Hike #5: The Hike of Many Trails

I hiked a lot of trails today. I mean, a LOT of trails: Leif Erikson Drive, Dogwood Trail, Keil Trail, Wildwood Trail, Wild Cherry Trail, Birch Trail, Holman Lane, and Aspen Trail. Here I'll explain the zig-zaggy route I took to complete this hike.

I started at the Leif Erikson Trailhead, which is the start of the 11.2 mile Leif Erikson trail. I had to walk about 1.5 miles just to get to the trailhead from the streetcar.

The Leif Erikson Trail

Mile marker 0.

The start of the Leif Erikson trail.

I walked along the Leif Erikson for about 3/4 mile and then turned left onto the Dogwood trail. After a short but relatively steep hike, I came to the junction with the Wildwood Trail.

The junction of the Dogwood and Wildwood Trails.

This is where my route got a little wonky, I basically did a spiral. I continued heading up the Dogwood Trail, where I met up with the Kiel Trail and went right. The Keil Trail took me to the NW 53rd Trailhead for the Wildwood Trail, and then I took a right to get on the Wildwood Trail.


This took me back to the junction of the Dogwood Trail and the Wildwood Trail, and this time, I continued walking along the Wildwood Trail. This brought me to the junction with the Wild Cherry Trail, and I turned right to hike up the Wild Cherry Trail all the way back to the Dogwood Trail.

Wildwood Trail

Yay, All Trails Challenge!

From here, I walked along NW 53rd Drive towards Holman Lane. On my way, I passed the entrance for the Birch Trail. My map said this trail was only .22 miles one way, so I figured, why not! So I walked down the Birch Trail to the Wildwood Trail and then walked back to NW 23rd.

I walked along NW 53rd until I met up with the Holman Trail, which can be a little tricky to find if you don't know what you're looking for. It looks like someone's driveway, and it technically is! When you see the "Private Property" sign, make sure you stay to the right, and you'll eventually find the gated entrance to the Holman Lane trail.

This trail was downhill the entire way, and I only ran into one other person on the trail.

I crossed the Wildwood Trail once again before exiting onto NW Raleigh Street. On my way to Thurman Street, I realized the Aspen Trail was just a little ways up the road. My map said it was only .23 miles one way, so once again, I figured, why not! So I walked up the Aspen Trail to the Wildwood Trail and back. At the junction of the Aspen and Wildwood Trails, I saw a large woodpecker sign affixed to a tree that startled me until I realized it wasn't real.
And that was the end of my weird 'n wacky hike! Of course, I saw many slugs during my hike.

Here is the Google map of my route:

The health app on my iPhone says I walked a total of 10 miles today (including my walk to and from the streetcar)... whoa! It's no wonder I am exhausted right now, but it was worth it.

Hike #1: Lower MacLeay Park to Wildwood and Wild Cherry Trails

I just recently switched to a new work schedule, so that I am now working Tuesday-Saturday, rather than Monday-Friday/Saturday. This was my first Monday off, and I decided spend the afternoon exploring Forest Park.

I started my journey at the Lower MacLeay Park, with which I am very familiar. I hiked to the "Witch's Castle," and while I have typically continued straight towards the Audubon Society on NW Cornell, I decided this time to veer right onto the Wildwood Trail.

Witch's Castle

I then stayed on the Wildwood Trail for quite a while, passing the junctions for Holman Lane, the Aspen Trail, and the Birch Trail. This section of the Wildwood Trail was entirely new to me, and wow... it was gorgeous.

So much green!

Additionally, while hiking, I saw 34 slugs and snails! For those who may not know, I heart slugs.

I eventually reached the junction of the Wildwood Trail and the Wild Cherry Trail. I took the Wild Cherry Trail to Leif Erikson Drive, which was a road originally constructed in the 1900s. Due to landslides, the road eventually closed and then became part of Forest Park.

I traveled down Leif Erikson for just a short distance until I came to a narrow trail that is marked on my Forest Park map but not on Google Maps. That trail took me past a large water tank before spitting me out onto NW Gordon St, which then connected me to NW Thurman St. From there, I was able to take Thurman all the way back to Lower MacLeay Park. Google Maps says I walked 4.7 miles, and with the rest of the walking I did today, I got over 18,000 steps!

A map of my hike.