Brukner Nature Center (Blog Hike #752)

Trails: Pinelands, Trillium Valley, Buckeye Valley, and Hickory Ridge Trails

Hike Location: Brukner Nature Center

Geographic Location: west of Troy, OH (40.01645, -84.31713)

Length: 2.3 miles

Difficulty: 3/10 (Easy/Moderate)

Date Hiked: June 2019

Overview: A double loop through numerous ravines and along numerous ridges.

Center Information: http://www.bruknernaturecenter.com/

Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=754843

Photo Highlight:

Directions to the trailhead: North of Dayton, take I-75 to SR 55 (exit 73).  Exit and go west on SR 55.  Drive SR 55 west 2.4 miles to Horseshoe Bend Road and take a soft right on Horseshoe Bend Rd.  Drive Horseshoe Bend Rd. 2.1 miles to the signed Center entrance on the right.  Turn right to enter the Center, and drive the entrance road to the Center’s main parking lot in front of the Interpretive Building.  You need to pay a small entrance fee in the Interpretive Building before starting the hike.

The hike: Private not-for-profit Brukner Nature Center protects 165 acres of ridges and ravines along the east bank of the Stillwater River.  The Center is named for Clayton J. Brukner, who owned the WACO Aircraft Company of nearby Troy, OH.  WACO was one of the most successful pre-World War II civil aircraft manufacturers.  A lover of nature, Brukner purchased this land for its scenic value in 1933, and in 1967 he unveiled plans to build the Nature Center that now bears his name.  The Center opened in 1974.

            Brukner Nature Center features an excellent Interpretive Building that offers several bird and wildlife viewing areas.  6 miles of hiker-only trails wind through the grounds.  Unfortunately, when I came here just after the area had received large amounts of rainfall, several of the trails were impassable due to flooding.  Thus, the route described here traverses most of the trails that were passable on my visit, and it features a nice mixture of ravines, ridges, woods, and meadows.

Trailhead: Pinelands Trail

            From the front door of the Interpretive Building, walk across the parking lot to find the trailhead for the single-track dirt Pinelands Trail, which immediately heads into the woods on an eastward course.  Three separate trailheads are located on this side of the parking lot.  The Pinelands trailhead is the one on the left; it is marked by a wooden post with a green stripe.

            After only a few hundred feet on the Pinelands Trail, you reach a trail intersection marked as post #14.  Major trail intersections are numbered on the park map and marked on the ground with numbered wooden posts.  Turn left here to begin the Trillium Valley Trail.

Bridge over eroded watercourse

The Trillium Valley Trail crosses the park entrance road before crossing an eroded watercourse on a high steel bridge with wooden deck.  Next comes a short but fairly steep descent as the trail begins following the watercourse downstream.  The Interpretive Building is visible atop the hill to the left here.

            After crossing the stream 5 times via bridges, you reach post #12, where the Buckeye Valley Loop exits right.  The Buckeye Valley Loop is a 1.1 mile add-on lollipop loop that explores a very pleasant ravine, so turn right to begin the Buckeye Valley Loop.  The Buckeye Valley Loop climbs gradually along the small but steep-sided creek.  I saw many deer prints in the soft dirt along this creek, and further up the ravine I saw some of the deer that made these prints, including a doe and two fawns.

Hiking up Buckeye Valley

            Ignore the steep Wren Run Trail that exits left, and at 0.5 miles reach post #10, which marks the intersection that forms the loop portion of the Buckeye Valley Loop.  To make the climbing easier, this description continues straight and uses the trail going right as its return route, thus hiking the loop clockwise.  The gradual climb up the ravine continues, and the Center’s northwest boundary comes close on the left.

            At 0.9 miles, the trail curves right for the final short but steep climb out of the ravine.  Now on a drier ridgetop course, the land drops off steeply to the left as you head out a narrow finger ridge.  Hickory, oak, and maple trees dominate this ridge.  1.2 miles into the hike, you reach a ravine overlook where the trail switches back to the right.  A primitive but effective wooden staircase is descended just before the loop is closed.  Turn left to head back to the Trillium Valley Trail, then turn right to continue the Trillium Valley Trail.

Wooden staircase at end of Buckeye Valley Loop

            Soon you reach post #8 and the start of the Swamp Boardwalk, which exits right.  The Swamp Boardwalk offers a short 0.5 mile loop on wooden boardwalk through a wetland, but recent rains had the boardwalk underwater on my visit.  Thus, I continued straight to reach post #7 and a major trail intersection with options going left and right.  The option going right is the 0.8 mile Stillwater Loop that traverses bottomland forest along its namesake river, but it like the Swamp Boardwalk was underwater.  Therefore, my only option was to turn left and begin the Hickory Ridge Trail.

