Tuesday, May 5, 2015

Fossil Flats Trail - Devil's Den State Park

The Fossil Flats Trail at Devil's Den State Park is primarily a mountain biking trail though hikers are welcome. It has three connected loops that allow users to choose from a range of distances and difficulties. The trailhead sign lists these distances as 3, 4, and 5 miles for the Outlaw, Sawmill, and Racers Hill loops respectively. I found these distances to be rough estimates at best, especially given that Racers Hill Loop adds closer to 2 miles to the total.

The trailhead is located near the parking for the walk-in campsite, not far from the bridge and trailhead for Yellow Rock.

The map below doesn't (yet) show all the loops, but it is only missing a short section of the Outlaw loop and some connections that cross the creek. From the trailhead, I went north on the trail which begins as a wide dirt path that may have once been an old road. The wide path continues straight for awhile and a thinner path (single-track) repeatedly forks off and crosses it. Eventually the smaller trail leaves the road for good and winds through some pretty woods with lots of cedar along the creek. There are lots of dry and wet stream crossings so be prepared to get a little wet.

I found the end of the Sawmill Trail, where it overlaps with some others, to be a little confusing or tricky to follow, but just keep the creek on your right until you cross it at the campsite near your car.

This trail is scenic, but not as awesome as nearby Yellow Rock or Devil's Den trails. If you are looking to hike, I recommend doing those first, though on nice weekends, Fossil Flats can be a lot less busy.






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