West Ridge Trail Section 17

I have to say that those short legs Charlie has are pretty amazing. The weather was warm but overcast. It drizzled on the car as we drove to KVR.

Charlie was anxious to get going and jumped out of the car when I opened the door. He waited patiently for me to get out and grab the back pack.

Then we were off. I have hiked the south end of the West Ridge Trail twice before. Once in June of last year when the foliage and undergrowth in the woods thick and green. I didn't think much of it at the time as it was part of the last 2 miles of a long hike. At that time I just wanted to get it done.

I took my old old IR camera with me and swapped out filters. The top shot was shot in IR and the bottom in regular color. The reason I put this trail last on my list is that I recalled it as being rather boring. The first 3/4 of a mile is wide and follows along a snowmobile trail. 

It does go into the forest and zigs and zags along the terrain. I did it last summer in June although it was pretty, I didn't pay much attention to it.

I was hot, Charlie was hot and we were just trying to get through the forest and to the end.
June 2nd last year....

However, November was a different story. 

This was approximately in the same spot on the trail but facing the other direction. I took this shot with a tripod that I could wrap around a sapling for holding the camera.

With all the undergrowth gone and the leaves down, I could see all the way down to the river. I spotted some places I wouldn't mind exploring this winter and early spring.

It was just amazing. You could see forever through the woods. 

Below is a shot through the woods towards Old 131 Trail. The white arrow points to the bird blind and the red arrow points to the wet lands that Charlie and I explored last year when the marsh was frozen.

The long draws lead down into the Valley of Ice. Named so because by late January there are a few rock shelters that have sheets of gorgeous ice covering their entrances.

I made it there last year on New Year's Eve and discovered iced rock shelters. I also met my new friend Jason and his dog Piper.

This draw leads down into an area where the ice caves are in the winter. The hike down in is not for the faint hearted!

As we headed up and out of the Valley of Ice we went through a section of the forest that has been logged. There were indications of a forest fire that must have happened many years ago.
The shot below was taken with the Infrared camera with a filter called IR Chrome. The leaves and foliage appear red with slight variations.

We eventually made it to Camp F which marked the spot we would turn around and head back. 

The return was easy and we walked up to the snowmobile trail which paralleled the hiking trail but was higher on the ridge and more open. It was a shorter walk back to the main trail.

We started towards the maintenance shed and encountered a young man with a shotgun and a pheasant. I admired the pheasant and he explained that he was walking back to the parking area also. He said he didn't want to intrude on my space so he'd wait for a bit. 

I laughed and said that he was not intruding and the company while walking could be pleasant. He let Charlie smell his pheasant and said he wished he had a retriever but his wife was afraid of dogs. 

We had a nice conversation while we walked. His grandfather hunted here as well as his father. His father took him when he was young. What a great legacy.

He headed towards his truck and said, "Have a nice day ma'am." 

Ma'am. Gosh. I guess I must be showing my age.

One more section done. One left to go.

What will we do to celebrate? I don't know.
Let's see what I think up!