The Sipsey Wilderness Hiking Club will be meeting for a day hike along trails 202, 209, and 200 in the Sipsey Wilderness on Saturday, January 15. Backpacking and overnight camping are also possible; contact the club.
Meet for the hike at the Randolph Trailhead at 8:00 AM. Arrangements have been made to have vehicles spotted at the ending point.
The hike begins by following trail 202 - Randolph all the way to where it meets the Sipsey. We cross the river and continue east on trail 209 - Sipsey River to its terminus at Borden Creek. We will not cross Borden however but rather hike up the West Borden Creek Trail (the western parallel of trail 200), finishing at the Borden Trailhead.
This is about an eight mile hike. Trail 202 starts wide and flat and ends with a somewhat steep downhill to the river. Once across, 209 is also more or less level but with a few small feeder streams (and their possibly muddy banks) to negotiate. The west side of 200 is similar but there may be more fallen trees to get around.
The only serious difficulty may be crossing the river. The depth will of course depend on the amount and timing of rainfall. So be prepared to take off your shoes and roll up your pants or whatever strategy you favor to ford streams that are too deep to just splash through.
Note that if conditions are such that it is simply too dangerous to cross the Sipsey, we will not attempt it. In such case, we have some other options besides just retracing our steps. So not to worry.
Bring your lunch, plenty of water, and maybe a small towel to dry your feet after crossing the river. A walking stick is generally helpful along these trails.
Meet for the hike at the Randolph Trailhead at 8:00 AM. Arrangements have been made to have vehicles spotted at the ending point.
The hike begins by following trail 202 - Randolph all the way to where it meets the Sipsey. We cross the river and continue east on trail 209 - Sipsey River to its terminus at Borden Creek. We will not cross Borden however but rather hike up the West Borden Creek Trail (the western parallel of trail 200), finishing at the Borden Trailhead.
This is about an eight mile hike. Trail 202 starts wide and flat and ends with a somewhat steep downhill to the river. Once across, 209 is also more or less level but with a few small feeder streams (and their possibly muddy banks) to negotiate. The west side of 200 is similar but there may be more fallen trees to get around.
The only serious difficulty may be crossing the river. The depth will of course depend on the amount and timing of rainfall. So be prepared to take off your shoes and roll up your pants or whatever strategy you favor to ford streams that are too deep to just splash through.
Note that if conditions are such that it is simply too dangerous to cross the Sipsey, we will not attempt it. In such case, we have some other options besides just retracing our steps. So not to worry.
Bring your lunch, plenty of water, and maybe a small towel to dry your feet after crossing the river. A walking stick is generally helpful along these trails.
