If you want to go
Cost: Parking, access free.
Campfires: Campfires allowed only in existing fire rings, campfire permit required, free, available at Forest Service District Ranger Station in Gasquet.
Trail rules: Hikers, dogs and horses permitted. No mountain bikes past wilderness boundary.
Maps: Six Rivers National Forest, $14, available at district office or National Forest Map Store, 971263-3149 or www.nationalforestmapstore.com.
Campgrounds: Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, $35 per night (plus $7.99 reservation fee), coin showers available, reserve sites at www.reservecalifornia.com; plus five Forest Service campgrounds, $8 to $15 per vehicle, no showers; Grassy Flat, Panther Flat, Patrick Creek available by reservations at www.recreation.gov; plus Redwood Meadows RV Resort in Hiouchi. All sites detailed in Moon California Camping.
Park model cabins: Four cabins are available at Jedediah Smith Redwoods, $100 per night (plus $7.99 reservation fee), reserve at www.reservecalifornia.com
Contact: Six Rivers National Forest, Smith River National Recreation Area, Gasquet, 707-457-3131, www.fs.usda.gov/srnf.
How to get there
From Golden Gate to Jed Smith: From the Golden Gate Bridge, take U.S. 101 north for 350 miles to Crescent City and continue 4 miles (a Crescent City bypass is available) to U.S. 199. Bear right (east) on U.S. 199 and drive 5 miles to Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park on the right.
Distances: 91 miles from Eureka, 225 miles from Willits, 339 miles from Novato/Highway 37 junction), 357 miles from Golden Gate Bridge.
From Jed Smith to trailhead: From Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, return to Highway 199, turn right and drive 2.3 miles (past Hiouchi, last chance for supplies) to South Fork Road. Turn right on South Fork Road, cross two bridges to a junction (South Fork Road to the left, to backcountry of Jed Smith to the right). Turn left on South Fork Road and drive 13.7 miles (one mile past Steven Bridge) to Forest Road 15 (locals call it the “GO Road”). Turn right on Forest Road 15 and drive 3.5 miles to Forest Road 15N39 (signed for Kelsey Trail; road turns to gravel). Turn left and drive 2 miles to trailhead. Distance: 22 miles from Jed Smith.
History and future: The South Kelsey Trail is part of a historic 200-mile mule-train route that was developed in the late 1800s and connected Fort Jones in Siskiyou County through the Marble Mountain Wilderness, Klamath Mountains and Siskiyou Wilderness to the Smith River and Crescent City. Several organizations hope to restore the “Old Kelsey Trail,” as many call it, to create a Coast-to-Crest Trail and, in the process, connect the Pacific Crest Trail from the Marbles west to the Coastal Trail in the Redwood Empire.