South Yuba River (Buttermilk Bend)
South Yuba River State Park (Bridgeport) · near Nevada City / Grass Valley · Gold Country & Central Valley
Hiking
At a glance
- Difficulty
- easy
- Route type
- out-and-back
- Distance
- 5 miles
- Elevation gain
- 400 ft
- Time needed
- day
- Best season
- March–May (wildflowers) & fall
Permits and booking
- Permit required
- No
- How the permit works
- No permit; small day-use fee. Famous spring wildflower trail along the wild South Yuba River, past the historic 1862 Bridgeport covered bridge.
- How hard the permit is to get
- 1 of 5
What is here
- Features
- Spring wildflower spectacle · Historic covered bridge · Wild river swimming holes · Gold Country history
Worth knowing
- Dogs
- Allowed
- Good for a first timer
- Yes
Hiking detail
- Intl tip
- Time your visit for the spring wildflower peak (typically mid-March through April) when the display is genuinely spectacular and interpretive signs help you identify the blooms. In summer, the river's swimming holes are the draw — bring a suit. Don't miss the historic 1862 covered bridge right at the trailhead.
The guide
The Buttermilk Bend trail in South Yuba River State Park is one of the Gold Country's great spring wildflower walks — an easy r…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to South Yuba River (Buttermilk Bend) — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 39.296, -121.2