Trinity Alps & Vicinity: Including Whiskeytown, Russian Wilderness, and Castle Crags Areas. Mike White
Don’t cut switchbacks, and avoid walking on meadows and wet areas when possible. Stay on the trail.
• Preserve the serenity of the backcountry. Avoid making loud noises.
• Keep group size to a minimum: 10 people is the limit in the Trinity Alps and Castle Crags, 25 in the Russian Wilderness.
• Yield the right-of-way to equestrians. Step well off the trail on the downhill side. Yield the right-of-way to uphill hikers.
• Leave the wilderness as you found it, or better than you found it, if possible.
chapter 1
Trips in Whiskeytown
National Recreation Area
In July 2018, the Carr Fire devastated Whiskeytown National Recreation Area. For the latest information on recovery and closings/reopenings, call 530-242-3400 or visit nps.gov/whis.
Although the Whiskeytown Unit of Whiskeytown-Shasta-Trinity National Recreation Area, also known by the more streamlined name of Whiskeytown National Recreation Area (NRA), is best known for holding a good-sized artificial lake where Sacramento Valley residents can beat the scorching summer heat, the area offers fine hiking, especially in spring, when wildflowers cover the slopes, streams are full, and a trio of scenic waterfalls peaks. This chapter has four day hikes: a splendid 6.5-mile loop trip to the summit of view-packed, 2,616-foot-high Kanaka Peak, and three short out-and-back romps to waterfalls. While spring is best for the falls and the beautiful flowers, hiking here in the fall, when daytime temperatures have abated and autumn colors reach their peak, can be pleasant as well. Summer visitors should hike in the morning or in the evening, when the temperatures are more tolerable.
The NRA status of Whiskeytown requires hikers to purchase permits to park at trailheads; they can be obtained at the visitor center near Whiskeytown Dam, on Kennedy Memorial Drive off CA 299. America the Beautiful pass holders may park in Whiskeytown at no additional charge.
In addition to hiking and water sports, the Whiskeytown Unit offers activities well suited to recreationists of all ages. Picnic areas at Brandy Creek, Oak Bottom, Whiskey Creek, and Crystal Creek Falls are fine spots to share a meal. Three sandy beaches on Whiskeytown Lake offer swimming and sunbathing. Developed campgrounds include Oak Bottom Campground and Brandy Creek RV Campground, and there are a few primitive campgrounds above the reservoir. With a valid California license, anglers can ply the waters of Whiskeytown Lake year-round and the surrounding streams late April–mid-November for a half-dozen varieties of fish. Visitors can even pan for gold as a ranger-led activity.
Trips from CA 299
CA 299 provides the principal route to connections to trailheads in Whiskeytown NRA. An 8-mile drive west from downtown Redding leads through the historic mining town of Shasta to the visitor center at the east end of Whiskeytown Lake, a 3,500-acre reservoir created by the namesake earthen dam in 1963. Boating (no personal watercraft), water-skiing, swimming, fishing, camping, picnicking, and hiking are popular activities. From the network of 70 miles of trail, four day hikes are highlighted in the following section, accessible by short drives from CA 299.
HIGHLIGHTS Shasta State Historic Park, Whiskeytown Lake
KANAKA PEAK TRAILHEAD
TRIP 1 Kanaka Peak Loop
Kanaka Peak offers splendid views from Mount Shasta all the way to the Yolla Bollys.
Trip Type:
Day hike
Distance & Configuration:
6.5-mile loop
Elevation Change:
3,600' (average 544'/mile)
Difficulty:
Moderate–strenuous
Season:
Year-round; best April–early June and late September–November
Map:
USGS Igo
Management:
Whiskeytown NRA, 530-242-3400, nps.gov/whis
Nearest Campground:
Peltier Bridge
The splendid views from the summit of 2,616-foot Kanaka Peak are well worth the physical effort. Make sure you’re clad in the proper footwear and have a pair of trekking poles for the steep, ankle-twisting, knee-wrenching descent from the top of the mountain. The 6.5-mile Kanaka Peak Loop passes through a mixture of black oak woodland and mixed conifer forest, with small pockets of lush riparian foliage lining the banks of Paige Boulder Creek and its tributaries. The dense vegetation clears enough on top of Kanaka Peak to allow the wide-ranging vistas that span from Mount Shasta in the north down the Sacramento Valley to the south. If possible, pick a day right after a storm for the best views, when cleansing rains have cleared the air of dust and pollutants.
The elevations within Whiskeytown National Recreation Area are low enough to allow for year-round hiking, although snow may blanket the area for brief periods in the winter. Swollen creeks may cause more of a problem on this route for hikers then, as the Kanaka Peak Loop fords Paige Boulder Creek three times during the circuit—check with park officials for current conditions. In summer those low elevations usually produce scorching afternoon temperatures, generally more than 100°F, when Whiskeytown Lake is littered with water-loving recreational enthusiasts attempting to beat the heat. Spring is perhaps the best time for a visit, as the temperatures are usually mild, the creeks are flowing, and colorful wildflowers line the trail. Fall can also be a fine time to experience the area, with pleasant temperatures and deciduous plants and trees offering a touch of autumn color. Be watchful for poison oak along the loop, particularly on the upper ridge of the peak, where the trail is nearly overgrown with encroaching vegetation.
GPS COORDINATES N40° 34.937' W122° 33.964'
DIRECTIONS Head west from Redding on CA 299 for 8 miles and then turn left (southwest) onto Kennedy Memorial Drive. The visitor center, immediately on the right, is the place to obtain current information and purchase a daily, weekly, or annual pass that is required to park at any NRA trailheads. With pass in hand, drive away from the visitor center toward Whiskeytown Dam. Note: Don’t follow Kennedy Memorial Drive across the dam—rather, turn left at Paige Bar Road. After 1.1 miles, turn right across from the Mount Shasta Mine parking lot onto the dirt surface of Peltier Valley Road, reaching Peltier Bridge Campground after 0.7 mile. The road past the campground becomes rough and steep for the next 1.1 miles on the way to a small parking area near the trailhead. This section of the road is subject to winter closure; if the gate happens to be closed, hikers must park at the campground and walk the road to the trailhead.
Whiskeytown Lake from Kanaka Peak
Description
The Kanaka Peak Loop begins by dropping immediately to a crossing of Paige Boulder Creek, and then climbing about 30 yards to an obscure, unmarked junction with a singletrack path on the left heading southeast along the stream bank (this trail will be the return leg of the loop). Proceed ahead on the old road, climbing stiffly through the dappled shade of a mixed forest. Keen eyes should spy poison oak lining the side of the road, offering a