The poison oak was lush, shiny, bright, toxic, and just about everywhere on today's hike. If you leave the trail you may be in for a surprise (in 2 or 3 days).

I took the CA2 trail over to the CO7 (Labyrinth) trail, with its good view of Hood.

Along the CO7, there were a lot of flowers (heck, there were a lot of flowers EVERYWHERE!),

more views of Hood (note that every large plant in this shot is poison oak


the falls along the creek,

more Hood,

and finally, Coyote Wall.

I took the CO3, CO4, and CO1 trails up along the wall to intersect with the Atwood Rd Tr at about 1800'. Unforunately the map doesn't show all of the junctions along the Atwood and there are no signs after the CO1 ends, so some XC exploration ensued before I got back to the Atwood at the 1250' level. Curiously, there's a sign there - so if you do this loop counter-clockwise, it may be less confusing. A cruise along the Atwood brought me to those big, wide-open skies views that I love about this hike.
From the end of the Atwood, I took the old road up Catherine Ck, crossed it (ticks again!


Tracy Hill is now a giant meadow of foot high grasses that were rippling in the breeze like waves. Gave me a sense of what the Great Plains might have looked like back in the day before the plow. Little depressions in the meadow must collect flower seeds (at one point, a depression to the left of the trail had yellow flowers, while one to the right had white flowers).

The CA3 trail starts at the frog pond and descends toward the TH. I took it to the CA3, then that trail past the Arch and over the creek to the TH.
Excellent day! Loop accomplished (13 mi RT, 2700' EG)! Flowers galore! Now is the time to get out and experience the sublime wonders of Catherine Ck, Coyote Wall, and Tracy Hill. BUT, there are TICKS (some with Lyme Disease
