10-10-10 FP District HQ

This was different. I expected a pristine path through the woods, being as we walked at the HQ facility, but it turned out a little different. I mostly selected this location because it was warm today, and I was still a little sore from yesterday's hike, so I figured this would be a relatively easy and short hike.

As the route I drew on the trail map shows, we went a little off trail. I took the mowed trail that starts by the outhouse.

There is a set of stone steps behind this sign you can't see in the picture.

Dog poop bags provided. This is the only FP that I have run across them. Maybe because it is their HQ they want to keep it a little cleaner.

The stone steps that go down the hill behind the big sign.

We went down this mowed path that starts by the outhouse instead.

A pond at the bottom of the hill.

The trail gets pretty poorly maintained as we walk by the pond. In many places it was hard to tell where the trail was and at some point I lost the trail entirely, assuming this is the trail. I never saw a trail marker.

It's pretty open so other than typical forest debris it's not hard to go pretty much where you want to. I just went in the general direction the map showed toward the river when the trail petered out.

There is sort of a trail along the river, so I figured we had picked it up again. No markers though. Lots of debris that we had to walk around. A few old tires, barrels, and other litter, but mostly forest type debris.

This sure looks like a trail.

Sort of.

The river bank is like this in a lot of places. We were  maybe 10 feet from the river bank. But not many places where there is actual access to the water.

Detour. But look closely behind the fallen tree. There is a picnic table along the shore line, making me think it really is the trail. Or maybe it is for people on the river to pull over for a quick bite or a rest. It is about the most oddly located picnic table I have ever run across though.

We found this spot where there was access to the water. Wilma sniffed the river but refused to drink from it or play in it. A very discerning beagle.

Another detour. About this time I figured I had lost the trail completely, if I was ever on it. But with the river as a guide, and as open as the woods is there, it's real hard to get lost. Even if you are not real sure where the trail actually is.

We emerge from the woods along the river at the far north edge of the FP along the river and find this field. At first I thought this building was part of the FP HQ complex, but I eventually decided it is a private residence. I never saw any property line markers indicating the FP property ended until I walked along the property line for maybe 100 yards. So we went back and re-entered the woods after consulting the map and followed the property line markers inside the woods

We find what appears to be a trail again.

A boardwalk out in the woods. A bit ramshackle looking. Maybe the area is waterlogged at certain times of the year. I saw no evidence that anyone had been in this area in quite some time. No foot prints, and the trail (if I was ever on it) appears to have very sparse use.

But we walked on it. It is sturdy, if uneven, and a few boards have popped their nails.

A short dirt trail at the end of the boardwalk leads to the stone steps.

We start on the bike path.

No idea who Polly Berg is. Probably some local politico.

I guess they are real serious about dogs in this FP. There were a bunch of these signs up.

A nice view of the quarry lake.

No fishing, but a path that leads to the north side of the quarry.

It's pretty much a sheer wall with maybe 50 to 100 foot drop offs all the way around the quarry.

Some kind of unofficial path I guess.

Benches are conveniently located along the bike path.

No fishing, no camping, no swimming. The sheerness of the walls and the height make it unsafe to get close enough to fish, so I can understand why they don't permit fishing there.

I can't say I have ever seen a sign like this on FP properties anywhere else.

I estimate about 1.75 miles total, but it took us an hour and 15 minutes. The bike path is a normal bike path with some nice views of the quarry, but the woods is a neat walk. Lots of forest debris, and pretty muddy, even where there was a trail. I am still not real sure if we ever were on the official trail at all. But there was never any danger of getting lost, and it was kind of neat exploring. Despite the short length of the hike, and the small area, the wooded area there is a bit of a gem.