The trails here have all been cleared of windfall now. We did a counterclockwise loop up the Cougar Access Trail, over Marshall's Hill and down the Terrace Trail.
The Cougar Access Trail traverses private property for most of it's course. This is a bootleg trail that runs just below the cliffs of De Leo Wall . The private parcels are in a very natural state currently and they just blends right in with the publicly owned land on Cougar Mountain. I know that the owners of these parcels have been interested in developing their properties for years but have not been able to get the City of Newcastle to allow it due to access issues from May Valley Rd. At least one of the private parcels has been recently surveyed so there may be a move underway to develop? I hope not. These parcels would make a wonderful extension of Cougar Mtn park.
There was a freshly cut windfall on Marshall's Hill that gave me an opportunity to count rings. It was about 3 feet in diameter at the base. I've always wondered how old these beautiful fir trees were. Now I know... about 150 years.
If you want more details on property ownership then click on the King Co Parcel Viewer link below. Try using the basemap "OpenStreetMap" to get an overlay of the existing trails.
Comments
Maddy on Terrace Trail - Newcastle, Marshall's Hill
I contacted the city manager at the City of Newcastle and indeed an application for development has been submitted by one of the private parcel owners. The application was apparently incomplete so I was not able to get any detailed information yet.
Posted by:
Maddy on Dec 15, 2024 08:46 AM