North Park (PA) hike (TR)

“I had a good hike today...just over 7 miles of hiking at North Park in Pittsburgh. I used a portion of the Rachel Carson Trail and made a loop by connecting it to some of the park trails.

It was a humid 75 degrees when I started. Good thing, because the toughest part was the first mile and a half from where I started. All climbing...mostly gradual, but the trail pitches up in a nasty way a couple of times along that section. LOTS of eastern chipmunks today...they're EVERYWHERE (I typed all the scientific names on my last try, but that's a pain...look 'em up yourself if you want them). There are some grey squirrels around, too...but they're not nearly as numerous as the chipmunks. Before I wore him out, Biner was quite intent on the chipmunks. Some of them either didn't realize he could eat them, or they knew he was leashed and couldn't get them. We saw one woodchuck towards the end. It dove for cover in a tile drain as we approached.

We saw several birds...nothing too interesting, just some robins, crows, northern flickers. We did see three wild turkey hens, but no poults. I've seen pileated woodpeckers on this trail before, but didn't see them today. They've got a nest in a hollowed out snag partway up the first big climb, at a false summit.

Blisters would be a recurring theme on this hike. I think I chose the wrong socks. I was wearing smartwools, which I've never had a problem with before. They're the thinner adrenaline mini's, and I noticed that they're getting some wear on the achilles area. I think the worn area was causing my blister. I'll have to check my other pairs to see if they're ok for hiking or not. Otherwise, I'll have to use thicker socks from now on. I had to stop several times and take my boot off along the hike. Adjust the sock, apply moleskin, adjust the moleskin, realize that I'm sweating so much that the moleskin won't stay put so I have to put a compression bandage on my ankle to keep the moleskin in place. The compression bandage finally did the trick, but I was pretty sore at the end of the hike. Good thing I learned this on a day hike and not a 3 day trek through the woods.

We saw several deer bounding across the trail. One of them was VERY close (hiding behind a tree) before it bounded off and startled both me and the dog. A few of them were does with fawns. One doe even had twins. No wonder the deer are overpopulated around here!

I saw some very interesting wildflowers that I've never seen before. I'll have to look them up. I also saw several types of fungi. I even saw a dead bird of some kind. I couldn't see the head, and I didn't want to get too close to it, but it could have been a turkey. I smelled it from quite a distance away. The dog was exhausted and couldn't care less at that point...hahaha.

A significant portion of my loop followed roads near the golf course. Part of that was actually along the road (on a wide, gravel shoulder), and part of it was on dirt trail following the road very closely. The western portion for the most part was very uninteresting, though I did see a couple of flowers and fungi along that portion. At one point, I found myself on the gravel shoulder, not wondering how the trail ended up 50ft to my right. I missed a turn somewhere that wasn't very well-marked.

One of the nicest segments followed closely to the fenceline for the local police academy. It would have been my favorite section had it not been for the repeated gunfire. Biner really didn't enjoy that part.

Overall, it was a good hike. There were some branches I didn't follow, but may check out on a future trip. I won't be using the section near the golf course again. That part is labeled "horse trail" and really has very little interest to someone hiking on foot. It looks like bikes use it a bit, but I wouldn't want to ride my mtn bike there, either (bikes are permitted on the trails in this park, but the park doesn't label the trails for them). I only saw one person, about a mile and a half after I started. Biner and I finished the trail about half an hour or so before the afternoon t-storms hit. Rain would have been nice, but I don't like being out in storms. I was nearly hit by lightning once and it was NOT pleasant.

http://www.imagestation.com/album/index.html?id=2124441371”

“nice report--”

“Thank you...were you able to see the pics? Sometimes I use the wrong link and people can't see 'em.”