Backcountry Forum
Backpacking & Hiking Gear

Backcountry Forum
Our long-time Sponsor - the leading source for ultralite/lightweight outdoor gear
 
 
 

Amazon.com
Backpacking Forums
---- Our Gear Store ----
The Lightweight Gear Store
 
 WINTER CAMPING 

Shelters
Bivy Bags
Sleeping Bags
Sleeping Pads
Snow Sports
Winter Kitchen

 SNOWSPORTS 

Snowshoes
Avalanche Gear
Skins
Hats, Gloves, & Gaiters
Accessories

 ULTRA-LIGHT 

Ultralight Backpacks
Ultralight Bivy Sacks
Ultralight Shelters
Ultralight Tarps
Ultralight Tents
Ultralight Raingear
Ultralight Stoves & Cookware
Ultralight Down Sleeping Bags
Ultralight Synthetic Sleep Bags
Ultralight Apparel


the Titanium Page
WM Extremelite Sleeping Bags

 CAMPING & HIKING 

Backpacks
Tents
Sleeping Bags
Hydration
Kitchen
Accessories

 CLIMBING 

Ropes & Cordage
Protection & Hardware
Carabiners & Quickdraws
Climbing Packs & Bags
Big Wall
Rescue & Industrial

 MEN'S APPAREL 

Jackets
Shirts
Baselayer
Headwear
Gloves
Accessories

 WOMEN'S APPAREL 

Jackets
Shirts
Baselayer
Headwear
Gloves
Accessories

 FOOTWEAR 

Men's Footwear
Women's Footwear

 CLEARANCE 

Backpacks
Mens Apparel
Womens Apparel
Climbing
Footwear
Accessories

 BRANDS 

Black Diamond
Granite Gear
La Sportiva
Osprey
Smartwool

 WAYS TO SHOP 

Sale
Clearance
Top Brands
All Brands

 Backpacking Equipment 

Shelters
BackPacks
Sleeping Bags
Water Treatment
Kitchen
Hydration
Climbing


 Backcountry Gear Clearance

Topic Options
Rate This Topic
Trailhead_in_Calistoga,_CA_of_Oat_Hill_Mine_Trail.jpg
Oat Hill Mine Trail 2012
Trailhead in Calistoga, CA of Oat Hill Mine Trail
Other images in post
Image Details
Poster swammie Offline
Posted 08/12/12 03:54 PM
Description
August 10-11. 2012, Napa Valley hiking at its finest. I heard about the Oat Mill Mine Trail years ago from a BSA Scoutmaster working at REI. The path was developed in 1872 to support mining operations (quicksiver and mercury). It's currently popular among runners, bikers and hikers.

This is part of Robert Lewis Stevenson State Park, private, other public and federal land. The trailhead is very easy to access and there is ample on-street parking nearby. Not to mention world class eateries in all directions...plan your trail food requirements accordingly!

Round trip up to the Federal BLM Land, with overnight stay, estimated at 9 miles. Elevation gain from the valley floor at 351 feet above sea level to over 2,000 feet places this hike at a "challenging" rating. Our circumstances included wind and temps that were unusual at 100+ F and 5mph light breeze. We also started late in the day 5pm (after working a full day starting at 7am) whick added to the difficulty.

The trail is mainly very well maintained and mostly under light canopy of Oak and Pine. Some stretches are not so smooth however: very rocky loose, large rocks. Mountain bikers rip through here without concern, but it can be ankle-twisting to hikers if you don't watch your step. Upper trail sections are less well maintained and a bit overgrown and without canopy. There are multiple trail junctions further up the trail for a variety of options for day hikers. We planned to spend the night on a small section of BLM about 4.5 miles from the trailhead.

Circumstances prevented us from reaching our destination. Elevation gain, heat, end-of-day start and only average fitness resulted in an average speed of only 1.2 mph up the hill. Actual trail speed was between 2-3 mph, but frequent rest stops reduced our effective speed dramatically. This impacted our ability to make camp before sunset. We had not paid close enough attention to the map during our hike (sorry Andrew Skurka, we're going to improve this skill). When we reached a portion of the hike that veered west but we were unable to identify that on the map, and with sunset 15 mintues away on an unfamiliar trail that was apparently poorly maintained, we decided to back-track to a flat area and camp there for the night.

