The South Kelsey Trail was first designated as a National Recreation Trail in 1979, but was used by early miners between 1855-1880 as a route between Crescent City and Fort Jones and other inland mines in the Klamath River region and Yreka. Along with the Old Kelsey Trail, the South Kelsey is a key portion […]
Ryan Batjiaka
Thru-Hiking Journal Ryan Batjiaka, from San Francisco, California, hiked most of the BFT in June 2021. He has always wanted to explore the wilderness areas in northwest California and felt the Bigfoot Trail was the perfect way to do so. Because of some Yolla Bolly closures, he started about 4 miles east of the Chanchellula […]
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2021 Forest Closures
Klamath and Six Rivers national forests announce wilderness closures A series of fires began in late July across the Klamath Mountains due to lightning strikes. Several sections of the trail are now closed because of these fires. Use our interactive map to see where the fires are and what sections should be avoided. Also, the […]
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Trinity Alps Trail Work
June 19-26th, 2021 A crew of 15 adults and 4 kids spent a week working the Bigfoot Trail between Packer’s Peak and Fish Lake in the Trinity Alps Wilderness. This section of trail has not been formally maintained since 2010. Along the way, we maintained 9 miles of trail, logged out 50+ trees, and re-treaded […]
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BFT Status in the Yolla Bolly-Middle Eel Wilderness
In mid-August of 2020, lightning ignited a series of fires in the North Coast Range. These fires eventually merged into the mega August Complex. The fires were estimated to have burned over 1,000,000 acres. The fires consumed a variety of vegetation across seven counties and parts of Shasta-Trinity, Mendocino, and Six Rivers national forests. This […]
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Hiking the Bigfoot Trail in 2021
Whether you are hiking the whole trail or just section hiking the trail is ripe for exploration. Most thru-hikers will start in the Yolla Bolly-Middle Eel in mid-June and hike north. The advantage to this approach is that the snow in the higher mountains to the north will have time to melt off and river levels will drop so crossing them will be less dangerous. Another important consideration for hiking the Bigfoot Trail in 2021 is the trail’s yet unknown conditions after 2020 Slater and August Complex Fires. Please be safe out there!
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August Complex
In mid-August of 2020, lightning ignited a series of fires in the North Coast Range. These fires eventually merged into the mega August Complex. As of late October, they have consumed 1,032,264 acres and are still burning (though 91 percent contained). The fires consumed a variety of vegetation across seven counties and parts of Shasta-Trinity, […]
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Bigfoot Trail Youth Stewardship Project
Connecting Klamath Mountain Communities The Klamath Mountains, a world biodiversity hotspot, will provide the laboratory to engage local elementary, middle, and high school students in hands-on learning about their home region. The Project will provide K-12 environmental education curriculum and field experiences to rural schools across the Klamath Mountains. The project team will build relationships […]
