Whether you visit the back country on a several hour hike or take a mere stroll along the creekbed, you will enjoy a close-up look at all the natural beauty that the park has to offer. There are well over 10 miles of trail for your indulgence.
RITCHEY CANYON TRAIL takes you through the heart of the park on historic routes and paths that parallel a year-round stream shaded by redwoods, firs, and other plants that prefer cool, moist environments. At about 1 mile you will notice many trees and shrubs not native to this area as you pass through the Hitchcock site. The trail becomes steeper after a half mile but offering solitude and a pleasant picnic spot at the homestead site.
REDWOOD TRAIL skirts the south side of Ritchey Creek. Along its upper section, this path is heavily shaded by redwoods and mixed-evergreen forest. You will enjoy a peaceful walk along the creek bank among the ferns, soloman's seal, and other shade-loving plants. Early in the spring, trillium and redwood orchids bloom at the base of the young redwoods that have sprouted from the roots of trees that were felled during settlement of the valley in the 1850s.
COYOTE PEAK TRAIL climbs out of the canyon bottom offering you views of the upper canyon and Napa Valley. Combining this trail with Ritchey Canyon, Redwood and South Fork Trails make a popular loop of 4.4 miles and reveals the variety of plant communities found in the park.
SOUTH FORK TRAIL goes up a canyon following a skid road used by early pioneers to haul out redwoods. After 0.4 miles the trail leaves the skid road and continues at an easier grade passing a spur trail to a good overlook of Ritchey Canyon before rejoining the Spring Trail.
HISTORY TRAIL leads from the picnic area to the historic Bale Grist Mill. Near its beginning the trail passes through a pioneer cemetery and the site of the first church of Napa County, built in 1853. It was named after the Reverend Asa White, who gave sermons in a grove of trees on this site. A steep section of the trail climbs from the cemetery onto a ridge paralleling Highway 29. The trail ends at the mill after passing the remains of the pond and ditches that brought water from Mill Creek to power the mill's overshot water wheel.
