Date Hiked: August 17, 2015
General Condition: Clear (no obstacles and tread well defined)
Trail is mostly clear of poison oak from trailhead to redwood grove (approx. 2 mi.). Some trail work has been done between the redwood grove and Espinosa Camp (3.5 mi.), but this section still has some poison oak. Long pants and clippers advised past Espinosa Camp. No washouts. Ticks may be active. Water may be available a quarter mile past Espinosa Camp at a year round creek.
Kirk Creek Trail (Highway One to Vicente Flat Camp)
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christoph28
- Posts: 10
- Joined: Wed Jan 28, 2015 12:05 pm
Re: Vicente Flat Trail (Girard Trail, Kirk Creek Trail)
Date Hiked: August 8, 2015
General Condition: Clear (no obstacles and tread well defined)
We hiked this trail from Kirk Creek Campground to Cone Peak Road. The trail is in great condition with no deadfalls and minimal encroaching brush, making for nice hiking. There is a small stream trickling across the trail a bit past 3 miles in, and then more flowing water shortly after Vicente Flat camp. We were later told 26 people camped in Vicente Flat camp Saturday night.
General Condition: Clear (no obstacles and tread well defined)
We hiked this trail from Kirk Creek Campground to Cone Peak Road. The trail is in great condition with no deadfalls and minimal encroaching brush, making for nice hiking. There is a small stream trickling across the trail a bit past 3 miles in, and then more flowing water shortly after Vicente Flat camp. We were later told 26 people camped in Vicente Flat camp Saturday night.
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trail_guy
Re: Vicente Flat Trail (Girard Trail, Kirk Creek Trail)
Date Hiked: June 4, 2015
General Condition: Clear (no obstacles and tread well defined)
Trail is mostly clear of poison oak from trailhead to redwood grove (approx. 2 mi.). Some trail work has been done between the redwood grove and Espinosa Camp (3.5 mi.), but this section still has some poison oak. Long pants and clippers advised past Espinosa Camp. No washouts. Ticks are active, so check your clothes as you hike. Water may be available a quarter mile past Espinosa Camp at a year round creek.
General Condition: Clear (no obstacles and tread well defined)
Trail is mostly clear of poison oak from trailhead to redwood grove (approx. 2 mi.). Some trail work has been done between the redwood grove and Espinosa Camp (3.5 mi.), but this section still has some poison oak. Long pants and clippers advised past Espinosa Camp. No washouts. Ticks are active, so check your clothes as you hike. Water may be available a quarter mile past Espinosa Camp at a year round creek.
Re: Vicente Flat Trail (Girard Trail, Kirk Creek Trail)
Date Hiked: May 24, 2015
General Condition: Wilderness Freeway (Heavily used and well maintained)
Dates: 24 May 2015
Hiked Vicente Trail from Kirk Creek campground to Vicente Flat camp
Observations:
Kirk creek campground is infested by a gang of fearless raccoons. If you stay there bring a slingshot and your own ammo. We ran out of throwing rocks. All of our food, toothpaste, etc was hung safely in a tree. That did not prevent one from ripping a large hole in the netting of my friend's tent 6" from her face. It then started to pull out a sack containing only dirty clothes. She fought with it and played tug of war with the sack. It did not leave until the light was turned on and it's paw was smashed. The next two hours were spent chasing them away with rocks and trekking poles. They would casually move just out of reach and come right back looking in your face. There were at least a dozen. They opened our neighbor's Yeti cooler which had heavy duty latches. They were all over the picnic tables. They never left. We finally went back to bed and hoped for the best. They were constantly coming within a foot of the tents, cooing and screeching. The sack was a clean plastic grocery bag. They may have learned to associate those sacks with food so if you use them, keep them out of sight.
Vicente Trail: Wilderness Freeway.
Poison oak is hanging over the trail in hundreds of places but it is easily avoidable if you are very mindful.
Water is flowing at mile 3.4 near Espinoza. Also plenty of water in Hare Creek at Vicente Flat.
