Sunday's hike took us 6.5 miles around Staring Lake and Purgatory Creek.
You can View Larger Map with Photos.

October has been simply beautiful, with blue sky and sun every time I hit the trail! My wife and I stayed near home this weekend since the fall colors are pretty much the best here right now. The trail gets lots of use - LOTS of use - and it's paved the whole distance. The southern half is wooded, traveling around the lake and along a small creek. The northern half is open and you realize you're really right in town while walking around this lake/swamp/bog/marsh area.

Here is the trail route and a couple photos. When you click on the thumbnail pics, a larger picture is displayed, but using the link above to open a larger map works much better.

Keep reading below the map...


(click the pics below to see a larger version)

The animals were out today- some squirrels, dozens of ducks, a handful of hawks. I tried to capture the view of 6 or 7 hawks circling above and catching some updrafts, but they were moving too fast for me.

We also enjoyed playing with the perfectly ripe milkweed seeds along the trail. They float on the air just like dandelion seeds, but much larger. It's amazing how they are tightly packed in a pod and then practically explode into the breeze when released. Tons of fun!

 

Hike On