To celebrate Cinco De Mayo, I went hiking in Mt. Madonna County Park, which is located roughly ten miles west of Gilroy, on Highway 152.
The plan was to follow the hike outlined on bahiker.com. It's a 4.6-mile loop that begins and ends at the Sprig Recreation Area, as long as one follows directions and walks in a counter-clockwise fashion along the Merry-Go-Round, Loop, and Ridge trails respectively.
Of course, I'm bad at following directions and managed to tack on an extra mile due to something I like to call "impulse hiking". This happens when you come across a spur trail or detour that you had no intention of exploring initially, but since you're actually there, the temptation to take a quick peek is too much to resist. Sometimes, the most memorable parts of a hike are a direct result of impulse hiking. Yesterday's stroll is a good example of that.
I reached the Sprig Recreation Area sometime before 11:00 AM and started up the Merry-Go-Round Trail. Up is the key word in the previous sentence. One starts from an elevation of 500 feet above sea level and climbs approximately 700 feet over 1.5 miles. The trail is meant for both horses and hikers, so it's wider than your typical path.
As one approaches the Old Mine Trail, the path flattens and offers some wonderful views...
It also provides a large canvas for silly silhouette photo possibilities...
I should take a moment to say that one of the reasons I like hiking alone is the flexibility it offers. I can walk as fast or as slow as I like without feeling like I'm rushing people or slowing them down. It also gives me a chance to do dumb things as shown in the photograph above. As I wrote in my hiking journal, "If you can't be a total dork when you're alone, then what's the point?"
On the other hand, one of the reasons I don't like hiking alone is that I become extremely paranoid about being attacked by a mountain lion. Experts say one way to reduce the chances of a mountain lion encounter is to "avoid hiking alone". Another way is to "make noise while you hike so as not to surprise a lion". Since I obviously ignored the first piece of advice, I made an extra effort to follow the second piece. While I hiked, I sang every song I knew by The Mavericks so any mountain lions within earshot would know I was coming and skedaddle.
Anyway, on an impulse, I decided to venture down the Old Mine Trail to see what there was to see and discovered a hidden lake located on private property.
This was such a secluded spot, I thought it was the perfect place to do a little reading and writing. I had brought along Mark Twain's Pudd'nhead Wilson for company. Twain makes an excellent hiking companion.
I retraced my steps until I reached the Merry-Go-Round Trail and followed it westward until I reached the Loop Trail junction. This half-mile section involved another 500 feet of elevation gain. Luckily, that was the last of the climbing.
I cut over on the Loop Trail Cut-Off (a hikers-only path) to visit the Miller House Ruins (all that remains of the one-time summer estate of a rancher named Henry Miller) and the white fallow deer. They are descendants of a pair that were a gift from William Randolph Hearst to Miller.
From here, I took the Upper Miller Trail back to the Loop Trail, headed south until I reached the Ridge Trail, and followed that trail east until it reconnected with the Merry-Go-Round. For the first mile, the way was well-shaded, but just beyond the Tie Camp Trail junction, the trees gave way to shrubs and the shade disappeared. Fortunately, I was heading downhill all of the way. I would have dreaded coming up this way in the scorching sunlight.
All in all, it was a good hike. Mt. Madonna is definitely a park I want to visit again.
