Hiking at Colorado Bend

 

What a wonderful weekend I just had. I had three days off work due to the Veteran's Day Holiday. I did my usual Saturday shopping and chores on Friday, and I went to Colorado Bend State Park on Saturday and went hiking. I arrived at the park just a bit after 9:00 am. The weather was perfect for hiking as it was a cool 54f and cloudy when I arrived. It only got to 64f while I was there. It was quiet on the trail, I only met four other hikers on it. The only disappointment was the hike I had planned was to be a loop, but the trail ended at the river by Gorman Cave, the river trail was not accessible beyond there. I was not happy about that as there was no mention of this online, on the maps or at the trailhead. So my loop became and out and back hike and was a bit shorter than I had planned. It was still a nice three hour hike (at a leisurely pace). After the hike I drove deeper into the park to check out the camping area. The tent sites are way too close together for my comfort so I don't think I will plan on camping there. I will return though to do a few more hikes as they have some longer challenging trails that I am very interested in getting on. 

So the trail I did on Saturday was the Dogleg Canyon trail. It is a bit rocky in areas and has a few changes in elevation. There are some scenic areas but mostly rocks and Mountain Junipers. I did see an armadillo on my return. I easily completed the hike and did not struggle at all on the hills. I am really starting to notice the improvement in my fitness level. My legs held up really well and I only started to tire towards the end of the hike. I do see that I will need to work on my cardio before I tackle a full days hike. I had expected to be sore and tired on Sunday, but I felt great and did my full morning workout with 200/400 steps on the stair stepper. I did have a little bit of knee pain yesterday and it was slightly worse this morning. I will wear my knee brace for a few days and I should be fine. 

Colorado Bend is a nice size park. It has a variety of terrain, with areas along the Colorado River, Spicewood Springs and several canyons. Trails are rated from easy to difficult so there is something for everyone.