Local Discoveries

Between working on a house we're selling and working on actual work, I've been busy enough lately to keep me out of any kind of real woods. I guess it also hasn't helped that I've been getting used to 10 years of new bike technology all at once too.

I have done a good bit of local exploration though, and though I usually don't find anything interesting enough to write about, that hasn't been the case recently.

First up, while exploring a sewer line trail along Butternut Creek, I ran into this old chimney.

No idea how old it is, but it's completly surrounded by trees. Also, it has that neat old rocky bottom, but with a modern brick top. I like it.

Second, I have this buddy Gary who managed to get an old Thunderbird stuck in Nickajack Creek when he was a teenager. He had to abandon it there, and it sunk into the sand, but you could see it if the water was the right depth, and everyone started calling the sandy bottom nearby Tunderbird Beach. I've been looking for it ever since, and have found no fewer than 5 other cars/trucks in those woods and that creek, none of which are it.

Could this be it?

It's kind of in the right area?

Gary's overseas right now, so I can't ask him directly, but I will when he gets back.

Third, I tried to go ride "Threadmill" the other day. Years ago (like 10 years ago) I heard that some Sorba chapter build a trail out there. I've even had GPS data on my trails site for it for that whole time, but I'd never actually ridden there. I realized last week that one of my recent-ish explorations (the one where I broke my ribs sending it off that little step) was just down the street. "Man, I should check that out!"

Ha!

Bulldozed!

And very recently too! Google maps still shows it as woods.

The park the trail led out of, Clarkdale Park, is now Old Clarkdale Park, and the new Clarkdale Park is up the road a ways.

Exploring the ruins of the old park, I found a few scraps of trail, some weird brick structure...

(I love stuff like that - totally enigmatic. What the heck was that thing?)

...and somebody's old bamboo fort.

Then I found a levee running off to the north, with a trail up on it, and some old signs way out at the end:

There were bits of old trail leading into piney woods, but "The Pine Maze" itself was indiscernible.

And, finally, closer to home, I discovered an old road, with an old ATV maze at one end, and an old house, barn, shed, and so on at the other.

I guess that last thing was for loading/unloading a flatbed truck. Maybe?

Stuff everywhere. I'm sure I'll run into even more stuff this winter when the leaves are gone and the woods is open.