Independence Trail West
Founded by the late John Olmsted, the Independence Trail transformed an historic gold mining ditch into the nation's first identified handicapped-accessible wilderness trail. It is now one of the most popular trails in the area, contouring along wooded hillsides, passing live streams, and crossing deep gorges on restored wooden flumes that once transported water for hydraulic mining. The trail has two separate sections -- West and East -- that extend from one main trailhead on Hwy 49.
Independence Trail West is oriented for most of its length around the canyon of Rush Creek, a large tributary stream that enters the South Yuba River at Jones Bar. The West trail features several wooden flumes, a large covered viewpoint, picnic tables and benches. Flume 28, over 500' in length, crosses above a waterfall on Rush Creek 1.1 miles west of the trailhead. It is a "must see" piece of mining history.
The steep Jones Bar trail (not wheelchair accessible) connects the main trail to the South Yuba River, leaving the main trail about a quarter mile SW of the main trailhead.
Click on map to increase size, then click again to decrease.
Place:
Season:
Land:
Trail Signs:
Length:
Altitude Change:
Difficulty:
Trail Surface:
Environment:
Rules:
South Yuba River State Park about 6 miles west of Nevada City
Year around
Mixed state, federal and non-profit organization
Trailheads and various features (e.g. flumes) are well marked on the main trail.
West trail 2.5 mi one way -- Jones Bar Trail 0.4 mile one way.
A 3.9 mile loop trail is possible using West trail and Jones Bar trail (see below.)
For a longer option, this trail can be combined with Independence Trail East.
West trail nearly level (50') -- Jones Bar Trail 340' each way
West trail easy -- Jones Bar Trail moderate; steep and rugged in places
West trail is wheelchair accessible in dry months from the trailhead to a short way beyond Flume 28 ( about 1.1 miles one way)
Dirt
Mixed conifer, hardwood and riparian forest along river canyons
Dogs on leash; no bicycles or motorized vehicles; no smoking or fires; no camping
Trailhead:
From the north end of Nevada City where Highway 49 turns west toward Downieville, go 6.25 miles on Hwy 49 north. A highway sign tells northbound travelers the Independence Trailhead is coming up. There is parking along the east side of Hwy 49 by the trailhead, and overflow parking just around the next curve down Hwy 49. In the parking area look for a "Trail Entrance" sign, display case and restrooms on your right (N39.29164 W121.09734.)
For Independence Trail West and the Jones Bar Trail, go to the right (SW) at the display case, walk about 100' and pass under Hwy 49 via a low-ceiling pedestrian underpass. The trail continues west from there. The Jones Bar trailhead is 0.2 mile SW of Hwy 49 along the West trail (N39.29063 W121.10039.)
A bit of history: The Independence Trail utilizes the old Excelsior Ditch, built around 1859 to bring high pressure water for hydraulic mining. The ditch tapped the South Yuba river more than two miles upstream from here and ran all the way to what is now the dam at Lake Wildwood, then by the China Ditch to the Smartsville mining district, 15 miles west of Grass Valley.
Trail Tips: The most popular section of this trail is the first mile, going out to see the viewpoint (0.4 mile) and the impressive Flume 28 over Rush Creek (1.1 mile) with its waterfall and cascades, especially in wet months. Flume 25 and Flume 26 (at 0.8 and 0.9 mile) are impressive too. There are several benches along the way and a nice picnic table by the closed Diamond Outhouse (0.5 mile.)
At the far end of Flume 28, a wonderful dream of providing wheelchair access down to Rush Creek has been realized. A complex wooden ramp structure leads down to a picnic and viewing level that looks out to a small waterfall, and then the ramp continues right down to the creek level for close-up viewing.
About 0.1 mile beyond Rush Creek, after Flume 28, there is a decaying wheelchair camping deck with picnic tables and a closed outhouse. Practical wheelchair access ends at this point but the trail carries on for another 1.3 miles to Jones Bar Rd, a rugged dirt road (not recommended for low clearance vehicles) that comes down Jones Gulch. (Jones Bar Rd, is reached via Newtown Rd about 5 miles west of Nevada City.) This western part of the West trail feels remote, is sometimes narrowed by brush, passes occasional wet places with ferns and, as it leaves the canyon of Rush Creek behind, has some fine views out into the South Yuba river canyon.
Possible loop combining West trail with Jones Bar trail: To make this loop, take the West trail all the way out to its west end at Jones Bar Rd. Turn right on Jones Bar Rd (dirt) and follow it 0.8 mile down to the dirt parking area by Jones Bar. From there, take the Jones Bar Trail (0.4 mile, not signed here) back up to the West trail, then turn left and return to the trailhead on Hwy 49. The total loop is 3.9 miles. Total elevation change is over 650' (combined drop to Jones Bar and climb back up.)
Jones Bar Trail
Trail Tips: This short (0.4 mile) trail drops off Independence Trail West from a trailhead about 0.2 mile west of Hwy 49 to Jones Bar on the South Yuba River. It is an informal trail with some badly eroded sections where the trail cuts straight downhill. Footing can be steep and difficult. That said, there are some nice views of the river along the way, a couple of small meadows with wildflowers in season, and a fine pedestrian bridge over Rush Creek at the base. The draw, of course, is the river. There is a large dirt parking area on a flat behind the rocky river's edge, off of which several use trails extend down toward the river, including a nice pool near the outlet of Rush Creek.
Jones Bar was once one of the busiest gold mining camps along the South Yuba river, but today it is primarily a place for hanging out by the river, swimming, and gold panning ("pans and hands" only.) Camping and fires are not allowed. Caution is advised. In spring and early summer, very cold water and strong currents annually claim lives. Even in summer, there are slippery rocks, poison oak and other hazards in this area.
