Double Janes Creek Loops

Arcata Community Forest

(Map link.)

I headed off to the Arcata Community Forest to, uh, frolic along the creek. Give or take. For this hike, I started at the entrance off Diamond Drive. This entrance has parking along the street in a break between the houses. A dirt turnout provides a turn around and parking for horse trailers. (You do see horses from time to time in the forest.)

00: wide trail with lots of tall, green trees surrounding — The entry from Diamond Drive. Ah, the trees! (Ah, the stumps... it is second growth redwoods.)

01: mushroom with a flat top and split edges — It is most decidedly mushroom season.

I passed the spur to the parking on California Ave., which is not quite so easy to utilize, and looked for trail 10 (Vista Trail, but these names are only on the maps) to cut over to the top of the South Fork Janes Creek Loop Trail. I found it and quickly was reminded that it's a trail worthy of travel just because. It is quite a nice stretch through the forest as it dips down across a stream, then climbs again.

03: trees and light — A little at the start of trail 10.

Trail 10 put me across a road from the signed Janes Creek Trail, so across I went and down I went. This trail is partly single track and partly old road and mostly on an easement. I was starting on the single track and it had some muddy spots and threatened to send me slipping a couple times. I met a few people coming up, and that may be the better way since one is a little more stable when climbing. I managed to be careful enough while taking in some non-mushroom fungus.

05: log with many clusters of mushrooms — But these are more mushrooms.

06: splitting and coming to points — A coral fungus.

07: mushoom with a large, white base — A little mushroom with a big base.

08: pointing, splitting fingers — Another coral fungus.

I got to the old road portion of the trail and the mushrooms became more hidden behind the greenery lining the wider break in the forest. I tried to catch views of the lushness of the forest around Janes Creek instead.

11: water between a lot of green — Janes Creek from one of the bridges.

12: a few yellow leaves in the green — There's very little sign of the season as the leaves start to fall.

14: water flowing — Another spot along Janes Creek where it can be reached from the trail.

15: water flowing away in even more green — Downstream along Janes Creek from the other bridge.

Then the trail turns up and away from the creek, so I followed it up and around and to where I started on trail 10. From there, I kept on going upward to catch trail 6, Lower Janes Creek Trail.

17: ring of mushrooms — A "fairy ring" in a fern sheltered spot on the road.

18: lots of trees — There are some nice spaces of trees, even in the second growth forest.

20: a few yellow leaves — Another slight touch of autumn among the leaves of the thimbleberries.

22: big and small mushrooms — More mushrooms.

Once on trail 6, I did manage to round the shortcut over to 12 rather than continue on it. These various trails are often short, but it's not quite that short. I managed to sort it out and get back on 6 for the larger portion of the trail.