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| - This is a tale of two hikes. I don't really like the actual "La Madre Springs" part of the trail. From Willow Springs Picnic Area, you take Rocky Gap Road and then turn right onto more dirt road (though it's bouldered off to prevent vehicles). The scenery during this section is nice, but I guess it just doesn't feel like much of a hike when you're walking on dirt road. Also, parts of the road are covered in large, loose rock, which can make the gradual ascent slightly more difficult (and annoying). On the other hand, because you're walking on wide road, you can look up more and take in the scenery.
The real fun begins when you reach the dam. From there, you take a much smaller trail up the hillside. The path closely follows the stream and crosses it several times. Some minor scrambling might be involved. When we went last weekend, there were several wet spots. On the way down, we came across a guy that said it was icy just a week or so ago. So I guess mud is better than ice.
To be honest, I had no idea where I was going. I just kept following the trail. I was with two of my cousins and they were getting tired. Just as they wanted to turn around, I went a little bit farther and spotted the old miner's cabin. It was quite serendipitous timing. It would have been a shame to turn around without any real end point to the hike.
You can actually keep going past the cabin up to the mines. I knew my cousins were ready to turn around, though, and I figured I'd save myself a reason to do the hike again. I'd also like to return now that I have my 10-stop neutral density filter - so I can capture some of the stream's mini-waterfalls.
On the way back, we spotted some bighorn sheep on the mountainside near Rocky Gap Road. That was a nice way to cap off a good hike.
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