I took an unplanned visit to the Ashland Lakes trail and the first mile of the Bald Mountain trail early this morning. Forest road 4020 from the mountain loop highway is in relatively good shape. There are a number of potholes but drivable at lower speeds. The problem is that once you turn onto Forest road 4021 to Ashland Lakes trailhead, the road is in very poor shape. A truck or “real” SUV recommended. There are numerous large potholes, deep ruts, and very rough rocky stretches. It was raining for the last 24 hours so all the holes were awash with mud. Turn onto 4021 is not labeled so plan ahead for directions.
The first 1/2 mile of trail is in good shape. The trail follows an old logging road. The trail then switches to a narrower forest service hiker trail. It was VERY muddy and wet today. In fact this trail is always fairly wet. It is also one of the most slippery trails in the area. There are a large number of wooden puncheons to keep you out of the water but these are very slippery when wet. Worse, there was some snow on the tread boards on the Bare Mountain trail. Be careful on the older puncheons with red cedar decking. Many of these deck boards are partially broken and poorly secured to the stringer logs.
Our hiking party met another group coming down the trail about 0.5 miles up the Bare Mountain trail so we came back down together.
There were 6-8 trees down across the trail Most were easy to get around. I have coordinates and sizes if you want details Just reply through the comment feature.
Warning: There was heavy snow up on the Bare Mountain Ridge trail and heavy rain. A couple hikers were not prepared for the weather and had a Very Bad Day. It is still early season for the high country so plan accordingly and bring all of the 10 essentials.
Comments