Tom and John were the only hikers to show up for Saturday's hike. The threat of rain was probably the main reason for this. As it turned out, no rain materialized on the hike.
We departed the trail-head at approximately 9am on our 9 mile 8 hour hike. The temperature was in the low 40's. The ascent on the Upper Loop trail was uneventful though strenuous. The trail was challenging. The trail was wet from recent rains and covered with leaves. This made the ascent slow and we continued on the upper part of the loop to the stairs going up to the upper rim part of the trail. On the hike to the stairs we crossed several creeks and passed several nicely flowing waterfalls. The overlook didn't offer much of a view on the inward part of the hike. We also traversed along a bluff where the trail was rocky and in some sections only 6 to 12 inches wide. We overshot the stairs going up because the blaze which would have alerted us to the direction change, was missing. This was the 2nd time I missed the stairs, which indicates I am at least consistent on the trail. The upper rim part of the trail was the easiest part of our journey. The upper rim of the trail continues to descent portion of the trail down to a creek crossing and waterfalls. It was here we finally found out why the trail was closed part of last year. They built a set of stairs down to the falls and crossing. Maybe they will build a set going up the other side at some future time. We ascended the other side of the crossing and we continued to the campsite. We arrived at the campsite around 1:30, had a snack and began our return trek. The hike back was not completed much faster. Usually the exit moves faster but not this time. We exited the trail around 5pm. I would definitely rate this hike as strenuous. The weather made the trip a great hike however. If you would like to see a few pictures, click here
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