Much of the mining done during the California Gold Rush was done by removing the gold from ancient riverbeds. Hydraulic mining involved bringing water from high in the mountains by way of flumes and ditches and directing it against the gold-bearing deposits. Entire hillsides were washed away. The downside of this method was the debris which then choked the rivers and ruined farmlands below.

In 1884 the Sawyer Decision outlawed hydraulic mining.

The Smartsville area mines drew water from the South Yuba River 25 miles upstream by way of the Excelsior Ditch. Parts of the ditch remained in use for agricultural irrigation until it was abandoned in 1963. A small section of the upper portion has been turned into a handicapped-accessible trail:

 

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