General Condition: Wilderness Freeway (Heavily used and well maintained)
Dates: 24 May 2015
Hiked Vicente Trail from Kirk Creek campground to Vicente Flat camp
Observations:
Kirk creek campground is infested by a gang of fearless raccoons. If you stay there bring a slingshot and your own ammo. We ran out of throwing rocks. All of our food, toothpaste, etc was hung safely in a tree. That did not prevent one from ripping a large hole in the netting of my friend's tent 6" from her face. It then started to pull out a sack containing only dirty clothes. She fought with it and played tug of war with the sack. It did not leave until the light was turned on and it's paw was smashed. The next two hours were spent chasing them away with rocks and trekking poles. They would casually move just out of reach and come right back looking in your face. There were at least a dozen. They opened our neighbor's Yeti cooler which had heavy duty latches. They were all over the picnic tables. They never left. We finally went back to bed and hoped for the best. They were constantly coming within a foot of the tents, cooing and screeching. The sack was a clean plastic grocery bag. They may have learned to associate those sacks with food so if you use them, keep them out of sight.
Vicente Trail: Wilderness Freeway.
Poison oak is hanging over the trail in hundreds of places but it is easily avoidable if you are very mindful.
Water is flowing at mile 3.4 near Espinoza. Also plenty of water in Hare Creek at Vicente Flat.
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oaktown_joe
- Posts: 3
- Joined: Fri May 08, 2015 9:48 am
Vicente Flat Trail
Date Hiked: April 29, 2015
General Condition: Clear (no obstacles and tread well defined)
I ran & hiked Vicente Flat trail for 6.5 miles, then turned around, for a total 13 mile trip. First time I've been on this trail. Took off around 11:30am from trailhead, and returned 4 hours later.
Beginning was clear w/ great views. For me it was just enough of an incline that I could mostly run uphill, though I took breaks & walked in spots. The brush does reach in to the trail, and since I was wearing shorts I was worried about poison oak, but I came out unscathed.
A short time before I reached Vicente Flat camp, about 5 miles in, the air became thick with mosquitoes. It was extremely unpleasant, and I wouldn't want to camp there under such conditions. However, based on lori's May 2 report, I guess it isn't always like this. After Vicente Flat camp the trail is steep uphill, and slow going. There is water flowing in a creek a bit past the camp. For about a solid mile I was trudging uphill, with a swarm of bugs constantly in my face. It started to clear out a bit around the 6 mile mark.
My intention was to get to Cone Peak Road at the 7.5 mile mark, and then turn around. But at the 6.5 mile mark I saw movement in the brush a few feet away from me, and heard the unmistakable sound of an angry rattlesnake. I couldn't see the snake and didn't relish the idea of passing its territory twice just to get to Cone Peak—plus, the trail had become un-runnable, and the insects were bad, so I decided that was my turnaround point. The rattle continued for several minutes while I backed away, waited, and ultimately left the area.
On a Wednesday I had the trail almost to myself; for 3.5 hrs of my 4 hr jaunt, I saw only one other party. In the last 30 minutes as I approached the trailhead at Hwy 1 in the afternoon, I saw a few more people.
Overall, great trail, though next time I would just run maybe up the hill to Vicente Camp, or less, then turn around.
General Condition: Clear (no obstacles and tread well defined)
I ran & hiked Vicente Flat trail for 6.5 miles, then turned around, for a total 13 mile trip. First time I've been on this trail. Took off around 11:30am from trailhead, and returned 4 hours later.
Beginning was clear w/ great views. For me it was just enough of an incline that I could mostly run uphill, though I took breaks & walked in spots. The brush does reach in to the trail, and since I was wearing shorts I was worried about poison oak, but I came out unscathed.
A short time before I reached Vicente Flat camp, about 5 miles in, the air became thick with mosquitoes. It was extremely unpleasant, and I wouldn't want to camp there under such conditions. However, based on lori's May 2 report, I guess it isn't always like this. After Vicente Flat camp the trail is steep uphill, and slow going. There is water flowing in a creek a bit past the camp. For about a solid mile I was trudging uphill, with a swarm of bugs constantly in my face. It started to clear out a bit around the 6 mile mark.
My intention was to get to Cone Peak Road at the 7.5 mile mark, and then turn around. But at the 6.5 mile mark I saw movement in the brush a few feet away from me, and heard the unmistakable sound of an angry rattlesnake. I couldn't see the snake and didn't relish the idea of passing its territory twice just to get to Cone Peak—plus, the trail had become un-runnable, and the insects were bad, so I decided that was my turnaround point. The rattle continued for several minutes while I backed away, waited, and ultimately left the area.
