Leg 1 - Burkett Park > Burkett Trail > Trailhead to Trailhead (N) > Flintstone (N) > Cougar Overlook > park road (W) > Trailhead to Trailhead (S) > River Bend Trail (S) > 5 Points Junction 4.8 miles
Leg 2 - 5 Points Junction > Turkey Creek Trail > Potts Creek Trail (ENE) > Burkett Trail > Burkett Park 4.0 miles
Temps started at 75, ended at 91. Sunny, slightly humid at first but dried out some. NO WIND for first leg then 0-5mph SE intermittent breeze.
Trace the route on the park map and you'l see why the route looks like a balloon on a string.
Easy hike along dry and for the most part, easy to see and traverse mostly rocky trails. Last week we had more rain which did what it always does and washed away surface soil leaving more bare rocks of various sizes in the trails. The benefit of the rain is the bee bush has bloomed again and in many places - the vanilla scent was very prevalent during the entire hike. Deer have birthed litters of twins and I counted three sets. The few bucks I saw have velvet covered antlers. Cottontail and Jack rabbits were out as well. Not too many birds although a few were spotted. A few lizards scampered along the trails and lots of grasshoppers are out. Prickly pear cactus have numerous tunas showing so with all the mesquite bean pods and cactus tunas, there should be a good food supply for awhile. Not so much for the bugs as all the wildflowers are gone but the bee bushes are flowering.
NOTES -
Water, shade, info kiosk and dry toilets available at Burkett Park.
Shade, info kiosk and a bicycle repair station are available at Cougar Overlook. The bicycle repair station air pump is not working as of this date.
Water, shade, and info kiosk are available at 5 Points Junction.
