Union Hill Trails Area

Union Hill Area Self-Guided Tour

Several trails wind through the Union Hill section of the Empire Mine back country. Along these trails you will see shrubs such as coffee berry, ceanothus, manzanita and Scotch broom, as well as ground covers of kit-kit-dizze (mountain misery), low-growing ceanothus, ferns, berries and honeysuckle. In the spring and summer, you'll often be treated to the colorful blooms of Sierra iris, buttercup, thistle, Humboldt lily, shooting star, columbine, Indian pink and brodiaea. Although ponderosa pine, sugar pine, incense cedar, Douglas Fir, big leaf maple and oaks predominate, a few cherry, apple and pear trees remain - evidence of early residences in the area. And, if you're quiet, birds, deer, and even a fox may come your way.

 

PIPELINE TRAIL

Along the Pipeline Trail, look for the remains of a 22-inch pipe that carried water from a reservoir several miles to the north. The pipeline crossed the Empire Mine holdings on its route to the North Star Powerhouse (see Hardrock Trail, No. 11). Water from the pipeline was used to turn Pelton wheels ' that generated power to operate machinery at mines along the way. After 1910, water power was gradually replaced by electric power.

Another pipeline, installed in recent years, carries water from the 2OO-foot level of the Empire shaft to two 75,000-gallon storage tanks near the eastern end of Indian Ridge Trail. The water in these tanks is used for fire protection and irrigation of the park grounds.

 

INDIAN RIDGE TRAIL

The Indian Ridge Trail was used by the Nisenan tribe, the Maidu-language group of Indigenous people who originally lived in this territory. The Nisenan used black oak acorns, which were here in abundance, as a staple of their food supply and for trade with other Indigenous communities.

 

UNION HILL TRAIL

The Union Hill Trail loops westward from the north end of Pipeline Trail to the edge of the park adjoining the town of Grass Valley. As you walk among the bracken fern, wild honeysuckle and madrone, you'll catch a glimpse of this rapidly growing community that was once home to the miners of the Empire.