On a Wednesday I had the trail almost to myself; for 3.5 hrs of my 4 hr jaunt, I saw only one other party. In the last 30 minutes as I approached the trailhead at Hwy 1 in the afternoon, I saw a few more people.
Overall, great trail, though next time I would just run maybe up the hill to Vicente Camp, or less, then turn around.
Vicente Flat Trail (Girard Trail, Kirk Creek Trail)
Date Hiked: May 3, 2015
General Condition: Wilderness Freeway (Heavily used and well maintained)
All trees that were on the trail between Highway 1 and Vicente Flat Camp as of May 3 have been removed. Also that large branch that had fallen and blocked the very start of the Stone Ridge Trail out of Vicente Flat Camp.
General Condition: Wilderness Freeway (Heavily used and well maintained)
All trees that were on the trail between Highway 1 and Vicente Flat Camp as of May 3 have been removed. Also that large branch that had fallen and blocked the very start of the Stone Ridge Trail out of Vicente Flat Camp.
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erik
Re: Vicente Flat Trail (Girard Trail, Kirk Creek Trail)
Date Hiked: April 25, 2015
General Condition: Wilderness Freeway (Heavily used and well maintained)
Wow! this trail was super clear! We encountered one easily passed dead fall, and there was definitely a lot of brush growing up into the trail, but I had no trouble finding the tread at any point, was able to avoid Poison Oak relatively easily, and I didn't get a single tick. I didn't do the rest of the stone ridge trail this time, but last time I did (a year ago) the conditions were excellent. If you're considering going from Kirk Creek to Cone Peak, now might be the best time to do it.
General Condition: Wilderness Freeway (Heavily used and well maintained)
Wow! this trail was super clear! We encountered one easily passed dead fall, and there was definitely a lot of brush growing up into the trail, but I had no trouble finding the tread at any point, was able to avoid Poison Oak relatively easily, and I didn't get a single tick. I didn't do the rest of the stone ridge trail this time, but last time I did (a year ago) the conditions were excellent. If you're considering going from Kirk Creek to Cone Peak, now might be the best time to do it.
Re: Vicente Flat Trail (Girard Trail, Kirk Creek Trail)
Date Hiked: May 2, 2015
General Condition: Clear (no obstacles and tread well defined)
We went up as a last minute thing. There are downed trees but we passed a small crew of folks with saws as they were going in. Thanks trail crew!
No mosquitoes. We camped in the small meadow up the canyon from the main grove. Saw one buzzing around the screen door of the tent, but no bites.
Very popular place for a good reason. It was nice out, perfect time of year, and cloud cover/marine layer kept us from baking on the exposed parts of the trail.
No water next to campsites, but a short hike up the canyon to where the two small streams meet got us a short stretch of flowing water that returns to underground in a hundred feet or so.
General Condition: Clear (no obstacles and tread well defined)
We went up as a last minute thing. There are downed trees but we passed a small crew of folks with saws as they were going in. Thanks trail crew!
No mosquitoes. We camped in the small meadow up the canyon from the main grove. Saw one buzzing around the screen door of the tent, but no bites.
Very popular place for a good reason. It was nice out, perfect time of year, and cloud cover/marine layer kept us from baking on the exposed parts of the trail.
No water next to campsites, but a short hike up the canyon to where the two small streams meet got us a short stretch of flowing water that returns to underground in a hundred feet or so.
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Coral
Re: Vicente Flat Trail (Girard Trail, Kirk Creek Trail)
Date Hiked: April 18, 2015
General Condition: Wilderness Freeway (Heavily used and well maintained)
My boyfriend and I hiked this trail beginning from Kirk Creek Campground to Vicente Flat. The trail is in great condition. We encountered two fallen trees, one large, the other quite small, but neither were much of an obstacle. There is definitely brush encroaching on the trail, but it is not bothersome. It's beautiful! Also, the views are breathtaking!
We encountered A LOT of poison oak, but it does not come up very high in most places, so long pants will keep you protected from it. We didn't see any ticks on day one, despite the coastal brush, but I did find a black tick crawling on my clothes after getting back to the car on day two. The trail is hot and uphill a lot of the way, so definitely bring a good amount of water.
The hike to Vicente Flat took us 2 hours flat - but we were clipping along quite quickly. We passed a few hikers ahead of us and made it to Vicente Flat a good while before they arrived.
