WEEKLY

WALKER

By Tom Davids

On the Trail to an Old Growth Redwood

El Corte de Madera Creek Open Space Preserve

"It's little I care what path I take, and where it leads its little I care;. . ."Edna St. Vincent Millay

Directions: On Skyline Boulevard, 9.5 miles south of Highway 92 or 4.3 miles south of Kings Mountain Road. Park at the gate one-quarter south of the Skagg's Point view area. This gate is identified as CM02.

Grade: Strenuous for the loop. Moderate to the redwood tree and back.

Distance: 5.8 miles for the loop. 4 miles to the tree and back.

Time: Two to three hours.

Special Conditions: No dogs. No poison oak on the marked trails. Watch for bicycles. The preserve is operated by the Midpeninsula Open Space District (650-691-1200).

The last issue of the Weekly Walker took a break from the El Corte de Madera Creek Preserve and introduced a nice, level, five-mile walk along the Lost Trail at Windy Hill Preserve. This week we're back at El Corte de Madera with a more aggressive hike in mind. The distance is about the same--5.8 miles, but the elevation drops 800 feet and rather steeply in places. Actually, if the old redwood tree is your goal, the round trip distance is only four miles, and the elevation loss is only 200 to 300 feet. Either way, you'll find this section of the preserve to satisfy you need for exercise and your curiosity as to the old growth redwood left standing when the loggers went home.

Our hike begins at Gate CM02, one-quarter mile south of the Skagg's Point view area, on the west side of Skyline Boulevard. Inside the gate, turn right on the Methuselah Trail, a broad, old logging road, and continue for .5 miles to the intersection with Timberview Trail. Turn left onto Timberview Trail, and begin a gradual descent with views of the deep ravine on your left. Along this stretch of trail are fine examples of a plant called horsetail. Found near water, typically in shaded, boggy locations, this is one of the world's oldest plants. This variety is a muted version of the plant's predecessor, which formed giant forests, 50 or more feet tall. Examine the plant, and notice that they are made of silicaceous material, which provides excellent protection, discouraging most insect and animals from eating them. Early settlers and Indians used the plant to scour and clean utensils, and it is said that early miners checked these plants for particles of gold to test the worth of panning nearby streams.

As you hike down Timberview Trail, pass by the first junction with an unnamed trail to your left, but in another .5 mile you will come to another junction with a single-track trail to your left. Turn left, and after a short, steep downhill, another junction appears. This time, stay right and follow the trail on a mostly level contour for .5 miles. There are no signs in this area. Be assured that if you stay on the contour and don't descend to the canyons below, you will rejoin Timberview Trail in one-half mile. Continue on Timberview Trail for .2 miles until you come to an open area resembling a small meadow. Stop a moment, look around, and you'll notice a trail going to the left. Take this trail, and in a few yards, the trail leads up a berm and through brush nicely cut for passage. Follow the trail, and in 30 feet, you're at the base of what could be the only old growth redwood left in the preserve with two sentinel fir trees standing by. The old master is about 14 feet in diameter. It has an interesting scar about 8 feet up its trunk, and there is some fire damage near the base. Why the scar? Your guess is as good as mine. On the Soda Gulch Trail in Purisima Preserve, there is an old redwood tree that was scarred by chains holding wenches that were used to move cut trees to lower levels for transport to the mill. Perhaps this tree served the same purpose, and when the loggers went home, it was left standing.

You may turn back here or continue on a loop that drops 600 feet in a short two miles, then intersects with Gordon Mill Trail for the hike back to Gate CM02. The first 1.2 miles on Gordon Mill are mostly level and quite sunny. At the first intersection, continue straight (turn neither left nor right). The trail will soon turn sharply to the right, and in one-half mile you leave the broad road and climb a steep, single-track trail that eventually brings you to an intersection near Skyline Boulevard. You can bail out, turn left on Skyline, and walk back to Gate CM02. Or preferably, turn left at the intersection below Skyline, and continue on a trail that parallels the road for .4 mile. If you're feeling lost, since many of these lesser trails are not marked, just remember to keep hiking up, and you will, sooner or later, get to skyline. Also note that on a typical weekend or holiday many bicyclists use these trails, and they are happy to give directions if necessary.

When your hike is over, I think you'll agree that this preserve is a bit different than others: a place to get away to see strange and wonderful things; a place with a sense of wilderness; a place still under-developed with a sense of mystery around the next bend; a place to come back to before long.