August 3, 2022 - Eureka

 

Title: August 3, 2022 - Eureka

Hike Info : Description : Animals 

Hike Info:

Type: Hiking 

Trail head: Headwaters Parking Lot

Trail: Headwaters Trail

Destination:  None

Distance:  3.2 miles ¹

Elevation Rise:  850'

Maximum Elevation: 215'

 ¹Approximate trail and turnaround location from Google Earth. No GPS.

Light through the web

Description:

Today’s entry will be rather sketchy. Usually I will put in at least a line describing each activity within a day of the event. When I got to writing up today’s blog entry, I saw it was blank. So it will be of rather limited verbiage and made up from my memory.

Like most days, I retrieve lightning information for our little area of the Sierra. There were 37 strikes. Then breakfast. Like the Dumbo cartoon, we played the game of “What Do You Want To Do?” When David mentioned the Headwaters, that sounded good to me. When we were in Eureka last January, David took us there. It was a magical place for us and one which I think it will take awhile for us to tire of.

Sherri on the trail

Even the eight mile drive to the parking lot is interesting, between the fields of hay with its sudden change to forested land has this writer enjoying being a passenger. David drives us to the Headwaters. Surprisingly, there are not a whole bunch of cars there. The first mile of the path is paved. Makes for pleasant walking and a chance to talk some more. Two big differences between January and now is that there is not the smell of decaying salmon from their run and the ground is not wet from recent rains.

The walking is pleasant and the conversation is free. There is a combination of enjoying the company and the forest. Even when we come to the end of the paved path, we continue on. There are not many people whom we meet along the way. So we enjoy the sunshine and the way. Butterflies and birds fly about and cobwebs have sunlight filtering through.

Calling Batman

Within a quarter mile away from our turn around point, we see a guy doing trail maintenance, weed-wacking the vines away from the trail. We had been seeing evidence of his work along the way. We decided rather than bother him, we will turn around, after all, we would be coming back through 15 minutes later.

Even though the trail is not steep, we make good time coming back down. We meet a young female and alert her to the trail maintenance up the way. About half an hour later she passes us by. She could not attract his attention, so she decided it was just as well to turn around. As we get closer to the parking lot, I recognize a need which can be met at the trailhead ao I speed up.I am surprised that I am able to walk at a pretty good pace for a third of a mile at the end of a hike.

We go back to David’s place, have lunch and rest for a little bit. Today I only relax unlike yesterday’s nap. I want to fill up with gas before we leave tomorrow. So off to Costco we go. Gas may be cheaper in Oregon, but I would like to get a little ways up the coast tomorrow before we need to fill up.

David asked if we were interested in doing a chocolate tasting? How many times do you think I needed to be asked? In downtown Eureka is a quality chocolate maker by the name of Dick Taylor. True to David’s promise, we have bits of chocolate to taste. This is heaven in Eureka. I do not think it was guilt from us doing the tasting, but we buy several bars of chocolate. We will enjoy those later.

And now back to David’s house. David has a pork dinner going for us. Like the other two dinners, it is worthwhile devouring. We talk and get ready to leave tomorrow. But we also have a visitor: Don. He lives close to David. I met him in Hawaii and have enjoyed his friendship and fellowship ever since. Glad to see him. He looks pretty good, even better than I was expecting considering all which he went through this year.

Animals

Red Admiral

Red Admiral

Gartner Snake