Purdon Road South Yuba River

Purdon Rd, Nevada City, CA 95959, USA

I just spent the weekend following the 4th of July up near Nevada City. It got over 90 degrees during the day, so we headed to the river. Although lots of people had similar ideas, I was with a local who directed us to this spot and we had it to ourselves. You park near the bridge and hike along the ridge above the river (about 10 minutes - wish I’d had some tennies instead of just flip flops), but it was well worth it. The water was fantastic and the scenery was beautiful. The rocks in the canyon are unusually rounded/smooth.

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Wonderful place to relax on a warm summer day

I just spent the weekend following the 4th of July up near Nevada City. It got over 90 degrees during the day, so we headed to the river. Although lots of people had similar ideas, I was with a local who directed us to this spot and we had it to ourselves. You park near the bridge and hike along the ridge above the river (about 10 minutes - wish I’d had some tennies instead of just flip flops), but it was well worth it. The water was fantastic and the scenery was beautiful. The rocks in the canyon are unusually rounded/smooth.

Narrow Canyon, Beautiful River

I am happily surprised to see this beautiful location mentioned in a magazine article! As stated, you must park along the winding road by the bridge and the hike along the winding but easy-to-follow trail. Drop down to the river, follow along the rocky shoreline and discover MULTIPLE swimming holes for literally miles! My favorite spot along the river has a secluded sandy beach nestled among cottonwood trees with HUGE rocks to jump off of! The pool adjacent is approximately 15 to 20 ft. deep with cool, clear and beautiful flowing water. The swimming hole is probably 60 ft. long and 30 ft. wide. I love this spot because it is VERY secluded with no roads or trails close to it. Private, beautiful and as a bonus, amazing sunset views!

not so great

The road here was dangerous, single lane, with cars speeding both directions and clouds of dust. The area is infested with rattlesnakes, I saw three and my dog was almost bitten. Speaking of which; there are pit bulls running around without leashes. The first beach was populated by naked homeless vagrants doing drugs. There is broken glass and trash everywhere...not my idea of secluded! better to go to 49er crossing, much easier, and with a bit of a hike, more secluded.

Solitude is what we like about our area, leave your noise and trash at home please.

Whenever a magazine writes about the wonders of our area it brings in way too many people, their noise and their trash. Our quiet little river spots become overcrowded trash heaps and we are the ones left to clean them up. It’s bad enough with the seasonal vagrant pot trimmers who live at the river during the summer. We really can’t deal with more people here, as beautiful as it is, it can only support the locals who care about and cherish this area. That is why we moved here. Come up here to live, bring your money and your influence, and stay for the long haul. Help create a community not just another place to leave your trash when you go home.

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