Green Springs Mountain Loop Trail

May 1, 2016

We have hiked at various places in or around the Ashland area such as Grizzly Peak, Oredson Todd Woods, Lithia Creek, Ashland Meadows and Wagner Butte, but have never hiked trails near or around the Green Springs Summit.  So when our sister Karen wanted to join us for a hike, we decided to head for the Summit and try a new short loop trail called the Green Springs Mountain Loop.

A sign that says "it's time to hike".

 Although the Pacific Crest Trail has been around for some time, a few years ago a connector trail was added which connects two points of the PCT to form a loop.  Although only 2.9 miles long, the loop allows you the opportunity to hike the PCT and get a sampling of the beauty in this area.  It's also a great hike for the family.

A birdseye view of where we were and the loop trail

After taking a few short side roads from the summit on Highway 66, we arrived at the trailhead parking lot which has room for about 6 vehicles.  It was just a short walk down the road to where the Pacific Crest Trail comes across the road and heads north to start our hike.

The PCT quickly arrives at a "fork in the road" and you can hike the loop in either direction.  We decided to hike counter-clockwise and start with the connector trail and then hike the PCT south back to the starting point.

Blue skies and white puffy clouds - beautiful day for a hike!

The connector trail is a mere .75 miles but takes you through beautiful wooded areas where we saw Trilliums, Snow Queen and Yellow Violets along the trail.  We did have to cross a few down trees, but that is typical this early in the hiking season.  We also had to pass through one gate which was either to keep cows out or the hikers in - not sure which.

Katie leading the way through one of the meadows on the PCT

It didn't take long till we intersected with the PCT again.  You can continue north on the PCT from here and hike a couple of miles to Hyatt Lake, but for our hike we made a left hand turn and took the PCT south for about 2 miles till it met the connector trail intersection to complete the loop.

Mission Bells

Even though some parts were through wooded areas again, the trail does take you through a couple of meadows that allow you wonderful views of the surrounding mountains and Pilot Rock.  We saw a few more varieties of wildflowers in these meadows like Larkspur, Fawn Lilies, and Ballhead Waterleaf. We were even treated to a pair of Mission Bell flowers --  a sight we have seen very few times while hiking.

View of Pilot Rock

When our loop was completed, it was just a short hike down the road and back to our car.  Our hike lasted a mere 90 minutes but provided us with some wonderful views, beautiful woods and flowers, and whetted our appetite to return to the summit and hike the PCT to either Hyatt Lake (north) or Hobart Bluff (south).  Look for that posting in the near future.

Trekking Together
Glenn & Carol

Blue Grotto Canyon - Lewis Road Th @ Lost Creek Lake

April 18, 2016

Just a quick posting on our hike this past Monday.  There is a trail the circles Lost Creek Lake and is about 17 miles in length.  Along this route there are various trailheads which can be accessed for hikes of varying mileage. We started at the Lewis Road TH and hiked along the lake shore to a short side trail which leads up to the Blue Grotto Canyon and Falls. The falls though were a disappointment as there was very little water flowing into the canyon, which surprised both of us.

It was very very hot on Monday, but we enjoyed all the wildflowers and the beautiful views of the lake.  There was also poison oak lining the trail (literally) and we even had a half dozen or so ticks join us for the 4.8 mile roundtrip hike - but we eventually and happily parted ways with them.  Enjoy the pictures.

Trekking Together
Glenn & Carol
 

Cat's Ear

Paintbrush

Balsamroot

  

Elk Creek Trail - Homesteader TH

April 16, 2016

We have hiked the Elk Creek Trail a couple of times, always from the Yellow Rock TH.  So to change things up, we headed north (sort of) and started the Elk Creek Trail from the Homesteader's TH.  This trailhead is located just past the 8 mile post marker on Elk Creek Road.

Time for a hike!!

The trail itself is the old Elk Creek Road, which was to be under water when the dam was completed. Since that did not happen, that old road is now an almost 5 mile long trail along Elk Creek that features beautiful meadows, wildflowers, and of course views and side trails to Elk Creek.

The Elk Creek trail/road

The start of the trail from this TH took us through a previous fire burn area and with the clear blue sky for a background, provided some beautiful photos.

Fire burn area along.........

the start of the trail.

Once we came to a locked gate to keep motor vehicles off this trail, we took a left and followed a tire rut trail that eventually took us to the Seven Mile Bend area.  We highly recommend that you take this side trail when you hike here. 

Take this tire rut trail to the Seven Mile Bend area.

The Seven Mile Bend area features some small "beach" areas, a deep swimming hole (which Katie used), some beautiful cascades just upstream from the swimming area, and even a couple of "Pitcairn Cairns".  There are even trash cans available so you can pack in a lunch and spend a few hours enjoying the creek.

The swimming hole at Seven Mile Bend

Katie taking a dip in Elk Creek

Creek cascades just above the swimming hole area.

Pitcairn Cairn #1

Pitcairn Cairn #2

View of Elk Creek from another side trail

We continued hiking the tire rut trail which eventually took us back to the paved road trail.  Over the next few miles we saw various wildflowers, a couple of other hikers, enjoyed the beautiful and green meadows, and made one other side trail trip to the creek.  We did start our hike early today knowing that the forecasted heat would seem even hotter on the pavement. Never hike this trail on a hot day in the afternoon - unless your really like heat.

Beautiful green meadows!

If you get the chance to hike this trail just outside Shady Cove, we highly recommend trying it from the Homesteader's TH and taking the side trip to Seven Mile Bend like we did today.  It would be a very nice place for a lunch, reading a book and/or a swim  -- and of course hiking too.

Trekking Together
Glenn & Carol