Date Hiked: December 7, 2024
General Condition: Passable (some brush and/or deadfalls, tread evident)
"The Cook-Carrizo connector is underneath the sugar pines, so it is not a section conducive to rapid brush growth." It is still more of a forest path than a trail. The junction with the Carrizo Trail is marked by a wooden post, and currently, there's also some orange flagging. The tread is faint but followable as it traverses the hillside. A restacked rock cairn marks the junction with the Cooks Spring Trail, where an enormous blow bridges the trail. Flow at Cooks Spring is slow, but water flows at the southern headwaters of the Arroyo Seco. Also made famous in Steinbeck's "To A God Unknown."
Cook Carrizo Connector
Re: Cook Carrizo Connector
Date Hiked: May 24, 2024
General Condition: Passable (some brush and/or deadfalls, tread evident)
Backpacked up from Memorial Park via the Carrizo Trail to get water and camp at Cook Spring. Someone had placed logs across the junction indicating that this was the wrong way to go. Indeed, hikers headed southbound on the NCRT towards Cone Peak will want to take the switchback up/left... But for Cook Spring and destinations north on the NCRT, this Connector is the correct trail to take. We rearranged the visual cues to make the junction clear. A faint tread continues on contour and mostly obstacle-free through tall pines and lupine ~0.25 mi to join the old fire road, then another ~0.25 mi to Cook Spring, which was flowing at about 1 liter per 2-3 minutes.
General Condition: Passable (some brush and/or deadfalls, tread evident)
Backpacked up from Memorial Park via the Carrizo Trail to get water and camp at Cook Spring. Someone had placed logs across the junction indicating that this was the wrong way to go. Indeed, hikers headed southbound on the NCRT towards Cone Peak will want to take the switchback up/left... But for Cook Spring and destinations north on the NCRT, this Connector is the correct trail to take. We rearranged the visual cues to make the junction clear. A faint tread continues on contour and mostly obstacle-free through tall pines and lupine ~0.25 mi to join the old fire road, then another ~0.25 mi to Cook Spring, which was flowing at about 1 liter per 2-3 minutes.
-
Jim Ringland
- Posts: 149
- Joined: Sat May 07, 2011 12:02 pm
- Location: Oakland, CA
Re: Cook Carrizo Connector
Date Hiked: May 11, 2023
General Condition: Difficult (brushy and/or many deadfalls, faint tread)
I hiked this several times: from the Carrizo Trail to the Cook Springs area on the 11th, back and forth while day hiking on the 12th, and out on the 13th.
This always was more of path than a real trail, even when it was put in a bit over a decade ago. The steep loose hillside is slowly reclaiming it. I got off trail a couple of times – even the fourth time through! – and had to check my GPS to re-find the thin tread. In places, the tread is clearly visible but canted almost to match the neighboring hillside, making for difficult footing. It’s broken down in a few places too. The good news is that except for an occasional branch or isolated shrub, there are no obstacles. It's all quite open. Even if off trail, the way will not be blocked, although the footing may be iffy.
Immediately before the junction with the Cook Spring Camp Trail, a stream has washed out the trail. It’s a very loose slope down and back up. Crossing is do-able, but it’s a scramble. Going down, sliding is unavoidable. Going up, one looks for branches and bushes to grab. I fear on each crossing I did more damage. I tried it in various routes. I even tried going above the washout, but all that does is exchange one piece of steep loose slope for another.
On the Cook Spring Camp Trail, the junction is right where a big sugar pine has come down. The remains of the old cairn marking the junction are on the downhill side of the deadfall. Going southbound, to work the washout, I found it easier to start from the uphill side of that deadfall. Going northbound, maybe the high detour or coming up south of the deadfall makes for the easier crossing of the washout ... maybe.
General Condition: Difficult (brushy and/or many deadfalls, faint tread)
I hiked this several times: from the Carrizo Trail to the Cook Springs area on the 11th, back and forth while day hiking on the 12th, and out on the 13th.
This always was more of path than a real trail, even when it was put in a bit over a decade ago. The steep loose hillside is slowly reclaiming it. I got off trail a couple of times – even the fourth time through! – and had to check my GPS to re-find the thin tread. In places, the tread is clearly visible but canted almost to match the neighboring hillside, making for difficult footing. It’s broken down in a few places too. The good news is that except for an occasional branch or isolated shrub, there are no obstacles. It's all quite open. Even if off trail, the way will not be blocked, although the footing may be iffy.
Immediately before the junction with the Cook Spring Camp Trail, a stream has washed out the trail. It’s a very loose slope down and back up. Crossing is do-able, but it’s a scramble. Going down, sliding is unavoidable. Going up, one looks for branches and bushes to grab. I fear on each crossing I did more damage. I tried it in various routes. I even tried going above the washout, but all that does is exchange one piece of steep loose slope for another.
On the Cook Spring Camp Trail, the junction is right where a big sugar pine has come down. The remains of the old cairn marking the junction are on the downhill side of the deadfall. Going southbound, to work the washout, I found it easier to start from the uphill side of that deadfall. Going northbound, maybe the high detour or coming up south of the deadfall makes for the easier crossing of the washout ... maybe.
Re: Cook Carrizo Connector
Date Hiked: December 10, 2017
General Condition: Clear (no obstacles and tread well defined)
The Cook-Carrizo connector is underneath the sugar pines so it is not a section conducive to rapid brush growth but it was recently brushed so any brush has been cleared. The junction with the Carrizo Trail is marked by a wooden post and currently there's also some orange flagging. The tread is faint but followable as it traverses the hillside. The junction with the Cooks Spring Trail is marked by a rock cairn. Flow at Cooks Spring is slow (20 oz takes about a minute).
General Condition: Clear (no obstacles and tread well defined)
The Cook-Carrizo connector is underneath the sugar pines so it is not a section conducive to rapid brush growth but it was recently brushed so any brush has been cleared. The junction with the Carrizo Trail is marked by a wooden post and currently there's also some orange flagging. The tread is faint but followable as it traverses the hillside. The junction with the Cooks Spring Trail is marked by a rock cairn. Flow at Cooks Spring is slow (20 oz takes about a minute).
Cook Carrizo Connector
Submit reports for the Cook Carrizo Connector here.
