As soon as we hit a dirt road we knew we were going to get into an interesting adventure. Not too far along the road you will come out of the forest of straight standing pines and onto the ridge side of the canyon where the views are magnificent. The steep canyon walls and snow mountain caps (during the right time of the year) gives you a feeling of excitement even before getting to the trailhead. Once you arrive at the bathrooms we recommend parking and not driving any further unless you have a 4x4 vehicle with experience. This is where we parked and started the hike down to Euchre Bar. Just follow the road down from the bathrooms and this will lead you to the trail down the canyon. You know you will be on the right track once you see an old rusty metal sign with a bunch of bullet holes in it spelling out “Euchre Bar” and an arrow pointing to the trail, also a good spot for a selfie :). It’s a short two miles down to the river but it’s quite steep all of the way down and slippery in a few spots because of leaves on the trail so be careful.
Once you reach the river, you feel at zen. Twisting and turning moss covered ancient oak trees, the emerald color water artistically carved the stone along the river bed and fresh smell of trees put you at ease. It’s like you are part of a cinematic film. There is several old gold miner camps with the last surviving rusted metal parts of equipment they used is scattered around the river along with old gold mining caves. If you bring gold panning equipment you are bound to strike some flakes and if you are lucky maybe even a nugget. Also at the bottom there is a gorgeous green bridge built in 1965 that crosses the river. Another great spot to take a photo. Euchre Bar Trail on the North Fork of the American River is one of our favorites we’ve hiked yet even though the way back up is rather difficult, 1600 ft elevation gain in two miles is quite the trek but worth it on all levels. Overall it’s a very visually-appealing trail.
