From the Wild Plum Trailhead to the Milton Creek footbridges

Majestic Sierra Buttes, seen from the Wild Plum PCT Connector Trail. The Sierra Buttes fire lookout on top of the rugged mountain is accessible via the Sierra Buttes Lookout Trail.

Trails, trails, trails

The Wild Plum Trailhead east of Sierra City in California is your gateway to the Wild Plum Loop, the Haypress Creek Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) [1-4]. I recently hiked from this trailhead to the three Milton Creek footbridges. This makes for a seven-mile-long hike (out-and-back)—all the way to the southern most of the three footbridges plus return. The trail sections include [1]:

1. Wild Plum PCT Acess Trail: 0.9 miles
2. Access Trail/PCT junction to first footbridge: 0.4 miles
3. PCT between first and second footbridge: 1.4 miles
4. PCT between second and third footbridge: 0.8 miles

Keep your hands off!

You will mainly hike through a mixed forest of pines, firs, cedars, and oak trees. The first two sections (1.3 miles) are part of the Wild Plum Loop trail. The 2.2-mile-long trail from the first to the third footbridge leads you along the west side and east side of  Milton Creek—occasionally close to the cold stream, but mostly above and away from the steep banks: this PCT section is not a crest, but a canyon trail. 

In certain years you can come here for hiking even in December—no snow shoes required. For example, Charlie Pankey describes his December 2023 experience around the Wild Plum Loop in an informative and inspiring post [3]. For a seasonl change, here I am sharing some impression and snapshots of my summer hike on a hot day at the end of July 2026. 

Starting out from the Wild Plum Trailhead along Haypress Creek, the trail passes the historic Wild Plum Guard Station, which dates back to 1908 [5]. This was an administrative site of the Tahoe National Forest's Ranger District. It was abandoned in the early 1980s. A sign posted at the door of one structure tells you to keep your hands off and stay out: “Property of  THE UNITED STATES. All persons are prohibited under penalty of the Law from committing trespass.” 

Access Trail/PCT junction

Continuing on, you will ascend—switchback by switchback—to the PCT. Here, you will pass a few narrow forest openings that provide excellent views of the south-facing slopes and cliff faces of the Sierra Buttes. At the PCT junction, turn right . The Wild Plum Loop - PCT sign has seen better times and may easily be overlooked.  But you know you have to go south to to get to the first footbridge over Milton Creek, which is not far away.

First footbridge: PCT is switching sides along Milton Creek

Milton Creek is a woodland mountain stream. It is a tributary of Haypress Creek. Both streams sit within the Yuba River watershed. 

During summer, wherever you can get a glimpse of the stream, the chances are high that you will spot umbrella plants, also known as Indian Rhubarb (Darmera peltata).  The leaves (umbrellas) are typically 20 to 24 in (50 to 60 cm) long and wide.

Milton Creek with streamside Indian Rhubarb

The flowers emerge in spring before the leaves take over in summer [6]:

With its luxuriant foliage, this plant, usually anchored firmly among water-washed rocks, can give a verdant, almost tropical aspect to mountain streams. The peltate leafstalk (attaching near the middle of the blade) is an important identification feature and gave the genus it former name, Peltiphyllum.

The dark-green eaves are peltate, rounded, deeply lobed, coarsely-toothed, conspicuously veined and They turn orange or red in autumn.

Peltate Indian Rhubarb (Darmera peltata) leaves

I definitely have to come here in spring to see the white-pink flowers, and also in autumn when the leaves are turning red [7-9].  

The areas around the second footbridge is a perfect place to have a rest and to explore umbrella plants close-up.

Second footbridge: a peaceful place to rest

Moss-covered rock wall near second footbridge

On my way to the third footbridge I came across Sierra gooseberry plants (Ribes roezlii). This North American species is native to mountain ranges of California, western Nevada and Oregon. There are many varieties [10].  The Sierra gooseberry is a spiny shrub. Its ripe, purple-red fruits have stiff, long spines.   

Sierra gooseberries (almost ripe at the End of July 2026)

The ripe, juicy berries look delicious and are edible. However, harvesting the berries and removing its prickles needs some experience [10,11].

The next section of the PCT from the third footbridge south to the Bear Valley and Jackson Meadows Reservoir area has a distance of over five miles. I continued on for about another mile before I turned around to hike back to Wild Plum.

PCT south of third footbridge

Getting to the Wild Plum Trailhead

Get to Sierra City, a small, historic Gold Rush mountain town in —what a surprise—Sierra County in the Sierra Nevada, California. On State Route 49, at the east end of town, turn east onto Wild Plum Road. Follow this road, take the one lane bridge over the North Yuba River, and continue for about one mile to the Wild Plum Trailhead next to Haypress Creek. The trailhead has running water and a few picnic tables between trees.

References and further reading

[1] Pacific Crest Trail - Sierra Nevada North - Sierra Buttes to Devils Postpile. Trails-illustrated topographic map guide. National Geographic Partners, LLC, 2019.

[2] Wild Plum Trailhead. Pacific Crest Trail Association. URL: https://explore.pcta.org/trailheads/wild-plum-trailhead.

[3] Charlie Pankey: A day trip to Sierra City and the Wild Plum Loop trail experience. Sierra Rec, December 22, 2023. URL: https://sierrarecmagazine.com/still-hiking-in-sierra-city/.

[4] Trip 20 “Wild Plum Loop” on pages 50 and 51 in Mike White's hiking guide “Afoot & Afield” (Wilderness Press, Berkeley, California, 2nd printing November 2008). 

[5] Volunteers to restore historic Wild Plum Guard Station, Tahoe National Forest. Sierra Booster, 4/24/2017 . URL: https://www.sierrabooster.com/latest-news/volunteers-to-restore-historic-wild-plum-guard-station-tahoe-national-forest.

[6] Richard Spellenberg: North American Wildflowers - Western Region. Alfred A. Knopf, New York,  Chanticleer Press Edition 2001; Umbrella Plant: page 740.

[7] Michael Beatley: Waking Up in Plumas County. California Fall Color. September 2023. URL: https://californiafallcolor.com/2023/09/23/waking-up-in-plumas-county/. 

[8] Michael Beatley: Indian Rhubarb - Darmera. California Fall Color. October 2018. URL: https://californiafallcolor.com/2018/10/20/indian-rhubarb-darmera/.

[9] Sharon Roberts: Indian Rhubarb Begins Its Firey-Orange Show. California Fall Color. September 2016. URL: https://californiafallcolor.com/2016/09/25/indian-rhubarb-begins-its-firey-orange-show/

[10]  Hank Shaw: Foraging for gooseberries. Hunter - Angler - Gardener - Cook website, November 2020. URL: https://honest-food.net/wild-gooseberries-edible/.

[11] Sierra gooseberry (Ribes roezlii). Clean Mountain Kitchen, April 11, 2020. URL: https://www.cleanmountainkitchen.com/post/sierra-gooseberry-ribes-roezlii.