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Rogue River Trail Backpacking Guide

Last Updated: September 24, 2024
By Dave Collins

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Backpacker on the Rogue River Trail above the Wild and Scenic whitewater section.
The Rogue River is a nationally designated Wild and Scenic river. This hike meanders along 40 miles of its most remote and rugged section. – photo credit Dave Collins (clever hiker.com)

The Rogue River Trail is one of the most scenic early-season backpacking trips in the Pacific Northwest. The route traverses the north side of the Wild and Scenic section of the Rogue River from Grave Creek to Foster Bar. This portion of the river is the most remote stretch, as no roads cross the river, making it only accessible by boat or on foot.

The scenery is fantastic, with steep canyon walls, sparkling waterfalls, and deep green pools. Flora and fauna are abundant, and anglers come from around the world to fish the famed Rogue River. You won’t see too many other hikers on the trail, and there are many beautiful campsites along the way. With limited early-season backpacking options in the Pacific Northwest, the Rogue River Trail is among the best.

a waterfall drops into a green pool surrounded in moss and ferns on the rogue river trail
The mist-loving ferns, lichens, and moss add to the mystique of the waterfalls you’ll wander past on the trail. – photo credit: dave collins (cleverhiker.com)

Quick Facts

  • Distance: 40 miles (one way)
  • Days Needed: 3-5 days
  • Type: Shuttle or out-and-back
  • Elevation Gain/Loss: 4,500ft / 4,950ft
  • Best Travel Time: Spring and fall (April/May/Sept/Oct). Although you can hike year round, summer can get very hot.
  • Permits: None
  • Difficulty: Moderate
a wooden sign mounted to a mossy tree on the Rogue River Trail shows to the left the US forest service is managing agency and to the right the bureau of land management manages the area.
Now managed by the Rogue-Siskiyou National Forest and the Bureau of Land Management, this area was the home of the Takelma tribe. – photo credit: dave collins (cleverhiker.com)

Highlights

  • Spring wildflowers
  • Beautiful riverside campsites
  • Abundant wildlife – chance to see black bears
  • Well-maintained trail
  • Decent solitude
  • Shuttle service options
  • Wilderness lodging and river rafting trip options

Lowlights

  • Abundant poison oak. Like, ridiculously abundant
  • Ticks and rattlesnakes are somewhat common
  • Hiking mid-summer can be dangerously hot
  • There are some steep sections, but they are not too bad. It is not recommended if you have a fear of heights
  • Shared use with river rafters (and jet boats on the western section)
  • Expensive early-season shuttle when Bear Camp Road is closed
backpacker on a narrow ledge that wraps above a cliff with the Rogue River below on a cloudy, wet day.
The trail gets a little sporty on some exposed cliffs and ledges. – photo credit: dave collins (cleverhiker.com)

Best Time to Travel

The Rogue River Trail can technically be hiked year-round due to its low elevation. However, the best time to hike is in the spring and fall. Summer brings scorching heat into the canyon, and conditions can be dangerous if you’re not well prepared. Although this area of Oregon is generally drier than other parts of the state, it still receives a fair amount of rain (and sometimes snow) in the winter. If you decide to hike in winter, be prepared for the possibility of washouts, downed trees, and muddy trails. Also, getting a car shuttle in the winter and early spring is possible, but it’s much more expensive until the main road (Bear Camp) opens (usually mid to late May).

A sunny, grassy slope and oak with the rogue-siskiyou forest and the green rogue river behind.
Madrone forests and Oak Savannas are a unique feature of this productive ecoregion. – photo credit: dave collins (cleverhiker.com)

Difficulty

  • Total Distance: About 40 Miles
  • Total Elevation Gain/Loss: 4,500 ft / 4950 ft
  • Overall Difficulty: Moderate

We rate this hike overall as moderate difficulty. Over the course of 40 miles, the trail undulates along the river with some big ups and downs. However, we consider it moderate because it’s milder than the climbing you’d see on most PNW mountain trails. The trail does have some narrow portions with steep dropoffs, so take care in these sections. As always, difficulty ratings depend on your experience, physical fitness, pack weight, & weather conditions. This is not a technically demanding hike, but like any backpacking trip, the best trips start with a great plan, self-awareness, and proper training. Brush up on your skills, and dial in your gear for a safe and enjoyable adventure on the Wild and Scenic section of the Rogue River Trail.

wooden footbridge crossing a river or stream on the Rogue River Recreation Trail
We love the moody forests of the Klamath mountains and the coastal range. – photo credit: dave collins (cleverhiker.com)

