Explored Oak Point Park Trail

While driving on Parker near Spring Creek Parkway I have noticed they have put in cement trails leading from the south side of Parker to the north side of Parker and to behind the balloon festival field. They are finally working on the trails of Oak Point Park. I needed to get some more miles on my boots, so I decided to explore. It also gave me an opportunity to play with my new GPS device :-)

I started from my Garage and walked towards Merriman. I walked down Merriman to the path through Bob Wodruff park. I walked north on the trail, but could not find where it connected to the trail that leads under Parker. I continued N/W on the trail which leads under Shiloh bridge. I hit the sidewalk along Shiloh and came to the intersection of Spring Creek Parkway and Parker. I carefully crossed to the NE corner and went to the field with all of the Pecans. I found the cement trail that leads under the Parker bridge and followed it until it stopped just short of the creek. I could see across the creek to all of the other trails that were built. It is just a matter of time until they complete the bridge over the creek, and then this will be a great biking/hiking trail.

To get the miles on my boots, I walked through the balloon festival field towards the entrance to the outdoor concert center. I turned around and walked back towards the waypoint I set at the path as it goes under Parker. Even though I could see where I needed to go, it was fun to see how this function worked on the GPS. I found the waypoint and then contiued on the trail under the bridge until it stopped again at the creek. They have already started on the anchors for the bridge, so it shouldn't be long until this one is done. The creek was low and had some good points to cross, and had a not so difficult way to get down and up the banks (trees, bushes, etc.) so I decided to go across. I felt a great accomplishment at this. I actually could test the waterproofness of my boots, and my climbing ability. On the other side, I could see the original trail through Bob Woodruff park I walked on.

I took the trail back S/E and when I got to the trails to the Outdoor leaning center I had only hiked a little over 4 miles, so I decided to take some of these trails. It was a nice change, since there are birds and a bit more nature than the cement trails. After a bit more than a mile I headed back home. I used the GPS again to lead to my "home" waypoint.

I customized the GPS a bit so that I could see on one screen the trip results. When I got home this is what I had recorded:

• Trip Odometer = 6.1 miles
• Moving Time = 1:46 minutes
• Moving Average = 3.5 miles/hour

Not a bad outing. I can't wait for a month or so and try this trail out again. Either hiking or even biking.