp which is really nice with tables, fire pits and bear boxes for storing food.
I press on up the ridge, which tops out at almost 2,000 ft., to see what sights I can find. The serpentine-rich soils, which inhibit most plants, completely change the scenery. The relatively flat ridge top is savannah-like with grasses and flowers and dotted with Jeffrey pines. There’s patches of manzanita and some large, stately madrones. The sparse trees provide windows to the West and the Pacific Ocean.
The ridgeline starts to trend downhill as I reach the Redwood National and State Park boundary. I exit the park into Six Rivers National Forest. I feel like I’m in a wonderland as I find an incredible diversity of plants. Azalea, Rhododendron, Indian paintbrush, Senecio, Lupine, Lilium, Creeping Oregon grape, Cardinal catchfly, Prairie mallow. I’m in a flower trance when I’m completely startled by a mountain biker working their way up the trail. He says that he’ll be turning around soon and coming back by.
I find little pockets of saturation where there’s evidence of water flowing in the past. I stop and listen and now, there’s no audible water. Another mountain biker slowly pedals by that I never see again. I continue downtrail to the last creek that’s shown with a solid blue line to cross the trail on the map but there’s no water. Certainly the water flowed previously, but not now. I sit down for a break and consider my options. I could continue down the trail and descend at least 1,000+ feet all the way to the Smith River, which was originally the plan. But it’s warm enough that filling up two liters might not be enough to get me the 10 miles back to my truck, let alone spending the night at the Little Bald Hills Backcountry Camp. I usually carry an extra foldable water bladder but took it out for this trip. I reluctantly decide that I should turn around now so that I will have enough water to get the seven miles back to my truck.
I trace back across the ridge and start to drop back down into the forest at the Little Bald Hills Camp. I check one more time just to make sure I’m not crazy. I even hike to the obvious nearby creeklet but it’s dry as well. In my research for this hike, the seasonality of this water at this camp certainly wasn’t emphasized enough. After the hike, I did more research and found one website that listed the water at the camp as seasonal. I’m not very familiar with this area to know whether no water by the end of June is normal or if this is direct evidence of drought and climate change.
As I descend through the Douglas firs, I notice several Port Orford-cedars that are dead and crispy. I pass the only little seep of water that I’ve seen all day as the cool of the forest presses in. While hiking, I decide that I will drive to the other side of the Little Bald Hills Trail and see if I can hike from the other direction. I arrive back at the trailhead just after 4pm, almost eight hours since leaving.
I drive along the Smith River on South Fork Road and pull off at the Sand Camp River Access. There are several campspots already filled with tents and families. I walk past them down to the edge of the Smith River. I could camp here but decide to keep exploring. Across the South Fork Road is the Paradise Trailhead, which I think is now also the other end of the Little Bald Hills Trail.
I drive farther down the road and pull off where there should be a road that will lead to the old Little Bald Hills Trailhead. There is a road that climbs slightly but it’s so overgrown with brush that I’m definitely not going to push my truck through there. There’s another road that trends downward towards Rock Creek. I park and walk down to the creek which is a lovely little spot. I decide that I will have dinner here and filter some water. Plus there’s no mosquitoes like at the Little Bald Hills Trailhead. As I admire the scenery, I notice that there’s a spectacular outcrop of Darlingtonia. These pitcher plants are living the dream on a sunny south facing slope with cold water running through them into the creek.
I return to Rock Creek’s edge with my cameras, food and water filter. I attempt to filter some water but my filter refuses to work. All attempts are thwarted. Luckily, I did bring several extra liters with me so that’s going to have to work. I finish off a bottle of water plus a Gatorade and fill them from the creek just in case I get desperate.
I spend almost an hour and a half at the creek just enjoying the flowing water and the sun as the rays grow long. I contemplate camping here for the night but it seems a little too obvious to road traffic. Plus the constant sound of water really starts to compress my senses. I decide to drive back to this mornings Little Bald Hills Trailhead. I hike a very short distance from the trailhead and find a faint tread that departs from the main trail. A perfect spot for my tent appears under some tall redwoods and I have camp set up by 7:30pm. There’s a few mosquitoes hovering but I get everything set up in relative calm. After I get in my tent, the word is out and every mosquito in a 2-mile radius descends on the outer walls of my tent. Their collective whine is loud and persistent. Luckily, they call it quits after the sun sets so that I can get out to pee one last time.
