After hiking in the snow on the mountain yesterday, my dog and I headed for lower elevations and clear trails. We parked at Bowl and Pitcher, braving the swinging bridge across the river to the myriad trails on the other side. I don’t mind the bridge at all, but Shadow doesn’t like walking on things that move under her feet. After many visits, she no longer needs coaxing the cross the bridge, but she still cowers all the way across.
We turned left, or south on trail 25 today, rambling along the river, admiring the chutzpah of three kayakers out for a December paddle. The trail was rocky or damp, but not so wet as to be walking in puddles. We passed the horse corrals and the camp, then crossed the Centennial Trail before climbing the bluff in stages. Some day I will explore the old railroad grade which was a brief piece of this hike. We continued up and down hills and through the larch grove which was carpeted with faded gold needles.
December days are short, so we turned toward the river on Trail 10 which connects with Trail 25 by the river to form a complete loop. From the parking lot, our total hike was just under 9 miles. We missed the rain, but the air was damp rather than crisp. I saw the same bike rider twice, and maybe a half dozen other hikers once I was past the bridge. For a location so close to town, there was abundant solitude today.
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