April 15, 2015 - Briceburg / Merced Gorge River Trail

Title: April 15, 2015 - Briceburg / Merced Gorge River Trail

Trail head: Briceburg

Hike Info:

Type:  Hiking

Trail: Merced Gorge River Trail

Destination: BLM Boundary

Distance:  8.68 miles ¹

Start Time:  9:15

End Time:   1:46

Travel Time: 4:30 (1.93  mph)

Moving Time: 3:46 (2.30 mph)

Elevation Rise:¹

Maximum Elevation: 1,200'
 ¹My GPS did not accurately record the elevation. It started off at 951' and showed a high of 1,492'. According to the topo map, the trail never goes above 1,200'

Description:
I like this trail. Each time I have been on it, the Merced River is so mesmerizing, the flowers there to have me enjoy and even a few butterflies to lighten the air. But I suspect it is not an all season trail. In a few weeks, it will get warm and all the flowers will be burnt away. But I am getting ahead of myself.

We meet at Kohl's at 7:00am. Sherri still is sick, but getting better. So being prudent, she stayed home. By the time we get to Briceburg, we will have 25 people walking. Karol, Rob and Christine ride with me and our five cars take off for Mariposa and the Burger King there. We pick up Roger, Judy and Barney-not in my car, then take another 10 minute drive to to our trail head. The trail head is where Highway 140 drops out of Mid-Pines and meets the Merced River. There is a stone hut which used to be a store which Brice owned.

Merced Gorge River Trail

We meet Jerry K and David M in the parking lot. By the time we get ready, it is  9:15.The first thing we do is cross a suspension bridge. With 25 people on it, there is a bit of bounce. Sort of unnerving, but nothing traumatic happens. Then it is time to hit the dirt and go. But before I can get started, I talk with a guy by a pickup. He says that he owns a claim up the trail a ways. My guess it has to do with the TIGER posts we see later on. The man does say he welcomes people to pan on his claim.

We start off at a good pace, enjoying the coolness of the morning. By the time I get done talking with the claims man, I am at the back of the pack with the regulars.  But on a trail like this, there is no need to rush-just time to enjoy. The grasses are transitioning from green to gold. But we spot wildflowers almost immediately along the trail. This is not hillsides covered with poppies, but a sprinkling of an assortment of plants.

Railroad Footing

Most of this trail is flat, as it used to be a railroad bed. What railroad you might ask? The Yosemite Valley Rail Road which started in Merced and ended up in El Portal. Most places, it is about a lane wide, but occasionally the bed has eroded away and the track is narrow, not that you ever feel like you are going to fall in. Just enough to keep you on your toes, so to speak.The whole trail is not flat-in three places a creek crosses the bed. You can see remains of the bridges the train traveled on-by remains, I mean the cement footings and an occasional piece of a bolt or wood support. But our trail dips down 10-15 feet and then back out.

Merced, Trail and Hiking Group

There are wide bends to the river which the trail follows. So even though we are in back, it is easy to spot our fellow hikers even a half mile further up the trail. The Merced is low because of the drought. I suspect that in a normal year, we are seeing where the river would be in July. Still it is good to see the river going from a swift moving entity to nice clear pools.

Hill above trail

After awhile, I start looking for the forest service sign across the river. This will mark our end point. BLM maintains this trail really well. But when we went on this trail in March, we crossed over into forest service land and it was a noticeable change, particularly with the poison oak clawing at us. So we stop at the boundary and have lunch.  Our return trip was just backtracking the trail. Even then, seeing the trail from a different perspective is refreshing. I am walking with Roger part of the way, then with Barney. We have periods of conversation, followed by silence, except for the traffic on 140 and the river passing by.

We finished up around 1:45. Several people were appreciative that we had done this hike as they had looked across the road and seen what looked like a trail. We decided to head to Mariposa to Happy Burger for lunch. Not a bad place to stop. Then the decision: go to the Mariposa Historical Museum which was just across the way or go to a Facebook friend of Rose and Sherri? Since the Museum closed in an hour, it was decided to go to Rumm Studio. This was a good place to stop. I particularly enjoyed  it as Faith Rumm had painted her way across the JMT. I could identify several places in her paintings, even buying one.

Accident on 41

I wish I could say that our trip home was uneventful. But south of Coarsegold, there had been an accident, maybe five minutes before us. One person died and another couple people were seriously injuried. We were delayed about 2 hours, getting to Kohl's around 7:30. The accident did not involve anybody from the meetup group.

Butterflies

 

Flowers:

Misc Pictures:

Trail, Tree and River

 

Merced River