Getting There

From Portland, the Rogue River Trail is roughly a 4-hour drive south. You will take I-5 south until you reach exit 76. Head west for 15 miles towards the Grave Creek Bridge. Just past the Grave Creek Bridge is the Grave Creek Boat Ramp parking lot, the starting trailhead for this trip. There is a Rogue River Trail information sign up a small hill near the end of the parking lot, but you might not immediately see it. If you choose to arrange a shuttle service, they’ll usually pick up your car from here and drive it down to the Foster Bar Boat Launch Parking Lot (not the Foster Bar Trailhead, but very close) for you.

the pacific sideband snail, oregon's native snail and largest snail found on the ground along the rogue river
The logistics of a point-to-point backpacking trip can feel snail-paced with shuttles, car drops, or hitchhiking. This native Oregonian, the Pacific sideband snail, reminds us to slow down and enjoy the peaceful and lush landscapes. – photo credit: dave collins (cleverhiker.com)

Trailheads

This trip guide starts at the Graves Creek Boat Ramp and ends at the Foster Bar Boat Launch parking lot. Although you can hike the Rogue River Trail in either direction, it’s most common to start at Graves Creek and hike west down the river valley.

Shuttle Options

There are several options for running a shuttle to hike this trail. Plan on it taking ~3 hours to get it all sorted out if you run your own shuttle. Here are a few ways to get to where you want to go:

  • Plan an out-and-back hike from one trailhead
  • Take two cars and park one at your ending trailhead
  • Hire a shuttle service to pick up your car from one trailhead and drop it off at the other while you hike
  • Plan the trip with another group to run a shuttle for each other’s cars. One group hikes upstream, and the other hikes downstream and finishes the hike at the car
  • Hitchhike back to your car. Conversely, you can drive to the finish and then hitch to the starting trailhead. Hitching is common here because of the number of boaters who also need to run a shuttle. However, use cautious discernment before taking a lift from a stranger

Some shuttle services will pick up your car from the trailhead, and others will offer to drop you off to start your hike. With both options, the service will keep your car in a safe location while you hike and drop off your car the day you plan to hike out. A second set of car keys will be useful for this service, but there are clever ways around that if you only have one set of keys.

Prices vary depending on the time of year (due to snowpack road closures) and the company you choose. When Bear Camp Road is open, shuttle rates from popular outfitters run about $115-$140 per car (at the time of this posting). When longer shuttle routes are necessary, rates increase to around $190-$300 depending on route options.

map of the waypoints along the rogue river trail
Map courtesy of BLM.gov

Maps & Guidebooks

The Backpacking Oregon book is an excellent resource for this trail and many other trips around Oregon. Waypoints and detailed descriptions of the hike are useful for planning camping locations, side trips, and more. We highly recommend reading the BLM Rogue River Trail Guide. It provides useful logistical information, as well as ecological, historical, and geographical content as well.

The Rogue River Trail is well-maintained and marked, so off-trail navigation will most likely be unnecessary. Still, it is smart to hike with detailed maps and a quality compass (like the Suunto M-3 D Leader) whenever you go into the wilderness. We referenced a topographical map for trail mileage, water sources, and campsites. You can print the BLM map above, use this Caltopo map on your phone, and/or use the Gaia GPS phone app to navigate this trail.

backpacker sitting in a camp chair next to their tent beside the Rogue River in Oregon.
This trail is open year-round, and while the early season can be wet, it doesn’t usually have fire restrictions. – photo credit: dave collins (cleverhiker.com)

Permits & Regulations

  • No permits are needed to hike the Rogue River Trail. Woo hoo!
  • Check the Rogue River Forest Service page for official regulations. Some important considerations:
  • Fires are prohibited within 400 feet of the river.
  • Please check with the local interagency office prior to your trip to ensure there are no fire bans or trail closures. The Rogue River area is very dry, and extra precautions must be taken. With how fire seasons are trending, it’s probably best to plan on not having campfires.
a small stream drops over moss covered rocks in the Rogue-Siskiyou Forest
The Coast Range is a temperate rainforest. Rainfall ranges from 60-100+ inches at higher elevations, mostly from October through June. – photo credit: dave collins (cleverhiker.com)

Water

Water is normally plentiful along this trail and easily accessible from small streams. It is good practice to fill your bladders and bottles to be able to get from one source to the next. Lightweight water purifiers are user-friendly and don’t bog down your pack.

