Valley Girl

The last day of November was bright and beautiful. Cold in the morning and sunny with temperatures heading up to 45 degrees!

What better way to celebrate the end of the gun season and the end of the month but to go out to the 'Reserve' and explore old places. I packed an apple and a few snacks.

Charlie and I set off. 

I wanted to search a small valley from the river to the highway. I want to find the ice cave that Rich took me past on my very first mule ride so many years ago. 

I started at Willow Camp and off we went. I forgot to start my Mapmywalk app. The green dot is where I remembered to pause and turn it on. Below is a terrain view of the hike. What I found was rather unexpected.

View from the old campsite that was abandoned due to constant flooding. If heavy rain is predicted it isn't smart to be anywhere near the river even if it is 10 feet above the 'Poo. This location is beautiful but brutal. The river here is fed by a small stream that would become a raging Flash Flood Monster so the water flow towards the campsite would be twofold.

I wanted to see if I could follow the tiny unnamed creek towards the highway. Riding through this area years ago I just watched my mule's footsteps and gazed around in wonder. There is no longer any designated trails in this area. However I found one of the old road beds. 

Was it there because of an old farm from the 1960's? 

Was it there because the Army Core Engineers built it? 

But there was a long straight flat area that led in the direction I wanted to go.

It ran just above the unnamed creek. 

Charlie and I detoured to look at an ice pond and investigate some bright red berries. I think the berries might be Highbush Cranberries? Not sure, but they were brilliant!

The 'road' - flat area disappeared and we ended up brush busting. The valley is deep with steep hillsides and rock formations on each side.

I found the highway and climbed up the hillside to see the ancient sign that faced the road.

This sign was from the early 1990's.  Young guys with huge monster trucks would come in and tear things up. The signs went up after a group came in with chain saws and cut trees down so they could drive down to the Kickapoo and mud bog.

Rich and I joined a group of loosely organized equine riders that went in and repaired the damage carrying all of our supplies of seed, bales of straw, and rakes on our animals. This was all before the Reserve became the Reserve.

We found the place where the creek met the highway.

I looked on the northside of the creek and found and old yellow marker. I can't recall if it was a property marker or what. 

The valley to the north was where I'd first been introduced to an ice cave. I mentally marked this area for exploration on my next hike.

We decided to find an old trail and remain on the south side of the Valley.

Charlie finds an old equine trail --- he is good at that!

I headed up the old equine trail which we lost often but generally located again. It ran aimlessly above the 'old' road.

Eventually I found an old homestead. Charlie and I took a break there and wondered what happened. 

Did they sell their farm, or were they one of the unlucky ones who had it condemned?

All that was left was their junk yard.

We found a point to look out from and down on where we had started our little journey.

We climbed back down and headed up old 131.

Charlie and I, The Valley Explorers.