Rock Creek Coulee Hike
Hike Rating: Moderate
Hike Length: 6.8 miles for full loop
Elevation Gain: 185’
Trailhead Elevation: 1,470’
Best Season: April-May and September
Driving Access: Any vehicle, with care
Plus
Points
• A scenic walk in a coulee
excavated by Ice Age mega-floods, with a perennial stream
• An optional return loop through upland channeled
scablands, with basalt buttes
• Mule deer, coyotes and red-tailed hawks overhead are
commonly spotted
• Spring wildflowers, including wild iris, persist in wet
depressions into late May
• Historical buildings of the abandoned Escure Ranch, an
early-1900s sheep operation
• Easy walking in relative solitude along seldom-used jeep
roads and cow trails
Minus Points
• The full loop hike requires
basic map reading and route finding skills
• Little shade or tree cover, so plan to start in the early
morning on hot days
• Rattlesnakes are a possibility throughout the summer, so
caution is advised
Download
(PDF, 566 KB): Photos of Rock Creek Coulee
Hike
Download
(PDF, 760 KB): Topo Map for Rock Creek Coulee
Hike
Download
(GPX, 1 KB): GPS Points for Rock Creek Coulee
Hike
Download
(PDF, 720 KB): Road Map for Rock Creek Coulee
Hike
Trail
Notes
From the
trailhead, the route crosses the bridge to the Escure Ranch
buildings, then follows the main dirt road winding west and
north among the barns and corrals, through several steel
gates (leave them as you find them). At 0.3 miles, north of
the ranch buildings, the route leaves the main road and
starts north on a jeep track along a fence line (GPS Point
1). The jeep track passes through a wet swale, then a wire
gate and crests a low ridge to the north. This double track
trail is fairly easy to follow as it passes through basalt
buttes and grassy draws. Look for wild irises here in
Spring.
At 1.1 miles (GPS Point 2), the route intersects another
jeep track running downhill from the west. Turn right
(north) on this track and follow it to Rock Creek below.
For the next 1.5 miles,
the jeep
track winds north, first along Rock Creek, then through a
second wire gate, finally becoming a cow trail that veers
away from the creek into an old flood channel. Look for
huge flood bars here with melon-sized gravel! At 3.0 miles,
one arrives back at the creek to find a few shady shrubs
and trees below scenic basalt bluffs. This can be a good
hike destination for an out-and-back trip, if you return as
you came.
For a return hike that explores the uplands, follow the old
jeep road that angles up the grassy hillside to the south.
At the top of the hill, where the jeep track makes a
sweeping bend to the northwest, is a fence corner with a
third wire gate (GPS Point 3). Pass through this gate,
descending west cross-country into the canyon behind it, to
a circular marsh with giant reeds. Past this marsh, on the
bench above it to the west, one meets a prominent cow trail
running north-south (GPS Point 4).
Turn left
(south) onto this trail and follow it for about a mile
through channeled scablands and grasslands to a steel feed
trough on a low rise (GPS Point 5). Look for mima mounds
around the steep basalt buttes in this section. From the
steel trough, the cow trail continues southeast over grassy
knolls and through old flood channels for about a mile
until it intersects the main east-west ranch road. Cross
the fence to the road, then turn left (east) and walk the
dirt road back to the ranch buildings and trailhead.
Road
to Trailhead
From Interstate 90, take Exit
245 and head south through the town of Sprague on State
Route 23. Drive about 12 miles south from Hwy 90 on Route
23 and, at a sharp left bend in the highway, turn right
onto gravel Davis Road. Drive 6.8 miles to just past the
grain elevators at the old townsite of Revere, then turn
left (south) onto Jordan-Knott Road.
Drive south 2.2 miles, crossing the bridge over Rock Creek,
and then turn right into the BLM Rock Creek Management
Area. Drive another 2.4 miles on this sometimes rocky dirt
road to the trailhead and camping area. When it's dry, this
last 2.4 miles of road should be fine for most passenger
cars and travel trailers, if care is taken in the rough
spots.
Camping Options
The nearest camping is right at
the trailhead in the BLM Rock Creek Campground. Here, in a
flat meadow on a stream terrace between the coulee walls,
are a vault toilet and six graveled parking pads, suitable
for any camping trailer.
Tent campers
will find grassy spots as well, but there are no shade
trees here. This campground is open year-round on a
first-come, first-served basis, with no fees charged. There
are stock corrals nearby with a stream-fed water trough,
but no potable water is provided. Gas, supplies and
drinking water are available in the town of Sprague, WA.
Agency Contact: Spokane BLM District, (509)
536-1200
DISCLAIMER:
Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this
information, but the authors do not guarantee that it is
either current or correct. The reader assumes full
responsibility for any use of this information, and is
encouraged to contact local public land agencies to inquire
about current conditions before
traveling.
Page last updated: 11/5/13