We got to the parking lot around 12:15 and there were quite a few spots still available in the parking lot. The signs at the gate said the gates open at 8 in the morning and close at 5 in the evening. The bathrooms were in good shape with toilet paper.
The trails near the beach were in good shape. We headed into the forest, north of the parking lot. We basically did a large lollipop loop, going counterclockwise. The "handle" of the lollipop was in good shape, where the trail is graveled. Where the trail is dirt and we were climbing, especially where it was steep, the trail was pretty messy, really muddy and mushy.
There was one small stream we had to jump over on the far side of the loop — as a short person, I had to take a small running start to jump over it. The way back down on the other side of the loop was much nicer since it was also graveled, though relatively steep in some places.
When we returned to the parking lot around 1:30, even more spots had opened up. We suspect the rain and gloom kept most folks home today.
It was a really nice hike in the city today, with some decently steep climbing in places. A lovely gloomy forest and beach day!
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