by Jim Ringland on Thu Mar 05, 2020 2:31 pm
Date Hiked: March 3, 2020
General Condition: Clear (no obstacles and tread well defined)
I hiked from the South Coast Road down to the Lower Cruikshank Camp. Except for the slide area (read on), the trail is open. It is, however, a little too rocky in some spots (especially on a steep section just west of the junction with the Silver Peak use trail) and a little too narrow in others to warrant a Wilderness Freeway designation. Still no problem.
The slide area ¼ mile or so east of Silver Camp has four short (20 foot-ish) stretches that will slow the hiker down, but there’s nothing particularly difficult. The northern two of these have loose gravel above and below but good footing on the level, if narrow and gravelly, trail bed. The next involves some careful steps on exposed solid rock. There are good places to put your feet and I didn’t in any way feel unsafe, but you do have step in the right places. There’s not going to be wider, smoother trail in that spot until somebody brings in the dynamite. The final iffy stretch is probably the worst: a modestly angled trail bed across a gravel slide. It requires awareness, but I didn’t worry about the ground slipping out under my feet as I passed. The exposure is less here than on the earlier stretches too. The hillside slope isn’t quite as steep as at the others, and it is less far to bottom.
All the camps I passed were in good shape. Lion’s Den Camp has two areas, one up on a little rise with a partial view down the Salmon Creek drainage, a second closer to the trail, lower down, and more protected from wind. No tables. Fire rings and grills at both. The spring is flowing. Silver Camp is just an enclosed grill, a few logs, and a large flat area. The pipe spring is running. Upper Cruikshank Camp has a fire ring, grill, logs, a tree stump seat(!), and a new table. It’s just an opening in the trees. The water source is a small creek a few hundred feet below camp. It was running but not gushing. To avoid silt, I thought it best to put my water bottle in a spot where water was pouring over a little lip. Collecting a liter of water took maybe 10-15 seconds. Lower Cruikshank Camp is a dark, even gloomy, spot under redwoods with an old table, another tree-stump seat, but no obvious fire site. It has a very small stream for water. (While I didn’t go down, Villa Creek Camp is a half mile down the trail from Upper Cruikshank and, at least in 2017, was very nice.)
Not many flowers on this trail. I saw some Indian warrior about 5/8 mile below the Silver Peak Use trail junction. (There are several Santa Lucia firs in that general area too.) Some shooting stars a bit lower. No spring beauties (Claytonia exigua) which in past years were all over some of the rocky hillsides.
[b]Date Hiked:[/b] March 3, 2020
[b]General Condition:[/b] Clear (no obstacles and tread well defined)
I hiked from the South Coast Road down to the Lower Cruikshank Camp. Except for the slide area (read on), the trail is open. It is, however, a little too rocky in some spots (especially on a steep section just west of the junction with the Silver Peak use trail) and a little too narrow in others to warrant a Wilderness Freeway designation. Still no problem.
The slide area ¼ mile or so east of Silver Camp has four short (20 foot-ish) stretches that will slow the hiker down, but there’s nothing particularly difficult. The northern two of these have loose gravel above and below but good footing on the level, if narrow and gravelly, trail bed. The next involves some careful steps on exposed solid rock. There are good places to put your feet and I didn’t in any way feel unsafe, but you do have step in the right places. There’s not going to be wider, smoother trail in that spot until somebody brings in the dynamite. The final iffy stretch is probably the worst: a modestly angled trail bed across a gravel slide. It requires awareness, but I didn’t worry about the ground slipping out under my feet as I passed. The exposure is less here than on the earlier stretches too. The hillside slope isn’t quite as steep as at the others, and it is less far to bottom.
All the camps I passed were in good shape. Lion’s Den Camp has two areas, one up on a little rise with a partial view down the Salmon Creek drainage, a second closer to the trail, lower down, and more protected from wind. No tables. Fire rings and grills at both. The spring is flowing. Silver Camp is just an enclosed grill, a few logs, and a large flat area. The pipe spring is running. Upper Cruikshank Camp has a fire ring, grill, logs, a tree stump seat(!), and a new table. It’s just an opening in the trees. The water source is a small creek a few hundred feet below camp. It was running but not gushing. To avoid silt, I thought it best to put my water bottle in a spot where water was pouring over a little lip. Collecting a liter of water took maybe 10-15 seconds. Lower Cruikshank Camp is a dark, even gloomy, spot under redwoods with an old table, another tree-stump seat, but no obvious fire site. It has a very small stream for water. (While I didn’t go down, Villa Creek Camp is a half mile down the trail from Upper Cruikshank and, at least in 2017, was very nice.)
Not many flowers on this trail. I saw some Indian warrior about 5/8 mile below the Silver Peak Use trail junction. (There are several Santa Lucia firs in that general area too.) Some shooting stars a bit lower. No spring beauties (Claytonia exigua) which in past years were all over some of the rocky hillsides.