Puple-magenta and yellow iris on the rogue river trail in oregon
Oregon Native, toughleaf iris, strutting its stuff along the trail in spring. – photo credit: dave collins (cleverhiker.com)

Solitude

Compared to most popular PNW hiking destinations, the Rogue River Trail sees far fewer hikers, so in that sense, the solitude is excellent. That said, the Rogue River is a popular rafting location, with 20,000 boaters floating this section annually. So you may have to share some campsites with whitewater rafters during peak season. On the last 10-mile stretch of the trail (the western side), you may also hear the occasional roar of jetboats.

a woodland trail with moss covered trees and bright spring green grass and leaves in the Rogue-Siskiyou Forest
A serene forest trail is a great start to the hiking season in the PNW. – photo credit: dave collins (cleverhiker.com)

Bears & Food Storage

Black bears, trash bandits (raccoons), and other little free-loaders are common along this trail, especially on the western side. In high bear population areas, bear boxes, food hoists, and bear fences provide convenient nighttime food storage. Deeper along the trail, there aren’t bear boxes. However, it is still important to store your food properly. Watch our tutorial to learn how to hang your bear bag properly or carry a food storage container. Bear canisters and Ursacks are great storage methods and are easy to use.

Proper food storage and waste disposal are essential to preserving the quality of this special place. Review how to leave no trace while visiting the outdoors to do your part as a visitor to the Rogue-Siskiyou National Forest.

wild and scenic rogue river with the rogue river trail above. Yellow flowers border the well-made trail.
The Rogue River Trail provides so many wildflower gawking opportunities. Just be sure it isn’t poison oak! – photo credit: dave collins (cleverhiker.com)

Bugs and Poison Oak

Mosquitoes enjoy life along the Rogue, but the dry summer climate generally limits their numbers compared to other PNW trails. Use a combination of Permethrin on your clothing and a small amount of 30% DEET on exposed skin when you need full protection.

Poison Oak is abundant along the Rogue River Trail. It’s seriously all over the place, so make sure you know how to identify poison oak and avoid it at all costs. We suggest wearing long pants on this trail and bringing a small amount of calamine lotion in case of contact. Going to the bathroom in the woods is usually when people accidentally brush by it, so be on the lookout!

tent pitched on a grassy bar next to the rogue river
Some mornings, we had a wet tent. Take it out to dry during a lunch or snack break if the day heats up and dries out. – photo credit: dave collins (cleverhiker.com)

Gear List

Make sure to check out our Ultimate Backpacking Checklist so you don’t forget something important.

Below you’ll find our current favorite backpacking gear. If you want to see additional options, our curated gear guides are the result of many years of extensive research and hands-on testing by our team of outdoor experts.

BACKPACK

TENT

SLEEPING BAG/QUILT

SLEEPING PAD

CAMP KITCHEN

WATER & FILTRATION

CLOTHING

FOOTWEAR & TRACTION

NAVIGATION

FOOD

FIRST-AID & TOOLS

MISCELLANEOUS

yellow flowers bordering the rogue river trail in oregon.
Take only pictures and leave only footprints. – photo credit: dave collins (cleverhiker.com)

Leave No Trace

Preserving our wilderness and minimizing human impact is vital to its health. A campfire or improper disposal of human waste, leftovers, and graywater has a substantial cumulative impact.

Thousands of hikers, anglers, and boaters share these lands each year. Enjoying the flora and fauna comes with a personal responsibility to minimize human intrusion. Taking just a few moments to familiarize yourself with Leave No Trace principles before heading out can have a lasting positive impact.

backpacker on the rogue river trail with the rushing water to their left and cliffs towering above them on the right.
We hope this guide inspires you to get on the Rogue River Trail. Let us know how it goes! – photo credit: dave collins (cleverhiker.com)

More Information

We hope this guide inspires you to plan a memorable journey along the Rogue River Trail.

Why trust us?

We understand how tough it is to find trustworthy gear advice, and that’s one of the main reasons we built CleverHiker. We live for outdoor adventure, and we take these guides very seriously.

  • Our recommendations are completely independent and based on hands-on experience.
  • We test outdoor gear for a living – we’ve logged over 20,000 trail miles and 1,000 nights in the wilderness.
  • Our team has thru-hiked some of the most iconic long trails, including the Continental Divide Trail, Pacific Crest Trail, Appalachian Trail, Colorado Trail, Long Trail, Oregon Coast Trail, Arizona Trail, Pinhoti Trail, Superior Hiking Trail, as well as extensive peak bagging, and international treks.
  • We field test every product we recommend, which is sadly not the norm.
  • We travel to industry trade shows to stay up-to-date on product innovations.
  • We continuously update our guides throughout the year and when new products launch.
  • We treat recommendations to our readers as if they were for our family and friends.
  • We’re lifelong learners and we’re always open to feedback. If you think we’ve missed a worthy product or got something wrong, we’d love to know about it.

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