To be frank the Illinois R Trail isn't as neat as the Rogue.
A good portion of it leaves the river and goes over Bald Mtn.
Being next to those rivers is inspiring. More so than the view from above.
To the river runners the Illinois is even superior to Rogue, if you have the skill. Which I don't.
The lower portion of the Illinois trail that stays next to the river is one of the many gifted places that the west coast offers.
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Zane Grey was a fisherman and wrote about the Rogue.
He discovered that he had created a problem, overuse.
Zane Grey then moved up to the North Umpqua and kept quiet about it.
If you're looking for a river trail I'd suggest there also.
Let the water drown out the noise from the road and just enjoy that beautiful turquoise color.
The Illinois River Trail has some nice sections of kalmiopsis if you time it right for the bloom, and lacks the numbers of people. But the very long detour up and over the mountain away from the river means that for the most part it isn't really a river trail, even though it is named after one. When I did it, nearly a decade ago, there were a few route-finding spots to be careful about where the trail faded. Not too bad, but not for neophytes. And I did an out-and-back so missed the lowest sections, unfortunately it seems. Not sure what it would take to organize a shuttle of the Illinois.
Both the Rogue and Illinois Rivers have shuttles available for river floaters.
(Shuttle services are expensive and hikers are much cheaper than rafters. Thats the bad news. Good news is most are professional and strive for high ratings to get/keep business.)
The Illinois trail starts, on the upstream side, 2 1/2 miles below where the river floaters put in at Miami Bar. Briggs Cr Trailhead to the lower Oak Flat shuttle is an over 4 hour drive that takes one through California. Seriously. (Doing the logging roads up north is something the professional shuttle services avoid early in the year because of snow. This is on the Bear Camp Route. Bear Creek Road (FR 23) is the road where the Kim family from California, who worked for C/NET lost the husband in 2006.)
I found this:
"Most groups hire a shuttle service and drive directly to put-in at Miami Bar. The shuttle drivers will meet you at put-in and drive your cars to take-out on a prescribed day. The Illinois shuttle can be quite complicated so this makes life much easier. The shuttle services in the area are quite affordable and professional."
Here is a sample of rates:
Coast (thru Cal): 1st car – $450, 2nd car – $150, 3rd car – $125
Bear Camp (FR 23): 1st car – $290, 2nd car – $150, 3rd car – $125
May I suggest leaving a vehicle at a trailhead in Southern Oregon could be risky. That a shuttle delivers on a scheduled day is very desirable.
In 1975 when I hiked down the Rogue and up the Illinois we got lucky at the end and were able to hitch most of the way into the Selma Store. Called my Mom in Grants Pass and she graciously came and got us.
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The way this might work is for a couple hikers partnering up with someone seeing the southern Oregon Coast by vehicle. You buy their gas and they drop you off and pick you up. Dates and times chiseled in stone as cell service will be occasional even from up high.
The Oregon State Parks have what I believe is the best Campground system in the world. SHOWERS are good. Finishing your hike with a couple days by the ocean could work.
A second option would be to cultivate Grants Pass friends. Perhaps your hiking Partner could be from there.
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