South Yolla Bolly: Ides Cove Loop

Mendocino National Forest

Work DAY 1-2 | Move/Rest/Play DAY 3 | Work DAY 4-5 | Work DAY 6-7

static map — Purples for day 6, black finish: interactive map link

The crew were tired of walking down that hill, where "that hill" is the Burnt Camp Connector, so we headed off to the split of the Ides Cove Loop way back near the start (which isn't that much further and is definitely easier trail to walk). Did you know, there is a spot called Ides Cove, but to get to it, you have to go along the vanished South Yolla Bolly Trail?

Thursday: 19 Jun 2025

191: open space — Today's view out over Cottonwood Creek to the central valley.

We headed down the lower loop of Ides Cove National Recreation Trail looking for a bit of work at first. The severe burn of the area left it needing just a little light tread work here and there, small wood clearing, and some trimming of the elderberry that was growing about frequently. That growth does suggest there's water down there, on this hill that was too dry for much to survive the fire.

192: taller onion — Onions were well represented, like this dusky onion.

193: shorter onion — And these scytheleaf onions.

194: black tree trunks only halftway up — Out in an area of bad burn.

195: gone bark leaving white wood — And somehow even worse burn, but with elderberries (on the left) growing tall at random spots.

The junction with the Horse Packer Connector Trail was marked with cairns and a fairly obvious trail leading off to that other trailhead. That surprised me just because they'd come up the road and so often alternative routes get lost.

197: big tree — Even the big trees burned! But there is green ahead.

We could see the Cottonwood Trail heading off along a ridge from far off, but didn't find so much obvious at the junction. On close investigation we found two junctions instead. Once the two options connect, there's a perfectly good trail. Splitting up the foot traffic doesn't do it any favors. I walked out on it until it started downhill where it got even clearer.

199: trail descending through sparse trees — Cottonwood Trail descends toward Cottonwood Creek.

200: blue closed up flower looking a bit like a Penstemon — Snapdragon skullcaps line the trail.

Our trail, too, started down the hill and here we found some trees needing cleared. Our progress slowed.

201: parasitic flower — More nice galium broomrape on the forest floor.

203: water crossing green stuff — A stream through a meadow. The trail crossing is a little rough, though.

We passed a vernal pool (dry) and continued on. There's more water along this lower trail. The first water crossing was cutting the trail a little roughly, the rest were sometimes doing that and getting overgrown. We had to dig a lot of them out of the green that is overtaking the trail.

204: small cascade — Something like a waterfall among the encasing green.

We found a section of medium trees that had taken to leaning over, sometimes making a quite low bridge over the trail. Handsaws were almost too short to clear the route. One wonders what made them all tilt so late in life. Then there were a couple big trees that finished off the day for the big saws. Even the branches were too big for the limb saws. Beyond was increasingly difficult trail finding and enough encroaching brush to finish off the day for the loppers.

205: caterpillar eating a leaf — A western sheep moth caterpillar chows down on one of the spinier Ceanothus, a bit of the encroaching brush.

We were stuck hoping that those after would get done what we didn't as we returned. There was plenty more to be doing. The special family group would be by next week and a CCC derived crew late in the season. Our hope isn't misplaced. It was still hard to leave this bit of trail in particular.

206: worked trail — It only took a limb saw to get through this log! It had burned to along, narrow section and we took advantage of it. Then the trail clean up.

207: another huge log, the branches took sawyers — The branches took the crosscut before this was ready for the first cut. There was not enough time for the second cut on this log beside a burned blaze, but it is now climbable instead of requiring a long walk around up the hill. Improvement!

208: double water flow — A little waterfall below the leaning trees. (They were cleared.)

I again took a relaxed stroll up the hill and back to camp.

210: butterfly with a gaping thing — What is this monster‽ A claudius parnassian takes off from a coyote mint.

211: last of some yellow flowers — American yellowrocket makes these meadows yellow.

213: clouds in lines and puffs — Watching the layers of clouds.

214: black and grey small bird — A mountain chickadee stops by with some nibbles.

We could see the stock trailer from the trail. They were already getting set to move our gear out and the next crew in. Camp gear could stay, but the empty food boxes needed a refresh.

216: packers — A look at the packer's trailhead. They're here!

Friday, 20 Jun 2025

First day of summer! And last day hanging around South Yolla Bolly. Time to pack up and head on out on what would actually be the coolest day. I decided I could now get my camp shoes wet stomping about the meadow on the south side of the lake to discover what flowers it was hiding. Mostly, bog orchids.

218: spikes of white flowers — A dizzying array of white bog orchids. Also some of those ball-headed flowers I didn't get a good picture of.

220: downward facing flower — Still plenty of those Sierra shooting stars.

221: watery expanse — A little different look at Square Lake in bad panorama.

222: little flowers very large — May as well get a really close look at these little orchids.

223: more downward facing flowers — There's more than one shooting star. This one is the Henderson's shooting star, although the difference is most easily seen at the leaves.

Then I got my feet into some dry socks and my boots for the hike out.

224: mountain then much flat — The view across Tomhead Mountain today.

225: mountains with clouds below — Watching the low clouds in the Trinity Alps.

226: long ridge — Blackrock and North Yolla Bolly today. Snow? What snow?

It was also my last chance to record a few of the flowers by the first stream along the trail. Turns out, I didn't have to get my feet wet to see bog orchids.

227: yellow flower — Seep monkeyflowers (these) sat with musk monkeyflowers.

228: purple tiny — Tiny fringed willowherb.

229: puff of purple — Swamp onion. Not all onions like the dry so much.

230: more white flowers — This white bog orchid was just getting started.

232: small white flowers — Close up on some blue elder blooms.

And then we were at the parking lot once more.

We made a few stops on the drive back and found more pretty things. I may as well add them in here. First, a stop along Hayfork Creek just south of CA-36. There's a quite large dispersed camping area just off the Wild-Mad Road with plenty of creek wandering. The creek is a strip of green in the severe burn.

233: bright orange flowers — The leopard lilies were putting on quite a show.

234: looking up — Bright and beautiful among the burn.

235: small water flow — Hayfork Creek today.

236: bright yellow — More brightness was provided by invasive common St. John's wort.

237: open space — The big potential dispersed camping area.

Next stop was the bridge at the north end of the South Fork Trinity River National Recreation Trail. The large log under the bridge had continued on its way with the winter rains, so the turtles were harder to find. They're still there!