54. Paradise Lake

Length:	15.2 miles round trip from Kelsey Camp, or 2.1 miles one-way on Rye Patch Trail
Hiking time:	2 days
High point:	6,180 feet
Total elevation gain:	3,700 feet from Kelsey Camp, 1,400 feet from Rye Patch Trail
Difficulty:	moderate to strenuous
Season:	late June to mid-October
Water:	plenty along Kelsey Creek Trail (purify first); none on Rye Patch Trail
Maps:	USGS 7.5' Grider Valley, USGS 7.5' Marble Mountain, USFS Marble Mountain Wilderness
Information:	Salmon/Scott River Ranger District, Klamath National Forest

Hike along Kelsey Creek and through a long wildflower meadow to colorful Paradise Lake, where you'll have views of uniquely shaped Kings Castle, Cayenne Ridge, and other peaks in the Marble Mountains.

From Fort Jones on Highway 3, take Scott River Road. Drive 16 miles, then turn left at Kelsey Camp immediately after a bridge. Bear right at 0.2 mile, then park near the signed trailhead 0.2 mile farther.

Start your hike on Kelsey Trail, a major supply route constructed in the 1850s that stretched between nearby Fort Jones to the east and Crescent City on the north coast. The path initially climbs past sections of madly rushing water interspersed with serene pools and then reaches a sandy campsite with a makeshift table near a charred tree trunk at 2 miles.

The trail departs Kelsey Creek, only to return at 3 miles. It then gently climbs past a seasonal streambed and two of Kelsey Creek's numerous tributaries over the next 0.7 mile. The next 2 miles travel near the creek most of the time, steadily climbing through a Douglas fir forest that includes a few sugar pine and incense cedar. Canyon live oak dominate the middle stretch, with an occasional black oak mixed in.

Packers Valley Creek tumbles into Kelsey Creek at 5.8 miles, promptly followed by a campsite next to a rustic wooden fence. From 6.1 to 6.8 miles, two unsigned scant trails lead westward up the hillside. Bear left at these confusing cross trails, keeping close to Kelsey Creek.

A small grove of black cottonwood trees sways in the breeze 0.2 mile into a gently sloping meadow at 7 miles. From a small stream at 7.1 miles, the climb gets noticeably tougher as you pass a wildflower garden of blue lupine, white yarrow, orange Indian paintbrush, white angelica, western blue flax, and yellow meadow goldenrod. The slope eases along the meadowy mountainside when you make the final crossing of Kelsey Creek at 7.5 miles. The trail finally crests at 7.6 miles at Paradise Lake's scenic meadow, decorated by stonecrop and lupine.

A splendid campsite beneath a white fir community lies 120 feet from the eastern shoreline of the lake, from which you have fantastic views of numerous ridges and peaks, including Kings Castle, which resembles a rook in a chess game. A lone, grassy island invites you to wade out and sunbathe.

There's a backdoor shortcut to Paradise Lake via the strenuous Rye Patch Trail. It offers an excellent day hike option to the Cayenne Ridge and Paradise Lake area, or it can serve as a 9.7-mile, one-way route to Kelsey Camp.

To reach this trailhead, travel 13.5 miles on Scott River Road from Fort Jones, then turn left onto Road 44N45. Go right at a road intersection 6.4 miles farther, then continue on Road 44N45 another 5.6 miles.

Rye Patch Trail climbs continuously and sometimes steeply in a well-shaded Douglas fir forest. The ascent finally eases when you reach a fern-covered hillside at 1.4 miles. At 1.9 miles you'll reach the colorful, open slope near the southeast section of Paradise Lake.