The Vicente Flat camp is absolutely stunning -it's perfectly nestled into the redwoods. There are a good number of campsites, some with fire pits already built up and left from their last visitors (I checked and campfires are allowed this time of year with a permit). There are also a few campsites up from here in a clearing that looked quite nice. The stream is about 1/4 mile from the camp as well. There was a nice amount of other campers there (maybe 4-5 other groups), not at all crowded, but enough people that it felt a little comforting to know there were other groups nearby.
We did encounter a ton of mosquitoes at the camp, however. I would recommend bug spray, candles, anything. They were pretty bothersome but mostly subsided once we got the fire started.
We did the hike back in a little under 2 hours. Because a lot of it is downhill and requires some caution, we didn't go too much faster than the way in.
This was the perfect Big Sur hike, in my opinion - it provided so many diverse views of the area. Definitely recommended!
General Condition: Wilderness Freeway (Heavily used and well maintained)
My boyfriend and I hiked this trail beginning from Kirk Creek Campground to Vicente Flat. The trail is in great condition. We encountered two fallen trees, one large, the other quite small, but neither were much of an obstacle. There is definitely brush encroaching on the trail, but it is not bothersome. It's beautiful! Also, the views are breathtaking!
We encountered A LOT of poison oak, but it does not come up very high in most places, so long pants will keep you protected from it. We didn't see any ticks on day one, despite the coastal brush, but I did find a black tick crawling on my clothes after getting back to the car on day two. The trail is hot and uphill a lot of the way, so definitely bring a good amount of water.
The hike to Vicente Flat took us 2 hours flat - but we were clipping along quite quickly. We passed a few hikers ahead of us and made it to Vicente Flat a good while before they arrived.
The Vicente Flat camp is absolutely stunning -it's perfectly nestled into the redwoods. There are a good number of campsites, some with fire pits already built up and left from their last visitors (I checked and campfires are allowed this time of year with a permit). There are also a few campsites up from here in a clearing that looked quite nice. The stream is about 1/4 mile from the camp as well. There was a nice amount of other campers there (maybe 4-5 other groups), not at all crowded, but enough people that it felt a little comforting to know there were other groups nearby.
We did encounter a ton of mosquitoes at the camp, however. I would recommend bug spray, candles, anything. They were pretty bothersome but mostly subsided once we got the fire started.
We did the hike back in a little under 2 hours. Because a lot of it is downhill and requires some caution, we didn't go too much faster than the way in.
This was the perfect Big Sur hike, in my opinion - it provided so many diverse views of the area. Definitely recommended!
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C_Older
Re: Vicente Flat Trail (Girard Trail, Kirk Creek Trail)
Date Hiked: April 15, 2015
General Condition: Passable (some brush and/or deadfalls, tread evident)
Hiked Vicente Flat Trail from the highway to Vicente Flat. The trail is in good condition- easy to follow and few obstacles.
Lots of wildflowers blooming and lots of poison oak. The poison oak bordered maybe 20% of the trial occurring mostly in the shady north slopes or densely forested sections. A few strands of the poison oak are creeping onto the trail here and there, but most is avoidable, though long pants are still advised.
A small creek is trickling just north of Espinosa Camp and the Hare Canyon Creek at Vicente flat, though low and patchy, has flowing water to poke around for.
A large (~1m diameter) tree blocks the trail between Espinosa and Vicente Flat. The down slope edge of the trail has eroded away from people stepping out to get over the tree, making it more difficult to pass.
General Condition: Passable (some brush and/or deadfalls, tread evident)
Hiked Vicente Flat Trail from the highway to Vicente Flat. The trail is in good condition- easy to follow and few obstacles.
Lots of wildflowers blooming and lots of poison oak. The poison oak bordered maybe 20% of the trial occurring mostly in the shady north slopes or densely forested sections. A few strands of the poison oak are creeping onto the trail here and there, but most is avoidable, though long pants are still advised.
A small creek is trickling just north of Espinosa Camp and the Hare Canyon Creek at Vicente flat, though low and patchy, has flowing water to poke around for.
A large (~1m diameter) tree blocks the trail between Espinosa and Vicente Flat. The down slope edge of the trail has eroded away from people stepping out to get over the tree, making it more difficult to pass.