Indian Creek

May 28, 2016

We have all been patiently waiting for the repairs to Indian Creek road to be completed, and the time has come to get back up in there.  This really fun road leads to beautiful places and to one fun hike where the tree’s have been painted blue, and that why I’m calling it the “Smurf Forest Hike!”  The blue markings tell the loggers which trees have been inventoried  by the Forest Service and are valuable lumber species.  On this timber sale, they are Ponderosa Pine, Spruce, Douglas Fir, and a few Limber Pine.  6000 “Smurf” trees fill the valley that this hike wanders through and it’s fascinating to see the resurgence of life, both plant and animal, nearly six years after the Twitchell Canyon fire.  July 20, 2010 a bolt of lightning struck the ridge one mile straight west of Manderfield reservoir.  The wildfire was managed throughout the entire summer to help clear and cleanse our overgrown and choking forest.  I know fire has a critical role in the health of our ecosystems, although living with wildfires comes with a short-term price.  We have roads and trails washed out from flooding,  irrigation ditches suffer with silt infiltration, and standing dead trees continue to fall over for years after a fire, making it difficult to keep trails clear.  However, fire is the only practical way to cleanse such steep, rugged country and Mother Nature knows exactly this.  Native American’s didn’t have fire trucks or helicopters and their landscapes were in balance for thousands of years.  There’s nothing new about lighting and windy, dry summers, and if man suppresses every natural fire start, we are just asking for bigger, unstoppable wildfires.  

Please excuse the soapbox speech, we are going hiking!  Trail 054 is 19 miles long from Cove Creek T.H. on the north end, to Manderfield Res. at the south end.  I’m certain most of this trail is in rough shape, but the first 1.5 miles from Manderfield reservoir is ready for YOU, because I cut it myself, for YOU!  It is an easy walk, gaining only 500’ to the head of the valley where the trail then climbs steeply east, then northwest across rocky scree slopes to a saddle leading to two other trails, Line Canyon and Trail Canyon, and hopefully our trails crew can tackle some mileage there this summer.  One of the first things you’ll notice on this trail is that it used to be a logging road, and there are dozen’s of obliteration dips and boulder’s placed to prohibit motorized travel.  The next thing to observe is how tall and dense the new aspen growth is.  The root system from before the fire is actually stimulated by the fire and unharmed, so post-fire growth is very rapid and the new leaves are impressively large.  Deer and elk love eating this green candy!  Another thing to observe is how Ponderosa pines love starting anew after a fire.  Tons of young ponderosa’s have sprouted because they need bare soil and lots of sun to germinate and grow, and forest fires prepare the ground just the way they like it.  Tall, mature ponderosas don’t have many low branches which could help a ground fire climb up to it’s canopy and that helps it survive and spread it’s seed in the years just after a fire.  Two final things of note at the mile and a half mark up trail 054, is that you are standing in the pathway of an old power line clear cut, that ran from a hydroelectric plant in Fish creek, up “Line canyon”, through the saddle north of you, southwest of you over into North Fork of North Creek.  I don’t know where it went from there, or who it serviced, but I suspect either miner’s, or the North Creek community.  Lastly, the north west headwall of this valley has rock formations like the hoodoos of Bryce Canyon and so it is known as “Little Bryce”.  

To get to Manderfield reservoir from Beaver, head north on state road 357 for 7 miles where the asphalt veers left, but slow down for the cattle guard and veer right onto the dirt Indian Creek rd. then in two miles there’s a sign “6 miles to Indian Creek” to the right.  From here you can’t get lost if you stay on forest road 119.  This is a skinny one lane dirt road, so use caution and enjoy the 9 new river crossing structures, super smooth for any car or truck.  200 feet shy of the dam there’s road  to the left where you will park for this trailhead and restroom facilities right by the dam.  This nice revamped road with a picturesque lake at the end will help you get “Into the Tushars” and out for some exercise!