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Things got a bit drier as we moved away from the river and on up the canyon. That is the road we traveled for 14 miles. The old logging road (actually not so old since they still use it for logging) is a little wider in spots, but for long stretches it is unpaved. During the winter it is closed.
At
several spots along the road you can see the flumes. I'm told by Katherine Evatt, President of the
Foothill Conservancy, "The concrete flumes were not ever used for logging, although some logs were floated down the river itself. The flumes were built as part of the PG&E hydroelectric system in the river. They convey water from Salt Springs and the Bear River to the Tiger Creek Regulator Reservoir." I don't know exactly how long the flume is, but it seemed to
follow the entire length of the road.
On the other side of the road you could look down to streams feeding the
river or the river itself in some spots.
Before long we came to another secluded spot to pull over and stretch our legs. I was a shaded area that I can only describe as a grotto. Lush green ferns and other plants and the stream rushing down to meet the river somewhere below.
The grotto also had some beautiful flowers. Marcie tells me this one is called a bleeding heart, but Katherine says it is a scarlet monkeyflower.
