Sanborn Park and Castle Rock Park

3 Days Backpacking the Ridge Trail, End of Day 2 and Beginning of Day 3

Distance: 5.8 Miles Elevation Gain/Loss 850/560

This is the 3rd section out of 4 traversed in a 3 day hike along the ridge trail which started at Skyline Ridge and Russian Ridge Open Space Preserves.

We had hiked nearly a dozen miles with backpacking gear by the time we arrived. The temperature was in the 90’s and much of the 10 liters of water we had started the day with was gone. After resting a bit in the Saratoga Gap parking lot we located the small trail head in the back corner of the lot and headed in. It began as a forested single track carved into the side of steep slope. The occasional gap in the trees offer a brief of the south bay far below to the east.

We encountered no one on the trail that day, perhaps it was the heat that kept people away. Our goal was the Castle Rock Trail Camp, and there are two paths to from the ridge trail to choose from. The first is Loghry Woods Trail, and the second is a service road a half mile further. Both options straddle either side of the nearby gun club, the service road being the shorter, steeper option. We opted for the shorter route down the service road, and tried to ration our water hoping to preserve enough for tonights dinner and tomorrows breakfast. It was after 4pm, we had plenty of daylight remaining, but the heat had been draining our strength, and water reserves all day.

We passed the time on the service counting gun shots from the shooting range until we eventually arrived at a the bottom. A campground map posted nearby showed it was huge and spread out over a large area. But all of the sites were well hidden by trees and we stumbled around through the trails trying to find a good flat open area for our tents. Eventually we settled on one, and collapsed on the picnic table bench to rest a bit before setting up camp.

We found no water at this campground. There were a few water pumps scattered around, but they were dry, and appear to have been dry for a long time. So we rationed what little water we had left. We made dinner with some of it, but gave up on the idea of breakfast. Tomorrow we would another hot day with 9 miles to hike and no more water. So we forged a plan to, once again, wake up very early and walk the initial 1.8 miles to the Castle Rock parking lot where we would hopefully either find water, or get a phone signal where we could call for a pickup.

We packed the next morning by 6:45 and managed to make it to the parking lot as they were opening. And there we found cool filtered drinking water in a fountain. This was so much more refreshing than the warm, sun-baked water we had been drinking all day yesterday.

After a brief rest, lots of water, and some snacks, we made our way back across Skyline Blvd to continue the trail. Giant sandstone rocks surround the trail south of Castle Rock entrance, some with hooks and handles attached for climbing. We took a side trip to Indian Rock and briefly watched a group of climbers practice. Eventually we reached the John Nicholas Trail, the next section of the Ridge Trail and the final section of our 3 day hike.