            The trail climbs moderately to reach post #6, which marks the intersection that forms the Hickory Ridge Trail’s loop.  This hike turns right to start hiking the loop counterclockwise.  A little more climbing brings you to the edge of the Stillwater River valley, which drops to your right.  The elevation change puts the treetops from the valley at eyelevel, thus making this trail an excellent venue for bird watching.

Stillwater River valley overlook

            Ignore a short-cut trail that exits left.  Reach an overlook of the Stillwater River valley at 1.9 miles.  Trees block any view of the river, but a bench makes a good place to rest and observe birds and wildlife.  Next the trail briefly joins what appears to be an old road before reaching post #1, where you need to turn left to continue the Hickory Ridge Trail’s loop.

Cattail Pond

            Pass two more numbered trail intersections to reach a small prairie and post #5.  Turn right at post #5 to begin the Pond Trail, the final leg of this hike.  The short Pond Trail passes two ponds: Catface Pond and Cattail Pond.  Both ponds featured a lot of algae, but Cattail Pond also contained a large number of bullfrogs that were sounding off on my visit.  The Interpretive Building parking lot lies just past Cattail Pond.

Iddings House

            Before you leave, there is one other place near the Interpretive Building that is worth a visit.  Just left (south) of the Interpretive Building stands the Iddings Log House.  Built by Benjamin Iddings in 1804, the Iddings Log House is the oldest structure on its original site in Miami County.  The log house adds an historical gem to the natural treasures you have already seen at Brukner Nature Center.

Vogel State Park: Bear Hair Gap and Lake Trahlyta Trails (Blog Hike #751)

Trails: Bear Hair Gap and Lake Trahlyta Trails

Hike Location: Vogel State Park

Geographic Location: south of Blairsville, GA (34.76617, -83.92358)

Length: 5.9 miles

Difficulty: 8/10 (Moderate/Difficult)

Date Hiked: June 2019

Overview: Two loops, one long and hard to a high overlook, and one short and easy around Lake Trahlyta to Trahlyta Falls.

Park Information: https://gastateparks.org/Vogel

Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=751665

Photo Highlight:

Hike Video, Lake Trahlyta Section: 

Directions to the trailhead: From Blairsville, drive south on US 19 for 10.2 miles to the signed park entrance on the right.  Turn right to enter the park, and pay the small park entrance fee.  Drive the main park road 0.4 miles to the Visitor Center.  Park in the Visitor Center parking lot or in the larger lot across the road beside Lake Trahlyta.

The hike: Established in 1931, Vogel State Park is the second oldest state park in Georgia and one of two original state parks in Georgia’s state park system (the other being Indian Springs State Park).  The depression-era Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) built many of the park’s structures including the dam that forms the park’s lake, Lake Trahlyta.  The park’s location at the base of Blood Mountain, the highest point on Georgia’s section of the Appalachian Trail, keeps temperatures regionally cool even during the summer.  The park is named for August H. Vogel and Fred Vogel, Jr., who donated the 233 acres to form the park.

            Vogel State Park offers several excellent amenities, including a 103-site developed campground, 35 cabins, fishing and swimming in Lake Trahlyta, a mini-golf course, and 18 miles of trails.  The park has three main hiking trails: the 1 mile Trahlyta Lake Trail, the 4.3 mile Bear Hair Gap Trail, and the 12.9 mile Coosa Backcountry Trail.  With more than a mile of vertical rise, the long and rugged Coosa Backcountry Trail is best hiked as a multi-day backpack.  The other two trails could be hiked independently, but they combine to form a manageable 5.9 mile barbell-shaped route.  Such is the hike described here.

            To do the harder loop first, this hike starts with the Bear Hair Gap Trail.  From the lakeside parking lot, walk southwest past the Visitor Center along the asphalt road that leads through the cabin area to the park’s campground.  After 0.25 miles of road walking, you reach the signed trailhead for the Byron Reece, Bear Hair Gap, and Coosa Backcountry Trails on the right.  There is nowhere to park at the trailhead, so anyone who hikes any of these three trails has to start with a road walk.  This parking arrangement seems suboptimal, but it is what it is.

Vogel State Park trailhead

            The common entrance trail climbs a few stone steps before beginning a gradual ascent with cascading Burnett Branch downhill to the left.  Maple trees dominate the forest at this elevation, and even though some pine trees appear in the forest this hike would be a nice fall leaf peeping hike.  At 0.4 miles, the signed Byron Herbert Reece Trail exits right.  The Byron Herbert Reece Trail forms a short but moderately steep 0.8 mile loop, and it makes a nice add-on if you want some more forest hiking after completing the Bear Hair Gap Trail.  Continue straight to remain on the combined Bear Hair Gap and Coosa Backcountry Trail.

