Blue Point/ Black Swan Trek
Cost: $24 for Land Trust Members, $29 for Non-Members
(prices include hearty, delicious box lunch)
Level: Moderate +
Join us for this gorgeous hike on private property not usually open to the public. The journey will begin behind Smartsville at the historic Blue Point Mine, once one of the richest hydraulic mines in the state. All that remains now of the multi-million dollar industry are looming escarpments and lush wildlife-rich ponds and wetlands. 
We'll follow the path of history along the old stagecoach road that once brought 49ers up from the ferry at Parks Bar to the gold mines of Grass Valley and French Corral. We'll pass the stone walls and foundations which are remnants of the once-booming Gold Rush era town of Sucker Flat. We'll trace the ancient bed of the Pliocene Yuba River which deposited vast beds of gold-bearing cobble hunderds of feet deep, then up the ridge and past the basaltic rock formations which tell the tale of 150 million years of geologic history.
We'll visit the Yuba Narrows Ranch which has recently been acquired by the Department of Fish and Game and contains some of the Yuba River's most valuable salmon spawning habitat.
We'll continue on the old road through the privately-owned Black Swan Ranch and past the stone walls and open meadows of John Rose's stagecoach stop. Then we'll visit the Black Swan hydraulic diggings, where a once-devastated landscape is now rich in wildlife and stunningly beautiful. We'll stop for lunch by the Black Swan ponds and talk of Bear Yuba Land Trust's vision for the conservation of this unique and significant property.
After lunch we'll ride through the Excelsior Ranch and enjoy its spectacular ridge-top views which extend west past the Yuba River and the Sutter Buttes to the Coast Range, and east to the Sierra Buttes, before we return back down to the Blue Point Mine.
Space is limited. Hearty, delicious box lunches are included in the price (vegegarian is available - just let us know in advance).
For more information please email Treks Coordinator Melony Vance at melony@bylt.org or call her at 530.272.5994 x 200.