Millstone and Twin Valley Trails

Location: White Clay Creek State Park, Newark, Delaware
Season Visited: Spring
Trail Length: 1.3 and 3.9 miles respectively, or 5.2 miles combined.
Time to Hike: Millstone Trail takes only about half an hour to hike while Twin Valley Trail takes about two and a half hours.
Difficulty Level: Millstone Trail: 1.  Twin Valley Trail: 3.

White Clay Creek State Park is a lovely state park in Delaware that features mature forests, rolling farmlands, and some interesting historical landmarks.  On the border between Delaware and Pennsylvania, the park houses part of the Mason-Dixon Trail along with plenty of recreational activities besides hiking.

I, of course, go for the hiking.  While certainly no national park, White Clay Creek has very pleasant trails less than an hour from my home.  Twin Valley Trail in particular is a hike on par with many good hikes in more popular places.

Unfortunately, White Clay Creek's trail labelling system is only a few points short of awful.  The park uses posts marked with colored arrows instead of blazes, which would be fine if the website mentioned which trails correspond to which arrows... but it doesn't.  This is the real reason why I am reviewing two trails in this post: while trying to find Twin Valley Trail I accidentally hiked all of Millstone Trail first.  So you know, Twin Valley Trail follows the yellow arrows.  Of course, sometimes these don't show up where they should.

So, let's begin with the pleasant and easy Millstone Trail.  Millstone Trail is named for Millstone Pond, pictured here.

To get there, park at the New London Road parking area.  Look left of the the bathrooms and you'll see a trail going into the woods next to a field.  This is where you want to begin.

The beginning of the trail.

Follow this until you come to a left turn in front of a field.  It really doesn't matter whether you take the field trail or the dirt trail because you'll end up in the same place, which is a right turn at the corner of field and woods.  Follow the tree line all the way down to a sign for Millstone Pond.

You'll want to go left at this fork-type thing.

This trail takes you back into the woods, over some board walks, and past a really fun rock formation by the pond.

Sean and Cleo on the rocks.

Walk through the woods for a while and you'll come to some lovely fields perfect for birding along with another pond.  Look out for snapper turtles!

Cattail Pond.

The trail then leads you back to the parking lot where you started.

And that is Millstone Trail.  Short, sweet, and to the point!  Now onto the longer and more challenging Twin Valley Trail, which is the longest in the park with the obvious exception of the Mason-Dixon Trail.

This trail starts the same way, but instead of going all the way to the Millstone Pond sign you stop short at a small trail before that one that is unlabelled except for a post.  This leads you down through a weird overgrown exercise course with many forks and such.  Just try to make it to the bridge over the little creek and you'll be okay.

Part of the exercise course by the bridge.

You'll pass through some of the same things you did if you hiked Millstone Trail, but eventually you'll come to the wooded trail that you'll be staying on for the rest of the hike.  Just remember to follow the yellow arrows!

The interesting buildings and historical landmarks come near the beginning.  An old cellar and the border stone marking the line between Delaware and Pennsylvania are the features.  Stand in two places at once!

The border marker is in a small clearing by a road.  Head back into the woods and hike for a while through the hilly forest.  You'll come to bridges over creeks and at one point will have to walk a small piece down the road, but if you follow the arrows you'll be lead safely on a pretty, and pretty interesting, hike.  At one point you'll even come across an old abandoned car!  I can only speculate about how it got there in the middle of the woods.

Beautiful tall trees. 

After all of these things, you will finally emerge from the woods into some gorgeous farmland.  Follow the cut-grass trail and end up at the parking lot where you started.

All in all, hiking in White Clay Creek State Park is definitely worth it.  I plan to go back and hike the Bryan's Field Trail to see the starting point of the Mason-Dixon line.  If you live in South Jersey, Delaware, or south-eastern Pennsylvania and want to get outside for the day, this is a good way to do it!  Enjoy your hike, and keep wandering.

Salisbury Crags

Location: Holyrood Park, Edinburgh, Scotland
Season Visited: Fall
Trail Length: 2 miles round-trip
Time to Hike: About 1.5 hours
Difficulty Level: 2

Holyrood Park is a little bit of wilderness in the heart of Edinburgh.  Once used as a hunting ground for monarchs, the park now functions as a lovely place to walk.  Along with lochs and ruins, the park also houses the famous Arthur's Seat - the remnants of a dormant volcano - and the Salisbury Crags.  Walking the Salisbury Crags is a lovely way to get a bird's-eye-view of the city of Edinburgh.

