Mule Mountain
Easy (to Mule Creek) 3 miles round-trip 720 feet elevation gain Open all year Use: hikers, horses, bikes Moderate (to gnarled oak ridge) 4 miles round-trip 1120 feet elevation gain Difficult (entire loop) 10.6-mile loop 2800 feet elevation gain Open April to mid-December You’re unlikely to see other people on this route through the oak savannah foothills of the Applegate Valley, but you can count on meeting hawks and ground squirrels. One trail fork crosses a ridge to Mule Creek’s small mossy pools. The other fork climbs to a viewpoint on a ridge of gnarled white oaks.
Adventurers can combine the two trails on a difficult 10.6-mile loop, but be forewarned that this includes several miles along Mule Creek where the faint tread is crowded with poison oak. Although motorcycle use is allowed, it’s infrequent and pretty much confined to the first half mile near the trailhead.
To drive here from Medford...
This chapter taken from the book 100 Hikes in Southern Oregon.