We eventually got the boys dressed and I began cooking breakfast as Sarenna attempted to herd the kids under the EZ-Up and out of the rain. After breakfast, Mike and I walked up to where the trail leaves Poker Flat to determine which of the two forks we should follow. To our left was an extremely steep and painfully rocky slope which cut six feet into the hillside. In front of us was a well-travelled forest road that was fairly smooth and level. Um, I'll take the second one please! After packing and checking our trucks, we were off - rolling past the ghost town and onto the road Mike and I had scouted earlier, confident that we were on the right path. You can see where this is going, can't you?
We continued northwest, making our way through rain and mud. We reached Port Wine and had originally planned on stopping, but we were racing the sun, hoping to get off the trail before darkness fell. At about 3:00PM, we decided to stop for a quick lunch - the boys were in desperate need of a chance to stretch their legs so we let them run wild in the clearing where we'd parked, jamming sandwiches, chips and snacks into their mouths whenever possible. The adults gathered around Marshan's tailgate and you could read the exhaustion on our faces. After over 4 hours of continuous driving through terrible conditions, all we wanted was to find pavement. We loaded up again, looking for the bypass route I'd been given to get around the Scales Road closure. We found the turnoff - an insanely steep hill covered with 8" of thick mud! Mike and Doug charged up, the Tundra 'crabbing' up the slope as Mike fought to keep the nose pointed forward. Marshan and Sally were next, his aggressive Mud Terrain tires throwing up huge clots of mud as he powered the Tacoma uphill.
We continued on until we reached Poverty Hill, the bypass for Scales Road which had been closed for repairs due to a landslide. We turned onto the bypass, a reasonable-looking but somewhat narrow forest trail that had been recently graded and resurfaced with crushed rock. As we continued though, the road continued to narrow until at last, we reached a section (just two miles shy of La Porte Road) blocked by thick manzanita. We stopped and discussed whether we should cut back some of the brush or turn around - I'm not shy about a few scratches but pushing our way through this would have meant some significant damage. More than a few four-letter words were used to describe the bypass and in the end, we decided to turn around and take our chances with Scales Road.
We turned back and followed a very wide and smooth graded dirt trail, until we arrived at a four-way intersection with two of the branches marked Scales Road! According to my topos and GPS, the Scales Road we wanted was to our right and slightly elevated above the rest - so in a leap of faith we turned off the nicely-graded trail and headed back into the forest, hoping this would lead us back to civilization. We were all very tired by now - the full day of rock crawling and slogging through mud had taken it's toll and our progress had been far slower than we'd anticipated. The sun was already getting low on the horizon and none of us relished the thought of driving through an unfamiliar forest after dark.
Finally, at about 5:30PM, we reached La Porte Road and turned left onto the first pavement we'd seen in two days. The asphalt felt unnaturally smooth and our trucks, clothes and gear were soaked with rain and mud, but we'd made it! Apart from a few new pinstripes, none of the trucks suffered any trail damage - something that surprised me given the conditions we'd been driving through. Would I do the Poker Flat OHV Trail again? Absolutely! In the rain? Let me think about that...
Directions:
I-80 East to Hwy. 49 North
Hwy. 49 North to Downieville (Gas up and turn around!)
Hwy. 49 South to CR-509
The sign marking the trail is on the right side of Hwy. 49, slightly uphill.
Trail Notes:
The Downieville-side of the Poker Flat OHV Trail is fairly easy and with the exception of the final descent into the canyon, is rated a DR: 2 or 3. The last few miles are steep, loose and rocky and would be appropriately labelled at DR: 5. In the rain, the slopes are pretty slick, but we were able to maintain good traction.
The Poker Flat OHV Campground has about 6 sites with picnic tables and fire pits. The sites on the creek side are very large, the ones closer to the forest are somewhat smaller. There is no plumbed water (if you use Canyon Creek as a water source, boil it well!) and a single, partially-obscured pit toilet. We brought a portable toilet of our own, thank you very much! The campground is about 200 yards from the ghost town of Poker Flat and the area is littered with decaying, partially-collapsed buildings and rusty mining equipment. DO NOT ENTER THE STRUCTURES! They are very unstable and any injury could mean a very long and rugged drive back to civilization.
If you think the drive into Poker Flat is difficult, go back out that way! The drive out on the La Porte side is far more challenging and takes at least an hour longer. The slopes are either very rocky or very sandy - there isn't much in between! When it rains, the hills become extremely slick and the dusty red soil turns into a sticky mess, totally devoid of traction. If you take this trail in the rain, TAKE YOUR TIME.
This trail has a great deal of history to offer and if you take the time to roam through the woods, you'll find abandoned buildings, headstones and mining equipment from the 1800's. Enjoy the experience, but please protect our hertitage and respect the integrity of these sites.
We're not sounding too hopeful on the Mine Trail spur!
The first step on a long journey home...
Marshan's Tacoma stuck on the ascent from Poker Flat...
Looking up through the trees in Howland Flat...
The Goard Family graves in Howland Flat...
The town of Port Wine is another historic settlement...
Some of the many abandoned structures along the trail...