A Hike to Kelly Lake in Henry Coe

Henry Coe State Park has four entrances:

1. Headquarters
2. Hunting Hollow
3. Coyote Creek
4. Dowdy Ranch

Out of habit or convenience, all of my Coe hikes have started from the Headquarters Entrance. A couple of weeks ago, I decided to start from somewhere new. Because the Dowdy Ranch Entrance was still closed for the season (it opens this Saturday), I drove to the Hunting Hollow Entrance, roughly nine miles east of Highway 101, by way of the Leavesley Road exit in Gilroy.

My initial plan was to hike to Coit Lake, but upon closer inspection of distances and elevations on the map, I scaled it back and chose Kelly Lake as my destination.

After paying the four-dollar day use fee, I started down Hunting Hollow Road, a winding dirt road with several creek crossings and zero-percent grade. It was uncharacteristically flat. For a second, I wondered if I was in the right park. Henry Coe is synonymous with hills, so a long stretch of level trail is suspicious.

Because I wanted to visit Wilson Peak on my way to the lake, I took the Middle Steer Ridge Trail, which started innocently enough with a few lazy switchbacks, but quickly turned nasty. It was two miles of steep, straight-to-the-top climbing; 1,500 feet of fun. It was as though Coe was saying, "You want character? I'll show you character! How do you like me now?"

To survive the climb, I took several breaks photos. The view was breathtaking and gave me a chance to catch my breath.

I also paused to take a quick video.

Once I reached Steer Ridge Road, I made a detour to Wilson Peak (elev. 2,651 feet). Other than a cool survey marker hidden by tall grass, there was nothing remarkable about the peak.

I backtracked and took the neighboring Serpentine Trail. It was a wild downhill run to Grizzly Gulch Road. I continued northeast on the road and visited tiny Tule Pond. I thought about sitting a spell at the pond, but as soon as I spotted the tarp tent across the way, I kept moving.

The Tule Pond Trail was another no-nonsense climbing exercise. Luckily, it was short.

The trail delivered me onto Wasno Road and I followed this undulating dirt path for a mile and a half to the Kelly Lake Trail, which remained level for half of a mile before dropping precipitously to the lake.

When I reached Kelly Lake, I was disappointed to discover I wasn't alone. Three backpackers were relaxing on the opposite shore. Their conversation carried across the water. I tuned out their voices and focused on listening to the small chorus of birds singing around the lake.

After a brief lunch break, I retraced my steps to Wasno Road and backtracked to the Dexter Trail, which was another half-mile of downhill dirt skiing.

I continued my descent along the Grizzly Gulch Trail, following it west and then southwest until I reached the Coyote Creek Entrance. From there, it was a two-mile trek on paved road back to the parking lot. If I had it to do over again, I would have chosen a different return route. On more than one occasion, I felt like sticking out my thumb and hitching a ride.

Just as I reached the lot, my water ran out, which made me grateful I hadn't kept with my original plan to visit Coit Lake. When I do, I'll know to pack an extra liter of liquid.

All told, it was a 13.8-mile hike in a part of Coe that is worth further exploration. With the reopening of the Dowdy Ranch Entrance, my next few trips will likely start from the park's southern entrances.

You can see a few more photos from the hike on Flickr.