After avoiding the park for too long, I headed back to see how one of my favorite trails weathered the winter and the pandemic crowds. On a sunny Saturday, everyone was out with a dog, a bicycle, a child or a horse. All the trailheads were full of cars. Fortunately, the little known trailhead farther up the road from 291 had a few spaces left, and I tucked my little car in for the day, shouldered my pack and headed out. Before the pandemic, I never parked here, only hiked through. Rather than nature’s quiet, the parking lot was inundated with the sound of revving and racing engines at the ORV park which is visible in the distance.
Trail 25 is a 23 mile long loop that I sample each time I visit. I have never attempted to hike it in a day. This adventure was the north end of the loop, starting and ending at the upper crossing of Seven Mile road. Hiking clockwise, I headed out under the power lines and met several off leash dogs followed by careless hikers. The trail was muddy, especially at the creek crossing. The creek was dry, but the muddy slope on the far side was a slippery climb. After a couple of miles, the sounds of the ORV park finally faded.
I rested for a bit on one of the three benches at the top. For the first time since I have been hiking this loop, the other two benches were also occupied.I passed more hikers, dogs and cyclists as I headed downhill. A fallen tree crossed the trail on my way down, but I easily climbed over it. There were more people as I passed near the trailhead at the north end of the loop. This trail was once a place of solitude for me, but that was not my experience today.
Turning south with the trail, I crossed Deep Creek which was dry today, and climbed the rough trail out of the canyon. I saw two horses with riders on the far side of the canyon. The trail was in relatively good condition, although it was muddy at times. The lower crossing of Seven Mile road is still unmarked, even though the rest of the trail features new trail signs. I hung my hammock about a half mile into the woods for a rest, watching cyclists race by me as I hung out.
I took an unmarked cross trail up the hill to meet Trail 25 again near the noisy ORV park. By late afternoon, activity there had slowed, and it was quieter. I followed trail on the contour of the bluff edge back to my car. It was a good 10 mile hike, but solitude escaped me today.
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