Upper Bidwell Park

Upper Bid­well Park, locat­ed in Chico in the foothills of the Sier­ra Neva­da Moun­tains, is the chal­leng­ing, scenic heart of Butte Coun­ty’s out­door recreation.

This area is known for its steep ter­rain and unique rock for­ma­tions, includ­ing Chico For­ma­tion sand­stone and Love­joy Basalt. It offers 12 scenic and chal­leng­ing trails and mul­ti­ple com­bi­na­tion trail options.

Upper Park Essen­tials: Know Before You Go

• Loca­tion: East of Man­zani­ta Avenue (referred to as Mid­dle and Upper Park)
• Ter­rain: Steep, rocky foothills of the Sier­ra Neva­da Mountains
  
• Trail Dif­fi­cul­ty: Mixed-use trails are most­ly rat­ed as medium-to-difficult
• Key Fea­ture: Big Chico Creek runs through the park, offer­ing nat­ur­al swim­ming holes
• Cur­rent Sta­tus: Check the City of Chico’s web­site for the lat­est updates on trail sta­tus and gate hours

Bik­ing Trails: Upper Park’s Chal­leng­ing Single-Track

• North Rim Trail (Advanced): This advanced, widened sin­gle track sits atop the north­ern canyon of Big Chico Creek, offer­ing stun­ning, mag­nif­i­cent views once ele­va­tion is gained. The trail sits on lava cap and fea­tures short down­hill sec­tions before climb­ing to B Trail.
• Mid­dle Trail (Inter­me­di­ate): This trail fluc­tu­ates between sec­tions of smooth dirt and sev­er­al long chunky rock gar­dens. The upper­most sec­tion includes short, steep climbs lit­tered with loose rocks. It’s a good option for mak­ing a loop with Upper Trail or Low­er Trail.
• Guardian Trail (Expert): An exposed, tech­ni­cal sin­gle-track trail, the Guardian Trail is all down­hill and fea­tures some extreme drop-offs along the edges. Inter­me­di­ate rid­ers should expect to walk their bike a good amount. The trail offers con­tin­u­ous views of Chico Creek Canyon and the val­ley to the west. It is gen­er­al­ly rec­om­mend­ed to ride this trail down, ascend­ing Ten Mile House Road from the South Rim Trail or the trails on the north side of the park (wet cross­ing, unsafe dur­ing high water).

Over­all, Upper Park con­tains 12 scenic and chal­leng­ing trails and mul­ti­ple com­bi­na­tion trail options.

Hik­ing Trails: Pedes­tri­an-Only and Mixed-Use Options

All but one trail in Upper Park are mixed-use, but most are rat­ed as mod­er­ate-to-chal­leng­ing hikes. Some of the favorite hik­ing trails include:

• Yahi Trail (Pedes­tri­an-Only): A great option for hik­ers, the Yahi Trail is the only pedes­tri­an-only trail in Upper Park and offers miles of scenic views along Big Chico Creek. Remem­ber to wear com­fort­able shoes and bring plen­ty of drink­ing water.
• Annie Bid­well Trail (Scenic Chal­lenge): The Annie Bid­well Trail begins with short, punchy climbs up to the canyon rim. After inter­sect­ing Guardian Trail, there is a steep down­hill, often called ​“ten­nis ball hill,” which is lit­tered with loose rocks and sev­er­al drainages. This steep sec­tion leads to a mead­ow and swim­ming oppor­tu­ni­ties at the Bear Hole area of Big Chico Creek.
  
• Ten Mile House Trail (Access Road): This dirt road is fre­quent­ly used to access the South Rim Trail and Guardian Trail, as well as the Big Chico Creek Eco­log­i­cal Reserve and HWY 32.

Best Sea­sons to Vis­it: The park is open year-round and per­fect for a hike any time, but sea­son­al wild­flower blooms and col­or­ful fall foliage make spring and autumn espe­cial­ly great times to visit.

Swim­ming Holes: The Best in Butte County

With Big Chico Creek run­ning through Bid­well Park, you’ll find a vari­ety of nat­ur­al swim­ming holes to enjoy, which are per­fect spots to cool down in dur­ing the heat of summer.

From Low­er Bid­well Park’s Sycamore Pool to the rugged and remote Salmon Hole, learn all about the best urban swim­ming holes in Cal­i­for­nia here.

Bird­ing

What kinds of birds can I see in Upper Bid­well Park?

Upper Bid­well Park is an active bird­ing spot, espe­cial­ly begin­ning just above Horse­shoe Lake along the canyon side. Keep an eye out for a vari­ety of birds, including:

• Great horned owl, north­ern pygmy owl
• Gold­en eagles
• Phain­ope­pla, Cal­i­for­nia thrashers
• Pur­ple finch­es, dark-eyed Junco
• A vari­ety of spar­rows and ducks

Dis­cov­er Upper Bid­well Park with this map. Get a free copy of the fold-out map, which includes the entire­ty of Bid­well Park, from the Chico Cham­ber of Commerce.