We bulked up previously on town food so did not carry dinner on the trail. We fired up the alcohol stove and enjoyed hot chocolate and the wonderously beautiful evening sky as the sunset at 8:09pm. The sky was still bright until nearly 8:30pm, so next time we'll plan to extend our hiking time past the sunset when we're at higher elevations with a clear line-of-sight to the a far horizon. The valley heat was still high and the night was completely windless. We found ourselves sleeping on top of our sleeping bags for most of the entire night, a very rare occurance in coastal California.

We woke at 5:15am, about 1 hour before sunrise, and were treated to beautiful night sky with volcanic peaks outlining the darkness and a sliver of a moon. Sunrise was at 6:21am and we fired up the alcohol stove for a quick breakfast of oatmeal, water and granola bars. We packed quickly and were on the trail by 6:38 (confirmed by GPS). We averaged 2.23mph on the way down the hill, slowed a bit by slippery walking down loose gravel/rock pathways and a few sightseeing stops along the way. We were high above the thick blanket of fog that enveloped the whole Napa Valley. Another day in paradise.

We'll be back. With more moderate temps and an early morning start at the trailhead, we'll comfortably make the planned campsite just 1 mile past were we became "directionally challenged". There we can base-camp and explore the surrounding volcanic Palisades during the day. And all of this is only 40 minutes from home.

We've gotten our packs down below 20 lbs minus food and water. Thanks to input from The Backcountry Forum and others supplementing our BSA outdoor education.
Dimensions 800x533
Size 147.73 KB
UBBCode
Thumbnail
Medium
Full

Comments
#176600 - 04/19/13 07:52 AM Re: Oat Hill Mine Trail 2012 [Re: swammie]
Robotmoose Offline
member

Registered: 04/19/13
Posts: 79
Fantastic post, thanks for sharing!
That's one of my favorite local stomping grounds. Someday I'd love to make it all the way up from the T/H in Calistoga to the top of Mount Saint Helena and back.
_________________________
"Let us speak courteously, deal fairly, and keep ourselves armed and ready."
"The joy of living is his who has the heart to demand it."
- Theodore Roosevelt

Top
#184165 - 03/29/14 03:17 PM Re: Oat Hill Mine Trail 2012 [Re: Robotmoose]
swammie Offline
member

Registered: 04/16/09
Posts: 52
Loc: ca
That's the hike plan for this summer. There's patch of BLM at the top just east of The Palisades where an overnight stay wouldn't be illegal.

Top
#189512 - 03/03/15 04:34 PM Re: Oat Hill Mine Trail 2012 [Re: swammie]
Matt Keenan Offline
member

Registered: 12/06/14
Posts: 23
Loc: California
This is a really nice trip report wish, well written and some good photos to boot

Top
#201359 - 07/08/18 06:16 PM Re: Oat Hill Mine Trail 2012 [Re: swammie]
OregonMouse Offline
member

Registered: 02/03/06
Posts: 6799
Loc: Gateway to Columbia Gorge
Interesting report, which I just discovered (my bad!) Thank you!
_________________________
May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view--E. Abbey

Top

Shout Box

Highest Quality Lightweight Down Sleeping Bags
 
Western Mountaineering Sleeping Bags
 
Lite Gear Talk - Featured Topics
MSR Recall
by balzaccom
02/24/24 11:13 AM
Backcountry Discussion - Featured Topics
Yosemite Winter Rangers
by balzaccom
12/21/23 09:35 AM
Make Your Own Gear - Featured Topics
Featured Photos
Spiderco Chaparral Pocketknife
David & Goliath
Also Testing
Trip Report with Photos
Seven Devils, Idaho
Oat Hill Mine Trail 2012
Dark Canyon - Utah
Who's Online
0 registered (), 58 Guests and 0 Spiders online.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Newest Members
Noodles, McCrary, DanyBacky, Rashy Willia, WanderBison
13240 Registered Users
Forum Links
Disclaimer
Policies
Site Links
Backpacking.net
Lightweight Gear Store
Backpacking Book Store
Lightweight Zone
Hiking Essentials

Our long-time Sponsor, BackcountryGear.com - The leading source for ultralite/lightweight outdoor gear:

Backcountry Forum
 

Affiliate Disclaimer: This forum is an affiliate of BackcountryGear.com, Amazon.com, R.E.I. and others. The product links herein are linked to their sites. If you follow these links to make a purchase, we may get a small commission. This is our only source of support for these forums. Thanks.!
 
 

Since 1996 - the Original Backcountry Forum
Copyright © The Lightweight Backpacker & BackcountryForum