Cuivre River, Blackhawk Point Trail, Sunday, July 28, 2013

View from the Bluffs, Cuivre River State Park

The weather remained amazingly calm, cool and beautiful all through the night. It was actually 54 degrees on the morning of July 28! No stultefying humidity whatsoever. I thought perhaps I was in a different state, sitting out by a fire pit, wearing a sweater the night before this hike. Juneau and I headed off again around 8:15.  She stayed on her 20 ft. leash--only unraveling it once when I wasn't paying attention to chase a squirrel. I'm sure she wanted to chase the deer we saw when they bolted (after observing us for quite some time on two separate occasions), but she's very mindful if I'm paying attention and give her firm resistance.

This time we hiked a trail that's new as of 2011--the Blackhawk Point Trail. The trailhead is right next to the Frenchman's Bluff Trailhead behind the CCC stone shelter. It's 5.75 miles long--crosses Cheatham Road and runs along the bluffs for a substantial part, with excellent views of the river valley and farmland.  The last two miles or so follow Cheatham Road, which is gravel but open to cars. We saw deer and horses--but although the trail is specifically marked for bicyclists, we didn't see any.  I wonder if they avoid Cuivre River because horseback riders seem to claim every trail for their own. In any case, this was an excellent hike.  It was cool and breezy and I hardly ran into anyone. I'd like to come back in Fall when the leaves are changing.

I did get chggers, though. Chiggers like I haven't had since I was 33 years old! And for the first time in over eight years, I had to take a methylprednisolone packe! Ugh!