Dan's Outside

Connecting Two Trails

I took one of those satisfying hikes today that connects two hikes that I have taken previously. I have frequently hike the Javelina Loop (and cross-country variations) at Calero Park. Last week I hike out on the Bald Peaks trail to where it enters Rancho Cañada del Oro. Today I turned these two hikes into one really big loop.

I started at the main entrance to the trails at Calero and turned right onto Javelina Loop at the old corral. I followed this out to just about the point where it heads up and over the ridge to start back – but instead took the Cottle Trail. This mostly follows a gently ascending dirt road through the bottom of a canyon before turning to the right and ascending to the Cottle Rest Area after an unmarked fork.

From here the trail becomes, well, a trail. It appears to be seldom used, judging by the overgrown condition. It ascendes, with alternat steep sections and flatter sections between sub-ridges. Eventually it follows an old fence line up the hill and finally emerges at the Bald Peaks Trail. From here it is a pretty straightforward route back to where I started.
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June 10, 2006 - Posted by gdanmitchell | Commentary