Gorge Creek Trail Trail hike on 26-Oct-2024

Six of us enjoyed a lovely hiking trail, new to all of us, and not done by Ramblers since 2007. The trail was in good shape, and follows scenic Gorge Creek with its rocky cliffs. There are lots of mild ups and downs, with great views of Bluerock Mountain at many points along the trail. There was about 2 inches of soft snow on the trail where it went through the trees, but generally bare ground in the open areas. Few people (or horses) had taken the trail since last Monday's snowfall so icers weren't needed. Temperature at the start of our hike (around 10am) was 3, but warmed up to 13 by the end at 3:30, so some parts of the trail were muddy on the return trip.

We made our turnaround point at the first creek crossing at the 5.5km mark, where we had lunch on a sunny slope with Bluerock as a backdrop and the partially frozen creek in front of us. Daffern's trip description indicates there are at least 5 places where the creek needs to be crossed if you do the loop. We did check out this first creek crossing….Bin (a brand-new member on his first Ramblers' hike) found a good crossing spot on rocks; Christine and I also crossed at that point to ensure even those of us with short legs could do it and retain dry boots! A couple of us hope to come here again and try to do the full loop to know more about it for future Rambler trips.

Our trip was approximately 11km and 300m elevation gain with all the ups and downs. This version of the hike is an excellent, easy hike for the shoulder season, with frozen ground being an asset. It is beyond the winter gate, so unfortunately isn't an option between Dec. 1 and May 14.

Thanks to: Christine, Mohsen, Enrique, Keith, and new member Bin for joining me, Barb, on this hike.