Overhung with mossy bigleaf maples, Drift Creek meanders through the densely forested canyons of the Coast Range's largest wilderness area. For the easiest route to the creek, hike the Harris Ranch Trail down to an ancient homestead meadow in a creek bend. Underbrush here includes salmonberry, vine maple, and lady fern. After 2.2 miles downhill, the trail enters Harris Ranch Meadow, a pre-World War II homestead pasture gone wild with blackberries and bracken fern. Deer, woodpeckers, eagles, bear, and owls are common enough that you can expect to see at least one of those four animal varieties.
Raccoons fish for the crawdads in the creek.
Don't overlook a faint, unmarked junction at the start of the meadow. Keep straight at this junction to find a large, lovely campsite beneath big streamside cedars. The bare bedrock banks of Drift Creek are great for picnicking or sunbathing. Red crawdads crawl through the shallows. After enjoying the creek, return as you came.