Return to Trail Creek

When we met the couple at the parking lot, horse corral, restroom stop on Trail Creek Road Sunday, we had been planning to hike further up the road past the gate.  

After talking for about 20 minutes, though, we realized we'd better head home for Willie's Mother's Day dinner.

So, yesterday----a relatively cool day where most of the work around the place had been completed, we decided to go back to the parking lot and take off on that hike. 

It turned out to be one of the more enjoyable hikes I've taken for a long time.  We walked 5-plus miles on a road with a soft, cushiony surface.  

Though most of the trip up the road was up, up and more up, it didn't seem too bad because of the surface and the fact that we didn't have to watch every step taken for fear of stumbling. 

And, the cool air helped. 

We took a side road leading to a bridge over the North Fork of Grouse Creek and then continued up the Trail Creek Road. 

Most of the route goes through a shaded area with lots of pretty park-like settings below and neat huge, mossy rock masses on the upper side. 

We finally reached an opening which gave us some great views of Bald Eagle Mountain and, of course, the Selkirks.  The lighting wasn't the greatest for photos, but the openness did provide us another treat.

This bull moose, with nubbins soon to grow into antlers, was feeding on some bushes just up the road from us. 

We walked a little closer, and it was still unaware of our presence.  Suddenly, though, a signal must have alerted the big animal as it quit eating and began trotting up the road, stopping once to look back at us. 

Both of us kept checking our Fitbits and deciding we weren't gonna have heart attacks with all that uphill climbing.  The route turned out generous in the stair calculations, giving me 91 for the day by the time we returned to the pickup.  

At that point, I remembered out loud to Bill another hike back in August to Strawberry Mountain where my body screamed all the way down the mountain, into the darkness and the later into the wet, slippery route across Grouse Creek.  

During the descent off Strawberry Mountain on that warm August day, I fought continuous leg cramps every step of the way and even into the night after collapsing into bed.

Yesterday's ending was much more pleasant, and happily not one cramp reared its ugly head on the hike or during the night.  Plus, we arrived home in time for Bill to watch Felix win another game while pitching against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. 

I'll take those old logging roads any day over the narrow, winding, rocky, precarious trails which do offer scenic rewards but plenty of payback in treacherous walking situations---at least for old ladies like me. 

Anyway, mission accomplished----we went up a new road for me and one which Bill hadn't traveled for about five years.  

And, Don Swanstrom, he's pretty sure he knows where to go see those falls, so on another hike, we'll have to go do that.  Thanks for the tip. 

Happy Tuesday.