Arthur's Seat from Edinburgh Castle.

To walk the perimeter of the Sailsbury Crags, begin at the trail past the Scottish Parliament Building.

Once you've reached the crags, you'll see a trail right in front of you.  Enjoy your uphill ascent and marvel at the amazing rock formations around you.

You'll have lovely views of Edinburgh during your entire walk.

Sunset over Edinburgh.

Edinburgh Castle from the crags.

These views are the highlight of the walk.  The trail itself is pretty straightforward and is mostly gravel.  Once you've come to this point you'll continue past Arthur's Seat and back down the "mountain."

Arthur's Seat.

To get back where you started, follow the path around the base of the hill to where you began.  Or you could simply re-trace your steps.

Should you find yourself in Edinburgh, I definitely recommend checking out Holyrood Park.  My only regret is not giving myself enough time to take in Arthur's Seat and the rest of the park since I only had half a day in Edinburgh and wanted to visit the Royal Mile, among other things.  As you can see by these pictures, I was losing daylight fast and there was only so much I could squeeze in if I wanted to make it back to my hotel before dark (which I didn't).  My advice?  Take at least two days in Edinburgh, if you can!

Enjoy your hike, and keep wandering.

Pinterest

Indian Trail

Location: Mount Kineo, Moosehead Lake, Maine
Season Visited: Summer
Trail Length: 1.8 miles from the base of the trail to the summit of Mount Kineo and back.  Add .8 miles to get to and from the trail head, making the trip a total of 2.6 miles.
Time to Hike: 2 hours
Difficulty Level: 4

Mount Kineo is a wonderful hike.  Nestled in the Northwest of Maine, this geological wonder is as historic as it is dramatic.  Thoreau hiked here in his exploration of the Maine woods, and I love knowing that I am following in his footsteps when I make the climb up Indian Trail.

There is more than one trail around Kineo, but it's generally accepted that Indian Trail is the best.  This trail is difficult - in a good way - and offers views that can only be described as spectacular.

Mount Kineo is only accessible by water.  A ferry in Rockwood takes you to the dock by the Kineo golf course for a fee of $10 per person.  It's worth it.  To find the boat launch, just drive to the town of Rockwood (15 miles northwest of Greenville) and follow signs for the landing.

Kineo from the Rockwood boat launch.

Once you've arrived at Kineo, you'll see the mountain looming right in front of you.  To your right is a golf club and to your left is Carriage Trail.  Take this trail for about .4 miles, which leads you to Indian Trail.

Chipmunk on Carriage Trail, pretending that it's a statue.

Looking up the mountain from Carriage Trail.

Look out for the sign for Indian Trail, and then start climbing!

The trail is steep and rocky from the very beginning.  Be prepared!

It won't be long before you start coming to lovely viewpoints.

There is a rock scramble at one point.  Have fun!

My sisters at the top of the scramble.

Looking southeast.  Golf club in view.

This is a nice clearing to stop at for lunch or a snack.

After this clearing you'll head back into the woods.  Views will be scarce at this point until you come to the highlight of the hike: the fire tower.

From the fire tower you will see miles and miles of absolutely beautiful woodland scenery.  Enjoy it.

The way back down is much easier than the way up (although there are some sections where you're briefly going up instead of down).  Most of the time you are simply re-tracing your steps, although you will come to a fork in the trail at one point that you may not have noticed on the way up.  This is Bridle Trail.  If you go left you will continue the way you came, but going right will also take you back down the mountain.  I've gone both ways and don't really have a preference, unless it's for Bridle Trail simply because it's something different.  If you're feeling very tired, you might want to just take Bridle Trail because it is relatively easier.  Either way, the hike down is lovely.

Find your way to the bottom and follow Carriage Trail back the way you came.

After hiking Kineo, you are bound to feel amazing (and also, more than likely, a little tired).  Enjoy the splendor of the mountain and nature around you, and don't forget all those who came before you who have also been drawn to Kineo.  Keep wandering, and enjoy your hike.

Pinterest