If a day hike along a mysterious stream to a spring appeals to you, this is your hike.
Driving to the trailhead, you would never know that soon you will be walking among tall pine trees, walnut trees, oak trees, ferns and plenty of squirrels and such inhabit this unique area. You may be wondering why this is called the Grapevine Trail. Keep your eye out for the grapevines later in the hike.
After going through the unlocked gate (close it behind you) you will follow a jeep road along the right side of the creek. Unless there has been some significant rainfall recently, there will not be any water in the creek... yet. Be patient! It's coming!
After walking for 0.7 miles on this road, you will reach the trail junction for trail #9434 (signed) heading left across the creek and trail #4 (signed). Stay on Trail #4. The trail will cross the creek a few times and after walking 1.2 miles from the parking area will come to a cairn marked fork. Both directions will get you to the spring, just by different routes. The left fork stays near the creek but the trail is more difficult to follow and requires some bushwacking. The right fork climbs a bit out of the creek area and provides some good views, however there is no shade on this section. We took the left fork on the way up to stay under the shade and near the creek (which is quite wet at this point), then returned on the other fork to check out the views.
Taking the left fork, we walked along both sides of the now flowing creek. As you continue to gain elevation, the trees become more and more dominant over the scrub and ground covering ferns start to appear. The trail can be difficult to follow in this section, but if you continue to hike along the creek you will be OK. You will pass through two gates (one open, one closed) as you continue through this area. There is evidence of a previously working ranch in this area, with rusting piping, old stove tops, and other artifacts. Continuing up the creek is challenging, as the trail can be very difficult to follow. Keep an eye out for the cairns and don't be afraid to just follow the creek.
After 2.5 miles of hiking, you will reach the spring that feeds this creek. On the right is an obvious rock seep and on the left is a spring. The forest is quite dense here, so there isn't much light for pictures, however it is a worthy reward for your hiking effort.
To take the other fork back, follow your steps back to the second gate. You should be able to find the alternate trail from here. This section of trail is much quicker and provides good views of the area.
