New Chanterelle trail

Chris studying today's hike

Only seven Senior Trailblazers decided to stay on a local hike and not head up to the High Country, since the chance of rain had expanded to 80% in the area of our original destination. And with a long drive in order to walk in rain, we chose to explore an old favorite, the Chanterelle trail, which has recently been doubled in length. The extended trail only opened a week or so ago.

Map that shows the old and new trails

Chris and Rich both volunteered to work on this trail during the summer months, and I must say the trail is wonderfully engineered and cleared of all brush, with three new bridges installed as well. We hiked up the black line (from the P showing where we parked). The picture below shows the viewpoint today, with rain looking imminent.

Viewpoint

This viewpoint has been the final destination for hikers and bikers on the Chanterelle trail (2.4 miles), unless you wanted to walk up the service road. We've done that many times, but today, we took the red line to the new terminus of the trail, 2.6 miles, making the entire trip 5 miles one way.

The new trail

When we started our hike, it wasn't raining, but threatening to at any moment. After a short while, a few sprinkles gave us the impetus to stop and get our rain gear on, as well as our pack covers.

Al walking in the light rain

The temperature was cool, comfortable except when we would get a gust of wind, as we hiked up the pretty trail for the first time. As long as we were moving uphill, we stayed warm, even in the rain.

Our lunch spot

This is where the trail ends. It runs into the service road and is much more pleasant to navigate than the road. But it wasn't all that warm, once we stopped, and Chris is struggling to make her fingers work as she donned another layer before starting her lunch. We didn't stay too long, but it was much nicer once we got our extra clothing on, for all of us.

A section of the new trail

Then it was time to head back the way we had come. I saw this picture showing part of the brand new trail as we started back. I was just amazed at how much better this trail is than the road, and how well it has been constructed. Thank you, Chris and Rich, and all the others who made this happen.

Banana slug

We saw this bit of wildlife on our way back, a huge banana slug, which was moving quite quickly across the ground (for a slug, that is). I think it's rather pretty. They are native to the area, while the black ones are not. Our friend Peggy always moves them off the trail and out of harm's way.

Mushroom bouquet

We also saw this green mossy area with a fancy mushroom border. It was a nice thing to see on a trail named after a mushroom, although this is not a chanterelle. I've never seen one on this trail. Yet.

Sunshine!

And then, not long before we reached the cars, we saw the sun come out. It got brighter and more delightful as we made our way back the way we had come. I'm not sure how the other group fared, as they decided to go up to the High Country, even with the forecast. I do hope they had a day that was as pleasing as ours was. We covered ten miles and 2,300 feet up and down. I'm feeling tired but happy, with my knee even feeling pretty good. Yay!
:-)