A Change of Seasons

Sun. 22 April:  A Change of Seasons:  Pine Creek Trail

How suddenly the seasons change here.

Just a week ago I was wading through deep snow with my snowshoes.  Today I was strolling across bare hillsides wearing shorts!

With limited time available, what better place to go than the Cross Conservation Area, just south of the city?  I had imagined that, on such a fine Sunday afternoon, the place would be mobbed by visitors.  But it was not.  One reason might be that no dogs are allowed here, and so this eliminates some of the crowd.

My journey today took me in a clockwise direction around the perimeter of the Park.  This roughly nine kilometre route is called Pine Creek Trail.  It undulates across the low hillsides, then turns west to follow the gentle Pine Creek as it climbs up to the spectacular viewpoint on the western edge of the Park.  Turning east, it then dives back down into the woods, finally coming back to the start in a long circle.

After seeing a dozen or so hikers coming down the hill, I saw only two other small groups of people.  There was nobody else along the entire route.  Unlike my last visit, I saw no deer today, and just a few birds of prey soaring above the trees.  Apart from one small patch of snow the recent rain and warm temperatures made short work of the remaining drifts.  It was just a day or so too early for the wildflowers.  The landscape was of brown hillsides and bare trees.

I stopped at the west end viewpoint to admire the panorama of snowy peaks to the west, trying to name as many as I could.

It was warm work today.  Spring had arrived as if by the flick of a switch.

Statistics
Cross Conservation Area
Sun. 22 April
Total Dist.	9.0 km (hike)
Height Gain	600 ft.
Max. Elev.	4,270 ft.
Time	2 hrs. 15 mins.

Other Stats.
Start hike:      1.36 pm Barn Jn:        2.30 pm W Side:          3.01 pm Ret. to car:     3.51 pm	Start Temp:   +19 C Finish Temp:  +23 C Sunny, some clouds over mountains.  V. warm breeze.