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| Hiking | 8.94 Miles |
1,505 AEG |
| | Hiking | 8.94 Miles | 3 Hrs 55 Mns | | 2.29 mph |
| 1,505 ft AEG | 1 Min Break | | | |
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| no partners | | My original plan was to do this trail as an out and back, but I called an audible and changed plans in the middle of the hike.
I started from the Lower Miller Canyon TH and headed north on the Perimeter Trail. very soon I saw a doe and once I got higher on the trail I could get better views and see that there 2 of them. I also noticed several unmapped trails that intersect the Perimeter Trail and are visible throughout the area.
The Perimeter really didn't impress me at all. It's rocky enough to slow me down, and while it's not steep, it's not really level either, with constant gradual up and down grades. It's also weaves in and out of the drainages and is below the grade break on the hill so the best views of the mountains are mostly not visible.
Just short of the end of the trail there is a signed junction with the Carr Nature Trail. At the Carr TH, I walked over to the kiosk and saw a description of a loop to do with the Clark Spring Trail. this involved hiking 1.2 miles on the Carr Canyon Road, and it was about 1.5 miles longer than an out and back on Perimeter, but these seemed like very acceptable tradeoffs.
The Carr Nature Trail takes you through the Carr Ruins and past the Carr House, which is now a ranger office. It seems like the ruins were some kind of compound related to the Carr House, but I couldn't find much info online about this. Very interesting area, though.
Took the road and climbed several hundred feet to the Clark Spring Trail and took that south to the upper Miller Canyon TH. This trail is much smoother and easier to hike than Perimeter, and the views are much better. There is an alternate trail you can take halfway in called the John Cooper Trail, which is for bikers to keep out of the wilderness area. It adds a half mile to the loop and seems to have some steep grades, so I skipped that.
The hounds were still braying at Baskerville Manor as I passed through the upper Miller Canyon TH and then headed down the lower Miller Canyon Trail, which parallels the road. It's much shadier on that trail on this loop and also very easy to hike. The running stream alongside in some spots is a nice bonus.
Even with the extra 1.5 miles, I made the same time I would have made coming back along the Perimeter Trail. Very glad I decided to make this mid hike change and explore more of this area and make my day hike much better. |
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