Backpack Training: Week 13 - To the Bat Cave!
Was week 13 unlucky? Right Buddy’s foot was bothering her, Left Buddy’s back was bothering him, the trail was really muddy, Left Buddy (LB) left his wallet, his car keys and his gaiters at home, the trees were dropping snow and dripping on us almost the whole time on our long hike and we didn’t make it all the way to the bat cave. Was it unlucky? Well, we’re the glass-half-full kind of couple and we had a great time this week!
Signs of spring were evident on our short hikes this week. The western meadowlarks were singing their songs from the tops of fence posts, the red-winged blackbirds were starting their mating calls, the killdeer were running along the ground luring us away from their nests, the turtles were sunning themselves out on a log in the pond and the great blue herons were starting to build their nests. Although there was not much greenery yet, you could feel the activity and excitement in the air.
For our long hike of the week, we decided to take the Mallory Cave Trail, which actually was our shortest hike of the week, but the most elevation gain, just under three miles and 800 feet elevation gain. Since it was a short hike, we loaded our packs heavy, 24 to 27 pounds. The Mallory Cave Trail ends at a bat cave, but the area around the cave is closed from April 1st to October 1st for roosting bats. So we went on this hike on March 31st, the day before the closure, in hopes we would get to see the bat cave.
There was snow a couple of days before, but the temperatures were above freezing during our hike. As a result, the start of the hike was really muddy, from NCAR over to where the Mallory Cave Trail actually started, just on the other side of the Mesa Trail. The mud was clumping onto the bottom of our shoes and the ends of our trekking poles and we could feel the added weight. OK, we won’t lie, we were commenting to ourselves how we were looking forward to the day when we could hike without the mud. However, the snow covered trees were a beautiful sight and it wasn’t long before the mud on Mallory Cave Trail was replaced with slush, ice and even dry dirt! The trail is mostly in the trees so we were constantly being dripped on and clumps of snow landed on us periodically. We had no trouble staying warm despite the damp conditions since the temperatures were approaching 50 degrees and the sun was shining brightly.
We made it to a large sign with information about the bats and we thought we were there, but we saw no cave. Then we noticed a small sign bolted to the rocks pointing up a steep rocky slope. It turns out the last little stretch, a hundred feet or so, to the cave is a scramble up the rocks. To make it more challenging, the rocky slope was wet with patches of snow and ice. We looked at each other and decided we had gone far enough.
Meet Aaron Stewart. We met him at the base of the rocky slope. He was also contemplating whether to attempt the scramble. However, he was more courageous than we were, so we just cheered him on and took his picture. While we waited for Aaron to return, LB pulled out a tarp from his pack so we could sit on the wet rocks and eat our lunch, while the trees dripped on us some more. We are glad to report that Aaron made it back down, safe and sound. He was also a great sport and showed us pictures on his phone of the cave and the views. So we got our proof that the bat cave does exist. Thank you Aaron! It turns out that you cannot go into the cave because there is a decorative metal gate across the opening. Maybe we’ll come back in October to see if we are daring enough to attempt the scramble when the rocks are dry.
Our training must be paying off because when we got back to the car, it didn’t really feel like we had been on a hike. Our legs were not tired and we still had plenty of energy. It was more like a Sunday afternoon stroll in the park. Well after all, it was Sunday and it was afternoon and it was a park.
(RB)