Elkhorn Ridge Trail #3347

[mattisnotfrench]

I took a long drive today into the Opal Creek area to check out the Elkhorn Ridge Trail, which is on the divide between the Little North Fork and Elkhorn Creek canyons. There's a lot of blowdown in the first 2.5 miles or so but the trail is otherwise quite navigable with good tread and very obvious blazes.

From this point, the trail drops into a thicket of slide alder and becomes very difficult to follow. If you are paying attention you can stay on the trail, but it required a great deal of attention and route-finding. In some spots you have to climb over lots of slide alder just to stay on the trail, which got progressively more and more irritating. We finally stopped for the day well short of our goal (Phantom Bridge) at a pond where we were serenaded by frogs for a half-hour.

This trail needs a lot of work - it needs to be logged out, it needs serious brushing, and the trailbed needs to be dug out some more. It could be a fantastic trail with a lot of work...and hopefully this information spurs somebody to help clear out the trail.

[kelkev]

Good to hear one of us has finally checked that trail out - - I've been buried at work and haven't been out much at all this spring. Hopefully this trail will end up on the maintenance radar someday.

Kevin