This Thanksgiving – Try Berry Creek Falls

The Ultimate Thanksgiving Feast

 

Berry Creek Falls, Big Basin State Park

 

"The sovereign invigorator of the body is exercise, and of all the exercises, walking is the best.” – Thomas Jefferson, 1743-1826

                                                                                               

 

 

 

 

 

I wrote about this hike several years ago, and a number of readers expressed what seemed to be positive interest in joining us at the falls for our unique Thanksgiving feast. Well, Veralyn and I won’t be able to join you this year, as we will be in San Diego with two of our grandsons and good dog Mack. So the special bench for viewing and eating is yours unless someone beats you to it.

Over the years, our family has enjoyed more than a few memorable Thanksgiving Day feasts at some unusual places with a menu to match. Crab cocktails and French bread on a remote bench at Fisherman's Wharf was a standout experience, only slightly ahead of granola bars and apples on Angel Island. But Veralyn's and my all-time favorite (the four children now out of the house or interested in other things) was a Thanksgiving Day hike to Berry Creek Falls in Big Basin. Winter rains came early that year, and we reckoned that Waddell Creek and the falls would be running strong.

Our destination was one of our favorite benches, located on the Skyline-to-the-Sea Trail with a clear view of the falls. In our judgment, this 65-foot curtain of water is the most spectacular of all falls in the Bay Area, especially in the winter months after a few heavy rainstorms. But before we started the hike, a little menu-planning was in order. This is what we took--all in the spirit of the day:

-         a few slices of turkey

-         a small can of cranberry sauce

-         dried mashed potato mix

-         a package of gravy mix

-         two pumpkin bars for dessert

-         a bottle of wine

We also packed two quarts of water, a backpack stove with fuel, two small saucepans, plastic plates, eating utensils, and something waterproof to sit on. All of this fit nicely in a large daypack.

The drive down Highway 1 to the trailhead at Waddell Beach is always a beautiful start to any hiking day, but especially on Thanksgiving Day, when the traffic is light. If the day is warm, you may be tempted to stop at beaches along the way (San Gregorio, Pomponio, Pescadero, and Bean Hollow), but resist and carry on past Pigeon Point Lighthouse and Ano Nuevo State Reserve on to Waddell Beach. Park at the large beach parking lot or at roadside parking next to the trailhead.

The hike begins at the Rancho de Oso gate on a wide service road. The first half-mile borders the Theodore S. Hoover National Preserve. Named for the founder and dean of Stanford University's Engineering and Mining School, the brother of President Herbert Hoover surveyed the property while a student at Stanford. He promised that someday he would earn enough money to buy the land, which he did in 1913. In the early 1970s, his decendants began the process of turning the property over to the people of California. Today, the preserve is a freshwater marsh that is he protected home of more than 150 species of birds. A short distance past the ranger station, the trail splits. Continue on the service road, and avoid the bridge washout over Waddell Creek. The trail moves up into the Waddell Creek drainage basin named for William White Waddell, an adventurous pioneer and lumberman who built a large mill near present-day Camp Herbert. Finished lumber was hauled out on a five-mile rail system with flat cars pulled by four horse teams. Waddell died in 1875 from injuries suffered in a surprise encounter with a grizzly bear. Incidentally, this area and all of California have been free of grizzly bears for many decades. Mountain lions are known to have roamed through Big Basin, but I've never seen one--here or in any other Bay Area wilderness area.

For the next five miles, you will meander up the Skyline-to-the-Sea Trail, alongside Waddell Creek with its streamside vegetation of sycamore, alder, and maple trees under tall redwoods and through pretty meadows. Passing by what was Camp Herbert, an abandoned camp for backpackers now closed, the trail crosses East Waddell Creek on a stout steel bridge. In a few more miles, the service road trail ends at a signboard and bicycle parking rack. At this point, you must cross the creek, hopping boulders and logs, which can be a bit dicey if the water is high. On the other side of the creek, the trail climbs up a short distance, then back down to Waddell Creek. After one more creek-crossing, this time on long, aluminum I-beams, the trail climbs along creekside to a signed junction. Straight ahead is the viewing platform facing Berry Creek Falls. You should visit this platform before heading back (you can eat on the platform, but it tends to get crowded with hikers). Your mission is to capture the bench, so turn right at the junction, cross a wooden bridge, and climb the hillside to the first switchback. This is the spot for your Thanksgiving feast.

Now you do what comes naturally. Boil water and add potatoes. Cover the pan, and use the second pan to boil water. Add gravy. Dish both over the turkey. Pour the wine, and enjoy a feast to remember.

It's possible that someone found the bench first, or that the river is too high to cross, or that your twelve-mile spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. Wherever you end up, find a nice rock or log, sit down and eat. Remember to enjoy the journey; the destination is wherever you want it to be.

 

Your comments and hiking suggestions are always welcome. Email <tom@tomdavids.com>

Footnote: Check out the Weekly Walker at www.weeklywalker.com