Trip Report - Red Hills ACEC, 2/3/18

 

 

 

 

Hike day dawned unseasonably warm for early February.  The beautiful weather brought out a mob of 50-70 hikers to the trailhead!  After a brief orientation by Bureau of Land Management volunteer ranger Patrick Congdon, the crowd quickly separated into more intimate clumps of 5-10 hikers and dispersed along the trail.  We were a little early for the Red Hills’ claim-to-fame, the wildflowers.  Instead we appreciated the geologic features (serpentine rock, ultramafic soils, etc.) and plants which have adapted to this nutrient-deficient environment (Foothills pine, Buckbrush, etc).  While each group mayhave taken a slightly different route with varying hike lengths, we all started at the North Serpentine Road trailhead and walked along Horton Creek for a time.  Some traversed the hills to South Serpentine Road and looped back up to the starting point.  Some lingered on the Nature Trail studying the panels.  Some saw a fox!

Here's a link to the Bureau of Land Management's information page on the Red Hills ACEC:

https://www.blm.gov/visit/red-hills

TCT #2 -- Red Hills ACEC, Chinese Camp

Here's episode 2 of Tuolumne County Trailhead. The first Saturday of 2018 was rainy, but it didn't throw a wet blanket on the enthusiasm of 19 Trail Heads who walked the full 6 miles of Tuolumne's West Side Trail. We were treated to glistening, pearl-like water drops adorning red berries, hidden "historic" stencils, lots of rail, misty mountains, and friendly camaraderie. Hike for a cause -- we meet with Leslie Smith the organizer of the upcoming (2/25/18) "Dragoon Gulch Hike and Run" fundraiser for Sonora's iconic trail system. Finally, February takes us to the Red Hills Area of Critical Environmental Concern in Chinese Camp. Patrick Congdon, a volunteer ranger with the Bureau of Land Management, and Glen White, geologist and educator, share what's significant about this special landscape.

Trip Report - West Side Trail, 1/6/18

True to their new year’s resolutions or simply true outdoors-lovers, 19 Trail Heads convened on a rainy morning to walk the full 6-miles of the West Side Trail near Tuolumne.  A few friends set out early to leave cars at trail’s end.  It sprinkled most of the time we were out and poured by the time we were loading up in the cars to return to the trailhead.  Along the way we were treated to views of the moody, misty mountains of the North Fork Tuolumne River canyon.  We took time to treasure brush and berries glistening gem-like with raindrops.  We dodged dismantled railroad track and ties.

Here's a link to the Tuolumne County Transit Council's West Side Trail page:

https://www.tuolumnecountytransit.com/single-post/2016/03/29/Westside-Railroad-Trail


Here's a link to Patricia Harrelson's article in the "Sierra Lodestar" about the first TCT hike of 2018:
http://www.calaverasenterprise.com/sierra_lodestar/article_95d52916-fbde-11e7-b96b-834613bb570c.html

 

 

 

 

TCT #1 -- West Side Trail, Tuolumne

The first episode of Tuolumne County Trailhead ran in December. It introduced me, Wendy, your "hiking enabler," and the concept of the monthly hikes on first Saturdays in 2018. Peter Wisniewski, Stanislaus National Forest Archaeologist, discussed the West Side Trail in Tuolumne, our first hike. The West Side Trail is a rails-to-trails conversion with a gentle grade originally intended for logging trains. It's about 6 miles long and is accessible year-round, though it's a must-do hike in the spring for its profusion of wildflowers, especially the pungent Bush Lupine.

Hello, Trail Heads!

Welcome to the Tuolumne County Trailhead blog! The blog is a companion to the Tuolumne County Trailhead radio program on Sonora CA's community radio station, KAAD-LP 103.5 FM which streams at kaad-lp.org (link via "Links We Love" to the right). The show is on 2nd & 4th Sundays at 12:30pm, and the hikes are on 1st Saturdays. I'm your host Wendy Hesse. While I like talking about hiking, I really like actually hiking. The talking portion of TCT features soundbite reviews from Trail Heads on the previous hike and an interview with someone knowledgeable about the history and/or natural features of the upcoming hike. Rangers or other experts will be joining us on the trail to offer interpretation or other real-time observations. Give us a listen then ... "meet us at the trailhead!"