Empire Mine (Hardrock Trail)
Grass Valley (Nevada County) · near Grass Valley · Gold Country & Central Valley
Hiking
At a glance
- Difficulty
- moderate
- Route type
- loop
- Distance
- 4 miles
- Elevation gain
- 500 ft
- Time needed
- day
- Best season
- Year-round · Spring (wildflowers/dogwood) and fall best; forested shade helps in summer
Permits and booking
- Permit required
- Yes
- How the permit works
- A state park day-use/museum fee (~$7) enters the historic mine grounds and buildings; the Penn Gate trail network is free. Dogs leashed on trails, not in historic buildings.
- How hard the permit is to get
- 1 of 5
What is here
- Features
- One of California's richest & deepest gold mines · Historic mine yard & Bourn Cottage · Forested trails & mining relics · Interpretive Gold Rush history
Worth knowing
- Dogs
- Allowed
- Good for a first timer
- Yes
Hiking detail
- Intl tip
- Do the trail loop for free from Penn Gate, then pay the small day-use fee to tour the mine yard and the Bourn 'Cottage' — the historic core is the real draw.
The guide
Empire Mine pairs a genuinely world-class Gold Rush historic site — the mine produced roughly 5.8 million ounces of gold over a…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Empire Mine (Hardrock Trail) — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 39.2094, -121.0572