Day Hike Report: Montgomery Bell Trail

With the kids back in school and me enjoying a make-up vacation day, we drove the short distance to Montgomery Bell State Park to hike its 10.5-mile overnight trail. Greeted with clear skies and a morning temperature hovering around the 20-degree mark, we bundled up and set out on our 4.25-hour wooded walk. Flooding and straight-line winds/tornadoes over the last couple of years have done some damage in the park, and many mature trees lay uprooted on the forest floor. Still, the park remains beautiful and the trails in excellent shape. We crossed a bridge nearly destroyed in the May 2010 flood and headed uphill. Not five minutes into the hike and we were already working up a sweat, even in the 20-degree air.

Collasped Bridge

The wildlife was out, but the people weren't. We didn't see any other hikers this day, but we did see woodpeckers, blue jays, squirrels, and a herd of about 6 or 7 deer. Sometimes the deer here will just stand motionless as you pass them by, but on this day they were darting away before I even spotted them. They must've known I had brought a camera with me this time. I'll get 'em next time.

Cold-weather hiking is great because you're not bothered with gnats, mosquitoes, spider webs, ticks, snakes, etc. This adds to the outdoor experience, allowing the hiker to take in the totality of his/her surroundings without the minor annoyances that accompany warm weather hikes.

   

The Montgomery Bell Trail is essentially a perimeter trail. The trail winds by roads, private residences, railroad tracks, and a cemetary. About a mile of the trail utilizes an old dirt road, which may still be used to some extent in the maintenance of the park's golf course. This road cuts between the back edge of the course and an adjacent rail line. As we were walking along this section, a CSX train roared down the tracks. Growing up, I would see the trains race down the tracks across the street from our house all the time. I guesstimated that I was roughly the same distance from this train now as I was all those times back then. So just for schlitz and giggles I took this picture:

I love to hear an 'ol train rollin' down the line . . .

We stopped for a snack at the last of the three overnight shelters before closing the loop at the park's maintenance yard. This was a great hike to begin the new year, and I look forward to having many more similar outings in 2012.

Total miles hiked: 10.5

YTD: 10.5