            After passing a wooden overlook platform that overlooks nothing in particular and crossing Burnett Branch, a gradual climb brings you to a major trail intersection.  The unmarked trail going left leads to the campground, and the trails going straight and right form the loop portion of the Bear Hair Gap Trail.  To make the climbing a little easier, this description turns right here and uses the trail going straight as its return route, thus hiking the loop counterclockwise.

Trail intersection

            After only a couple hundred more feet, the Bear Hair Gap and Coosa Backcountry Trails part ways just after you exit Vogel State Park and enter Chattahoochee National Forest.  You need to angle softly left here to stay on the Bear Hair Gap Trail.  The trail markings here can be confusing.  The Bear Hair Gap Trail is marked with painted green diamonds and the Coosa Backcountry Trail is marked with painted green rectangles, but the corners on some of the diamonds are rubbing off, thus making them look like rectangles.  Fortunately, a brown carsonite post bearing the number 110, the national forest’s designation for the Bear Hair Gap Trail, also sits at this intersection.

Climbing toward Vogel Overlook

            For the next 1.5 miles the wide single-track dirt and rock trail climbs on a moderate to steep grade as it gains just over 700 vertical feet of elevation.  Three small creeks are crossed via bridge or rock hop, but the wet areas around them may make the crossings more comfortable if you are wearing waterproof boots.  At 1.8 miles, you reach the signed spur trail for the Vogel Overlook.  Turn left to reach the overlook.

            One final steep section brings you to the overlook.  The view from the east-facing overlook is somewhat encumbered by trees, but even during the leafy months Lake Trahlyta is visible almost 900 feet below.  On a clear day, Brasstown Bald, the highest point in Georgia, is visible to the east.  You have earned these views, so take some time, have a trail snack, and see what you can see.

View from Vogel Overlook

            Continuing around the Bear Hair Gap Trail’s loop, a pleasant section of sidehill trail ensues as the trail maintains a near constant elevation with the hillside dropping to your left and Slaughter Mountain rising to your right.  Large amounts of paw paw and sassafras grow in the understory up here.  At 2.6 miles, you rock hop rhododendron-choked Wolf Creek just before the Coosa Backcountry Trail re-enters from the right.  Stay left to remain on the combined Bear Hair Gap and Coosa Backcountry Trails.

            The next 0.3 miles is a steep rocky descent that loses over 250 feet of elevation.  The trail weaves around several cabin-sized boulders, and the terrain is scenic but rugged.  Just past 3 miles, you cross Wolf Creek again, this time just below a small waterfall.

Descending through boulders

            After some equally steep but less rocky descending, you cross from the national forest back into the state park.  Some picnic shelters and the state park campground can be seen downhill and through the trees to the right.  The last mile of the loop is a rolling course that traces the base of Slaughter Mountain, which rises to the left and falls to the right. 

            At 4.1 miles, you close the loop.  Retrace your steps down the entrance trail to the park road, then turn left on the park road to return to the lakeside parking lot that contains your car at 4.7 miles, thus completing the first loop and your tour of the park’s backcountry.  To also see the park’s developed area around Lake Trahlyta, consider adding on the Trahlyta Lake Trail, which forms a 1 mile loop around its namesake lake and offers a short spur to an attractive waterfall.

Trailhead: Trahlyta Lake Trail

            The Trahlyta Lake Trail starts at a signed trailhead at the southeast end of the lakeside parking area.  The trail crosses a wooden bridge over the main stream that feeds Lake Trahlyta to reach a picnic shelter, where the trail curves left to begin following the southeast bank of Lake Trahlyta.  The park road stays very close on the right, and a wooden boardwalk carries you over a wet area.

Blood Mountain behind Lake Trahlyta

            5.2 miles into the hike, you reach the lake’s dam and spillway area.  Looking to the left across the lake provides this park’s signature view of Blood Mountain behind Lake Trahlyta.  The overlook you stood at an hour or so ago also stands above the lake’s opposite shore.  Signs warn against descending the steep and slippery dam and spillway, so make sure you stay on the trail.

            Just after crossing the spillway, the signed spur trail to Trahlyta Falls exits right.  The spur trail descends on a gradual to moderate grade to reach an observation platform near the base of Trahlyta Falls.  Moderate volumes of water cascade for 35 feet over numerous rock layers, and the falls sound as pleasant as they look.

Trahlyta Falls

            Back on the Trahlyta Lake Trail, the trail drops off the dam and passes very close to a water treatment plant and SR 180 on the right.  The last segment of the trail follows a sewer line as it passes through a stand of holly.  The trail comes out at the end of the park’s cabin road.  A short road walk with the park’s swimming area on the left completes the loop of Lake Trahlyta and returns you to the lakeside parking area for a second and final time.