River Place Nature Trail 12/5/15

 

Saturday, December 5, 2015

 

Hike: River Place Nature Trail (Panther Hollow/Canyon/Little Fern), Austin, TX

Weather: clear, cool, mid 50s

Hikers: Ian, Court

Length: 5.13 miles

 

Our second hike on this trail was as good as the first, albeit under very different weather conditions.  The last time we were here it was hot and the mosquitoes were insane.  Today was downright pleasant, if a little cold at first.  However, the trail was much more crowded this time as well.

We got to the trail head around 9:30am and set off at a pretty quick pace.  The water is running well and the morning light reflecting off the creek made for some pretty pictures.  It was a bit muddy in places, but nothing too out of control.  This is still the best trail in Austin, with almost 500 feet of difference in elevation, which is quite a bit for most trails in this area.

After getting to the end of the Panther Trail, we road walked for a bit and then hit the Little Fern Trail Head and dove back into the trail system.  It made for a nice loop without any backtracking.

Again, this trail is exquisitely maintained.  I think the word is getting out, as we probably saw at least 30 other hikers.  On a separate note, I just bought a pair of La Sportiva Ultra Raptors to replace my Merrell Moab Ventilators, which I should be breaking in on our next hike.  I love my Merrell’s, but they don’t breathe nearly well enough.  Hopefully the La Sportiva’s treat me as well as the Merrell’s have over the past 400 or so miles.