Parking
Use the marked pullout on the west side of Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway near milepost 132.9. Parking is limited and roadside.
Overview
About Ossagon Trail
Why go
- Old-growth redwoods, spruce and alder in one coastward walk.
- Ossagon Rocks and Roosevelt elk make the beach a distinctive finish.
Heads up
- The return is a long climb back to the parkway.
- The lower marsh crossing is flood-prone and its path can shift.
Map & elevation
The route
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
6 active Redwood alerts
- CautionU.S. 101 construction traffic controlsExpect construction-related traffic stops and one-way controlled traffic on U.S. 101; allow extra time and drive cautiously. - NPS reports multiple stops between Orick and Crescent City; delays vary.Official details
- CautionU.S. 199 construction traffic controlsExpect 24/7 one-way controlled traffic on three U.S. 199 segments because of construction. - 6–6.2 miles north of Gasquet: through 6:00 p.m. December 15, 2026; delays up to 10 minutes. - 9.6–9.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Redwood Tour Guide
Your drive to Ossagon Trail, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Redwood National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Redwood audio tourRecorded for this trailhead
Hope Creek and Ten Taypo Loop0:00 / 0:27
“You're approaching the Hope Creek trailhead, where the Ten Taypo loop takes you through ferny canyons and across a redwood ridge.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Redwood Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Ah-Pah Interpretive Trail
- The Anemone Under the Shells
- Carruthers Cove
- Moorman-Pond Trail
- 85 audio storiesacross Redwood’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Black Bear, Elk, California Condor, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 83 trails, 48 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Ossagon Trail
The downhill walkOssagon Trail is an out-and-back from Newton B.
Ossagon Trail is an out-and-back from Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway to the north end of Gold Bluffs Beach. The published line is 1.8 miles each way, or 3.6 miles round trip; allow about 2.5 to 3 hours for the descent, a beach stop, and the climb back. It is a moderate hike with an initially gentle rise followed by a long downhill stretch. The beach is the payoff, but the return is a sustained uphill push.
From redwoods to spruceThe path starts in a shallow ravine under old-growth redwoods, then climbs gently before…
The path starts in a shallow ravine under old-growth redwoods, then climbs gently before dropping along the former road corridor. The redwoods give way to Sitka spruce, and the lower canyon becomes wetter and denser, with red alder and brush. Expect a route that changes character as it loses elevation, not a smooth coastal promenade.
The creek and coastal flatNear the bottom, the route crosses a marshy area around Ossagon Creek and opens onto grassy…
Near the bottom, the route crosses a marshy area around Ossagon Creek and opens onto grassy coastal flat. Flooding has shifted the old constructed line; route descriptions report an informal tread that changes with the wet ground, and the creek crossing can involve wading or a seasonal bridge. Treat 3.6 miles as the mapped round trip, with extra distance possible if the lower path detours. Follow only a clearly visible, safe route through the marsh; do not cut new paths through it.
Beach, rocks and elkThe trail reaches the north end of Gold Bluffs Beach.
The trail reaches the north end of Gold Bluffs Beach. Ossagon Rocks sit along the water, including a distinct arrowhead-shaped rock; erosion has brought surf close to the rocks. Roosevelt elk are often on this stretch of beach, so give them plenty of space. For a photo, frame the pointed rock with the beach and surf; a visible old sand line on the rock records how the shoreline has shifted.
The old roadMuch of the walk follows Ossagon Road, once the route to a gold-mining operation at the mouth…
Much of the walk follows Ossagon Road, once the route to a gold-mining operation at the mouth of Ossagon Creek. Cars used the coastal road until the early 1970s; now the hike gives you the forest-to-beach route without driving it.
Parking and rulesStart at the marked west-side trailhead on Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway near milepost 132.9.
Start at the marked west-side trailhead on Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway near milepost 132.9. Parking is limited to small roadside pullouts. Hikers share the trail with bicycles; pets are prohibited and e-bikes are not allowed on state-park bike trails. The trailhead lists parking, a bike rack, interpretive signs and trash receptacles; toilets, potable water and food service were not confirmed, so arrive self-contained.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Redwood
256 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
2,389 sightingsElkMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
62 sightingsCalifornia CondorMost seen around 1 PMSighting map
60 sightingsCalifornia Sea LionMost seen around 11 AMSighting map
216 sightingsHarbor SealMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
13 sightingsMountain LionMost seen around 7 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Redwood. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
