THE WEEKLY

WALKER

By Tom Davids

The Northern Loop

El Corte de Madera Creek Open Space Preserve

"One sees great things from the valleys only small things from the peak." C.K. Chesterston

Directions: From the Skyline Boulevard (Highway 35) and Highway 92 intersection, go south on Skyline for 9.3 miles (or 4.4 miles south of Kings Mountain Road) to the rest stop at Skaggs Point. You cannot make a left turn from Skyline into Skaggs point, so go beyond the rest area, turn around, and double back.

Grade: Strenuous, elevation gain and loss of about 700 feet.

Distance: Six miles.

Time: Three hours.

Special Conditions: Stay on trails to avoid poison oak. Watch for bicycles. No dogs allowed. Port-a-Potties available at Skaggs Point. For more information on the crash of the Resolution, read “Wreckchasing: A Guide to Finding Aircraft Crash Sites,” by Nicholas A. Veronico, published by Pacific Aero Press, P.O. Box 20092, Castro Valley, CA 94546.

The preserve is managed by Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District (650-691-1200).

This walk starts at the Skaggs Point viewpoint on Skyline Boulevard. From the parking area, walk north along Skyline Boulevard a few hundred feet to the marked trailhead (Gate CM01) on the west side of Skyline. Proceed on the Tafoni Trail, a well-graded former logging/ranch road that leads westerly through the headwaters of the El Corte de Madera Creek. After .1 miles, turn right onto the El Corte de Madera Creek Trail. The trail quickly drops into the drainage basin. Forget-me-nots, which line the trail, will be in beautiful full bloom during February and March. During this .7-mile stretch, the trail is wide, showing signs of an old logging road. During the late 1800s and early 1900s, most of the first growth redwoods were logged from the site. Loggers of second-growth trees began in the mid- 1960s and continued until 1989, when the MPROSD completed the purchase of this 2,792-acre preserve.

At the next signpost, cross a wooden bridge, and head for the Tafoni Trail, one mile ahead. This segment is fairly new and a single track. From the bridge, you will gain about 200 feet and then meander through ridges and ravines until the trail turns south and soon intersects with Tafoni Trail. You can turn back there or continue another .9 miles to the intersection with Resolution Trail. Through this area, the “micro climate” changes to a drier, warmer environment that supports Douglas fir, oaks, and madrones.

When you reach the junction with the Resolution Trail, you have come 2.6 miles, and you have 2.6 miles to go. This is the exact mid-point back to Skaggs Point. However, before turning left and up, we suggest that you turn right and down for one-half mile to El Corte de Madera Creek. During the turn of the century logging era, as many as eight mills were constructed along the creek banks. As you cross the creek over a steel culvert, notice small wood buildings to your left and right. Farther to your right is an old reservoir, now filled and overgrown with water plants. The nearby pump station appears to be still operating, presumably for irrigation.

After enjoying the creek channel, return to the Resolution Trail junction and go straight ahead for a 1.1-mile jaunt and a 400-foot elevation gain. Along the way, you will see larger than expected fir and redwood trees that seem to have escaped the loggers’ saws. The trail rises out of the shady canyon into a sunny, exposed hillside, where, if you look sharp, you can see small parts of the wreckage of a DC-6 plane that crashed into the ridge in 1953, killing all 19 on board. The aircraft was named “Resolution,” and it was headed for San Francisco, following a transpacific flight from Sydney, Australia.

Its last transmission was normal at 8:41 a.m., and then the radio was silent. After the investigation was concluded, the CAB report stated that the probable cause was “the failure of the crew to follow prescribed procedures for an instrument approach.”

Continuing on, the trail enters a dense redwood forest, then moves to an exposed hillside before joining Fir Trail. Turn left on Fir Trail for0.3 miles to the next junction. Take the short trail west to Vista Point for good views to the west. This area and Vista Point were cleared by bulldozers to serve as the base for rescue and recovery operations associated with the Resolution crash.

Continue on the Fir Trail for 0.2 miles to the next junction, and then take the Tafoni Trail 1.2 miles back to Skyline Boulevard and the parking lot at Skaggs Point.

Footnotes: Terry asked whether I have a compilation of the Weekly Walker articles. No, not yet, but I’m working on a book and hope to have a Web site up soon. Watch for Weekly Walker.com For two good trail books, check out “Peninsula Trails,” by Rusmore, Spangle, and Crowder, published by Wilderness Press, and “The Santa Cruz Mountains Trail Book,” by Tom Taber, published by the Oak Valley Press.

Your comments and hiking suggestions are always welcome. E-mail to: trekertom@aol.com or fax to: 650-592-4736.