Weldon Springs Conservation Area

After a morning of soccer games, I was looking for a 8+ mile hike to fit in before the 6:00 basketball game.  Since I was already in St. Charles County, I figured I would finally go hike the Lewis and Clark Trail at Weldon Springs Conservation Area.  I had hiked portions of the trail several times in the past, usually while hunting or otherwise wandering off trail through the conservation area, but never walked the entire loop.  Perhaps I was put off by the almost always overflowing parking lot at the trailhead off Highway 94, or maybe just figured I had seen it all already, but today I discovered that I have been missing out!

 

As I drove down Highway 94 approaching the trailhead, I noticed the typical overflow parking that had numerous cars in the grass and shoulder area of the highway outside the large parking lot.  I was able to grab the last spot in the gravel lot as someone was pulling out just as I arrived. Madness, I thought, as I am rarely one too happy to get onto the trail among hordes of people. But I threw on my pack and started off onto the trail, heading counter-clockwise towards the Missouri River.  The trail at this point is wide and gravel packed, possibly even an old road. It follows along the top of a flat ridge and is an easy walk. The woods were totally devoid of bird song today, in fact I didn’t even see a bird until I stumbled upon a beautiful Eastern Towhee at about the one mile mark. After admiring that gem, I moved on quickly, cognizant of my time limit for the day.  

 

The first bluff with a decent view of the massive Missouri River is about 1.5 miles in.  The view is slightly obstructed by trees, but you can see the Katy trail down below. I continued moving along and found the best viewing from on top of a bluff at around the 2 mile mark.  Here a large limestone outcropping stands alone with no trees blocking the view. I am totally scared of heights so I only ventured out a bit, just enough to snap a few quick photos. There were a few other hikers sitting on the edge of the rock, and we were accompanied by a flock of Turkey Vultures, many of them gliding below us so we could view them from above.  The river is gigantic, and beautiful in its own right. From this vantage point you can see many miles down river as well as quite a ways up river. I made a mental note to return here in the fall to take in the fall colors.

 

 

As I continued along, the trail ducks in and out of the woods as it follows the ridge above some rather deep ravines.  Occasionally it would emerge close to the edge and a little side trail would lead to another rocky ledge overlooking the river.  The wind was gusting today and, as I said before, I really don’t like heights. For those more adventurous than I there are some great spots to take it all in.

 

Somewhere around the 2.5 mile mark, the trail starts descending and cuts away from the river as it closes in on a large wet weather creek in the bottoms.  The creek is beautiful, loaded with multi-color rocks among a few pools of clear water. This would be a fun place to wander in search of arrowheads and ancient artifacts, although I am sure it is probably pretty picked over.  Right at the 3 mile marker is where the trail splits off with the Clark Trail heading back towards the trailhead while the Lewis trail continues on for 5 more miles. Also at this location is a make-shift marker where people have mounded white stones from the creek into a large pile and written their favorite quotes or initials on them.  I found it pretty entertaining and snapped a few photos.

Since I am in training mode for the Grand Canyon, I opted for a the longer Lewis Trail in order to log more miles.  I continued onward, climbing again towards another overlook above the river. Here was an interesting formation in the limestone cliff on top of the bluff.

The trail narrows here, and is earthen singletrack that cuts through the mixed hardwood forest offering wonderful views of several large valleys.  Once the trail goes back down hill it loosely follows a series of wet weather drainages that provide additional interest. The bird activity was still tremendously slow here, but at least I could hear a few chickadees, Carolina Wrens, and Red-bellied Woodpeckers.  A distant Barred Owl hooted away and a few American Crows broke the silence. It still looked and felt like winter along this stretch, and I became anxious for the spring wildflowers and ferns that will break up the browns and grays that dominate the slopes now. It won’t be long now.

 

I was running out of time and my pace was a bit slower than I need it to be, so I really tried to double time it back to the trailhead.  As I was composing my thoughts in the last mile or two, I was pleasantly surprised by the lack of people I actually saw on the trail today.  There were a few families out and about, and a few people enjoying the views above the river, but considering the number of cars in the lot I barely ran into anyone during the 8.2 mile hike.  I enjoyed the distant views provided by the nakedness of winter, but longed for the colors and sounds of spring. This hike is also nice in the summer as it is almost completely in the shade and not too buggy.  As I said before, I can only imagine how pretty it must be in the fall. So basically, the Lewis and Clark trail is absolutely an all-season trail. As I made the final climb out of the woods, I pledged to return during the different seasons to make sure that I make the most out of this beautiful trail.

 

For the birders, this was a disappointing day.  Tallied only one Eastern Towhee, Turkey Vultures, American Crows, Chickadees, Carolina Wren, Tufted Titmice, White-breasted Nuthatch, Barred Owl,Red-bellied Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, as well as Fox and Gray Squirrels.