no girl/boy scouts in montco?

I decided this week that at least two days a week this summer, I need to make a road trip to walk. Go to someplace new and exciting and not south Bethlehem. Scratch that. Not the Lehigh Valley. If my vacation week taught me nothing,  it taught me that different is good. Much more motivating.

So this is the plan: Every Tuesday or Wednesday  and every Saturday or Sunday this summer I'm getting in the car and going someplace. Any place one to two hours away. If someone wants to come along, please do. We can pack a picnic. I'll make another post about this.

Today I picked Montgomery County. Specifically, Green Lane Park. 

I had a map and when I pulled in the road I couldn't find anything. I stopped at the end of the road. It was a boat launch and rental area. Totally at the opposite end of the park from where I wanted to be. I backtracked and followed the signs to the park office. Hopefully I'd find a trail head. If not, I'd find a ranger. Either way it was a win-win.

I found the trail head. Not the one I planed on, but nevertheless it was a trail head.

I parked in the shade and headed for the trail head. I wanted to check the "you are here" map and also locate the Mont Co Trail Challenge Marker. This park is apparently a heart. Only 4 more to go.

The map was full of trails but there were no signs pointing me toward them. I was in a picnic area. There were port-o-potties, tables, pavilions, and an amphitheater. In front of me was the lake and a boat launch.

The lake is long and skinny. Think the shape of Italy. Or a string of sausages. In front of me was a paved road. And I had wanted to take the paved multi-purpose trail. After our adventures with overgrown trails in Western Pennsylvania and getting lost at Tom Sawyer, no more going on natural trails alone. I deduced that this was the multi purpose trail. It took me to the lake and over the dam and ended in another parking lot. Shit.

Back to the map. The Perkiomen Trail was above the star. Near the road. I headed toward the road.

Then I saw people to the left. They were walking on a well mowed grassy path.  They looked like they were headed somewhere. I followed them. We arrived at this grassy field and there were paths cut into it. I thought it was a maze. But there was stops. Then I thought it was a labyrinth, but it didn't go to the center. It was odd. I could see the Perkiomen trail in front of me but couldn't get to it without bushwacking. I was not dressed for that. I finally backed my way out.

I followed the original trail out to the road. On one side it has a really, really wide shoulder and this sign.

When I arrived at this sign post, all my questions were answered. For a while, the trail follows the road.

Some parks or trails are over marked. Like the IRT. You can't throw a stone without hitting some sort of sign. Each one has a little black describing the Girl/Boy Scout project that created it. Does Montco have no scouts that need Gold/Eagle projects? A few well placed signs would do wonders for the trails.

Thankfully there was someone in front of me when we crossed the creek. Otherwise I probably would have ended up on the highway. All I knew was that he disappeared.  I started looking for a turn. It took me into this lovely wooded area. But the path was wide and gravel. I turned.

 I saw a lot of these. People on horses have the right away. I'm not arguing with a horse. And you can hear them coming.

This section of the trail also had one of those exercise courses that Bonnie and Angel love.

I came to a road. This trail went right. There was a parking lot in front of me and another boat launch. There looked to be a path around the lake. And it looked like that might be the dam in front of me. I decided to go that way and leave the trail behind. I was at mile 18.5. The trail is only 20 miles, so I had a long way to go to finish it!

Then I headed back to the Lehigh Valley.

This park has a lot of comfort stations and port-o-potties. I don't think you need to go more than a 1/4 mile for a bathroom. That's damn good.  I used the port-o-potties in the parking lot. I'd give them a P-3.5