Rollin' Along With Mike & Lyn

Tors Trailhead Campground - Hike to Angel Rocks Aug 3, 2007

Yesterday, August 2nd, we left Chena Hot Springs Resort after I had one last soak in the hot springs which I had all to myself. We drove down Chena Hot Springs Road towards Fairbanks about 20 miles to a State Park called Tors Trail Campground. On the way down the road we spotted a moose in a pond next to the road. We had a pretty lazy day just walking around the campground and reading. Felt nice to be a couple of lumps!! Today, August 3rd we went up the road about 10 miles to do a hike called Angel Rocks. Angel Rocks are the tips of huge granite that lay below the ground. The trail is a 3 ½ mile loop and I must say this has been one of our better hikes. The trail started out along the Chena River and rose away and above it. The trail started out as a gradual climb and eventually got steeper. There were several colorful toadstools (or mushrooms, not sure which is which) along the trail. They looked like something from Alice in Wonderland. From the trailhead you could not see any rocks that we were hiking to, but as we continued to climb we came to a huge rock. We thought we had made it to the top. But, oh no, as we walked around the rock we saw we still had a ways to go to get to Angel Rocks. The trail continued to climb and eventually we came out on top of the rocks. The view was breathtaking! The pictures really do not do it justice. We had our lunch on top and started back down the trail. Since it was a looped trail we enjoyed a different view coming down. We went through an area that had several dead birch trees and it looked like something from a haunted movie. There were weird mushroom growing on those trees also. We were the only ones on the trail when we started, but as we neared the end there were several groups coming up. One group was about a dozen 10-year olds with a couple of adults. I wondered if they would make it to the top. The kids were very enthusiastic starting out with each carrying their bottle of water. There was another group of 3 women and a little girl; one of the women had about a one year old in her back pack. Got to give her an "atta girl" if she makes it all the way to the top with her little bundle on her back. It was a great day for a hike - sunny and about 65 degrees. We spent the rest of the afternoon back at camp doing a little reading and tidying up. Tomorrow we plan to do a hike that starts at the campground called Tors Trail; hence the name of the campground! Oh yes, we also saw another moose along the road on our way to Angel Rocks trailhead. They seem to be everywhere now!!!

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