| DIRECTIONS TO BATTLE CREEK RANCH
From Red Bluff:
Travel east on Antelope
Blvd-Hwy 99E for three miles to Hwy 36.
Turn left (north) on Hwy 36 and go 11 miles
to The Dales.
Turn left at Dales Cafe
onto the Manton Road (A6). You will travel north and
east 7.5 miles to Wildcat Road (it’s just past the bridge
over South Fork of Battle Creek).
Turn left onto Wildcat and proceeded 1.7
miles to the turnoff to Darrah Springs State Fish Hatchery
(just past the bridge over the North Fork of Battle Creek).
Drive into the hatchery
and follow the paved road for 1 mile. At this point
take the left fork leading past the houses. The pavement will
end just past the houses and then you will come to a fork
in the road.
Take the right fork and drive over Baldwin
Creek (it is a small reservoir at this point) then look a
little to the right and you will see a gate.
Drive up to the gate,
open with the combination (The combination is changed
each year, and will be provided to you with confirmation of
your trip deposits) and, please, lock it behind you.
In about a half mile
you will come to a cattle guard and another gate. It’s
not locked, but be sure to close it behind you.
The road leading to the
Baldwin Beat and The Wall Beat is just a few yards down the
road. If you are going to the parking areas for Trout
Camp or the other beats continue on the main road. There are
prominent signs posted for all beats and parking areas.
From Redding:
Travel east 22.5 miles on Hwy 44 to Black
Butte Road (across from the county store).
Turn right (south) and go 7.3 miles to the
Darrah Springs State Fish Hatchery entrance.
Turn onto the hatchery road and follow the
detailed directions above.
From The Burney Area:
You will need to travel
to the Old Station area and pick up Hwy 44 heading west.
Stay on Hwy 44 through Shingletown and go 6.5 miles to the
Black Butte Road turnoff.
Now follow the directions from Redding &
Red Bluff shown above from this point on.
Caution Please take care
not to park your vehicle in any tall weeds as a hot exhaust
system can start a fire. Also, the ranch owners have no sense
of humor when it comes to smoking anywhere on both ranches
except at Trout Camp.
BATTLE CREEK RANCH BEAT DIRECTIONS
Trout Camp:
After you pass through
the second gate you will need to continue on for another
1⁄2 mile. A sign will indicate the road leading to
the camp. Turn onto this road and follow the signs
to the parking area. You can access some of the upper ranch
beats by walking over the foot bridge by the camp and striking
off across county.
If you chose to drive
to the parking areas for the different beats just be sure
you park in the assigned parking areas. Baldwin Reach:
This reach includes portions of both Baldwin Creek &
Battle Creek. After you go through the gate proceed one
half mile to a cattle guard and a second gate. Let yourself
through this gate (no lock involved but please close it
behind you), and look for the sign on the road (just a few
yards past the cattle guard) to the Baldwin Beat.
Turn left on this road
and follow it to the parking area by the canal. Although
it is not as easy to access and fish along as the Coleman
Beat, it takes much less effort to get to and fish than
the Wall and Canyon Beats do. You can walk down to Baldwin
Creek by going over to the above ground water pipe, and
follow that down into Baldwin Creek. From here, you can
follow the creek down to Battle Creek. At this junction
fish downstream all the way to the start of the Wall Beat.
You may elect to start at the top of the Wall
Beat and fish upstream to Baldwin Creek and then hike up
this stream to the parking area. See Wall Beat directions.
The Wall Reach:
Follow the signs just past the second gate
and proceed to the end of the road and park by the bridge
going over the canal. Walk over the bridge and down the
road. Go through two gates (close them behind you, please)
These two gates are directly above a underground gas pipe
that runs south-west. There are two orange and white signs(/////)
that signal where the pipe is buried.
You will want to angle to the right after
going through the second gate, to the buried gas pipe and
follow it down to the stream. Keep an eye out for the orange
and white barred signs. This reach is from the pipe downstream
to the third bend, which is the start of the canyon reach.
Canyon Reach:
Follow the main access road for approximately
1 mile after you go through the second gate. You will cross
over a canal at this point. Proceed along the canal road
for 1⁄2 mile and look for the sign leading down off
the canal road. The road leads across a flat and into the
trees and winds it way down towards the creek.
This can be a bad road Just remember this
is for the adventurous fisherman. A trail of ribbons will
show the way to a gully leading down to the beat area Whatever
you do when you finish make sure you save enough daylight
time to get all the way back to your car. Remember, if you
get confused as to where you are the canal is always above
you. Always carry the map with you.
BURTON RANCH BEAT DIRECTIONS
Barn Reach:
Follow the instructions
on how to enter Battle Creek ranch. Check your odometer
as you get to the second gate that is about 1⁄2 mile
from the ranch entrance gate. You will proceed 1.8 miles
west to a locked gate. You will be driving right along the
canal for much of this distance. Using the combination provided
(The combination is changed each year, and will be provided
to you with confirmation of your trip deposits), let yourself
through this gate and look to the left for the sign to the
barn beat parking area. Follow this road down off the canal
road and on to the parking area.
You can park in the
corral or even under part of the barn if you wish. Walk
to the west, through the corral and you will be in a meadow.
Follow the tule ditch through the meadow. The ditch will
bend to the left and go over the edge of the canyon. Cross
over the ditch (it should be a little swampy) and look for
the trail of ribbons leading from the canyon’s edge
down to the stream. You can follow these ribbons, or create
your own route. You are near the upstream end of the barn
reach at this point. From this point you may fish a short
distance upstream, but most of this beat is downstream.
You may prefer to walk along the canyon’s edge for
a mile or so, and then go down into the canyon and fish
back up to the ribbon trail. Then climb out to the meadow
where you are parked.
No Man’s Reach:
This is the easiest
of all the beats to access from a parking area. Check
out the directions to the barn beat. After you go through
the locked gate on the canal you will need to proceed 1.4
mile more along the canal to get to the turn off to the
No Man’s reach. The turn off is just as you reach
a rock wall along the edge of the canal. It’s a sharp
turn to the left that may require a bit of jockeying to
negotiate. You will need a 4-wheel drive for this road.
There is a green gate at this point and if it is locked,
the combination (The combination is changed each year, and
will be provided to you with confirmation of your trip deposits)
will open it. There is a sign and trail of orange ribbons
marking the road over to the parking area. The parking area
is approximately 1⁄2 mile from the canal. You will
be parking right next to the canyon’s edge. Follow
the ribbons down to the stream and fish downstream to the
S- curves or walk along the canyon edge to the curves and
fish back up to the ribbon trial and climb back out to your
vehicle.
Spring Branch Reach:
To reach the parking
area for this beat follow the directions to No Man’s.
Just as you reach the No Man’s parking area
you will see a trace road leading to the right. Follow this
road to the end- about 1/3 of a mile. Walk along the ridge
until you see the big S cures at the top of the Spring Branch
Beat. You can then drop down to the stream and fish downstream
or keep walking along the ridge towards the bottom of the
beat. Now you can fish back up through the cures and then
retrace your route to your vehicle. You will need a 4 wheel
drive or posi trac to travel this road.
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