Jakes Creek

Date: 12/31/13
Distance: 9.2mi

Today I headed out to hike the Jakes Creek and Miry Ridge trail.  There was a good chance of rain late in the afternoon and tomorrow, so I was prepared in the event of rain.

The Jakes Creek trail was 2.9 miles on the trail map, but I had read that it was actually 3.3mi.  When I got to the trail, the sign said 3.7mi.  When I actually got to Jakes Gap, my phone indicated 3.9, so the hike was longer than I expected.

The 1st 1.8 miles of the trail are on a gravel road.  It has some rolling hills but goes up much more than down.  At 1.8 miles, a foot bridge crosses the creek and the trail eventually turns into the classic single track trail.

The climb up to Jakes Gap was pretty tough with the elevation gain.  It was a nice climb through the woods.  At the Gap, the wind was roaring through the trees.  It sounded like the beach.  I headed on up Miry Gap, but about 0.6 miles up, the trail turned and I ended up directly in the wind.  At this point, the sky looked threatening and the wind was howling, so I made the decision to turn back.  I'll have to get the top part of Miry Ridge another day.

By the time I got to the gap, it was raining, so I hustled back down the mountain.

Even with the change of plans and the off and on rain, it was still a nice day in the woods.