Terrific Trails at Cave Lake State Park

For Week 11 of my 16-week trail marathon training plan, I was supposed to do a 17-mile long run. I wanted a change of scenery, so I headed to Cave Lake State Park near Ely, Nevada. I hadn't really spent much time on the trails there, but it looked like a good trail system, and if I ran most of the trails, I could get in my mileage. (Trail running has really changed my perspective on trail miles!)

We parked at Cave Lake, then I took off on the Cave Springs Loop. I had never been on this pleasant five-mile loop.

The trail was nice, although in a few places there were eye-level sharp branches and the trail needs a little maintenance here and there. The flowers were great, and I saw some that were a little different than in Great Basin National Park, such as a different species of paintbrush and buckwheat.

This penstemon also looked different.

There was no one else on the trail, and I loved running towards the hills!

I ran the trail in a clockwise direction, which was good, because the trail popped out on pavement at this Area Closed sign, with no trail marker sign. If you read the sign carefully, it's area closed to motorized vehicles, but it's not obvious that this is the Cave Springs Loop.

Then it was back to the vehicle on the gravel and paved road. I passed this big limestone outcrop, with a small cave at the base. It actually goes far enough back to have a dark zone!

After a quick stop at the vehicle (my impromptu aid station!), I started on the Steptoe Creek Trail. This trail parallels the road that comes into Cave Lake.

It's a nice, rolling trail, also in need of some maintenance in overgrown sections.

Next up was the Twisted Pines Trail. I was floored by the abundance of wildflowers. They were everywhere, and all colors!

This trail looked more used, and I saw some mountain bike tracks on it. I'd like to go back out with my mountain bike!

The trail gained elevation and before too long I was near Square Top.

I got to a trail junction and took the longer route of the High Roller trail.

True to its name, the trail rolled up and down along the high country. It was beautiful.

It also passed through some amazing wildflower sections.

I was getting tired at this point, but I was also distracted by the great views.

Don't you want to jump up and start running this trail?!

The lupine was in full bloom.

Then the trail turned and I saw Cave Lake in the distance. It looked so small!

The color sure is a contrast with the surrounding pinyon/juniper woodland.

I couldn't help but notice this limestone outcropping and wondered about its cave potential.

This twisted juniper caught my eye. It was about here that I realized I needed to go the opposite direction on the Cave Lake Overlook Trail, so I turned around and headed back uphill.

Then it was time for a very happy sight--the kids and puppy! They were my next aid station, bringing me water and food. Thank you, kids! I had a longer break with them. They were good cheerleaders, urging me to finish strong.

The lake got bigger as I descended.

I kept pausing to check out the wildflowers!

It turned out the route was just shy of the 17 miles, so I ran through the campground (full!) and along the road a little bit extra to get the miles. Overall, the trails at Cave Lake are fantastic, and definitely underused. Besides the kids, I only saw two other people on the trails. There are lots of people fishing and kayaking, and we'd love to go back to enjoy those pursuits.

 

And here's what the route ended up looking like!  It was 4,491 feet elevation gain, total over 17 miles. The race will be 26.2 miles and 7,310 feet elevation gain, so I'm on my way.

Ward Charcoal Ovens State Historic Park, White Pine County

Ward Charcoal Ovens State Historic Park in White Pine County is a pretty cool place to visit.  Located east of Ely, Nevada, the charcoal ovens were built when silver mining was big in the area in the nearby Ward Mining District. They operated from 1876 to 1879.

Nearby pinyon pines and juniper trees were cut and put into the ovens. Then the ovens were heated and the wood turned into charcoal, which has a 96% carbon content. The charcoal was desired by the mines because it burned longer and hotter than wood.

I visited Ward Charcoal Ovens many years ago, but didn't have a return visit for many years, until the fall of 2017, before the Women in the Mountains Bicycle Clinic.


 On this visit, I wanted to check out some of the trails in the park. They have a nice trail network.

Here's a view of the riparian area. A small creek starts from springs in the park and then runs throughout the park.

There are some historic features that aren't preserved as well as the charcoal ovens.

Here's a view of the ovens from a higher vista on the trail.

I stayed in the campground, mainly so I could go take photos of the charcoal ovens at night. It was a fun photoshoot.

I didn't return to Ward Charcoal Ovens until Ely Outdoor Enthusiasts put on a trail run there in May 2019. What a terrific excuse to go back! They offered two- and four-mile runs. The kids signed up for the two-mile run and I did the four-mile run. Both courses were great, and we had a nice break in the rainy weather.  Here's a cool photo, courtesy of Ely Outdoor Enthusiasts, of the kids running:

I snapped a photo of the ovens during the race.

And then after the race, we went over to take a more relaxed look at them. Dogs are allowed on leash.


We went into the first charcoal oven.


It's so big! They could make a lot of charcoal in each oven, which was good, because sometimes it took 30 days of heating to make the charcoal. Then they had to let it cool, and on a calm day open the door. If it was too windy, they risked having the charcoal ignite and all their hard work literally go up in flames.

When the sun is shining, it makes for some spotlights in the ovens.

Another cool part of the ovens is the amazing lichens growing on them. They are now very colorful.

The entrance fee to Ward Charcoal Ovens is only $5 per vehicle. These are some of the best preserved charcoal ovens in the American West. I'm already looking forward to my next visit!

Frontier Homestead State Park and Other Kid-Friendly Destinations in Cedar City, Utah

For fall break we headed to Cedar City for two days. Spending the night allowed us to see some new things, like Frontier Homestead State Park. It's right on main street and really obvious, but we had always put it off for another day. Fortunately, that day finally arrived!

The state park has a big museum building with lots of photo stops. The kids were happy to participate.

They got engaged trying to plan what to take in their wagon.

Of course dressing up was fun!

Then we went outside, where there are lots of buildings and equipment. Desert Boy was delighted to find lincoln logs, and Desert Girl and I left him there while we toured the oldest brick house in Cedar City, an old school house, and more. When we returned, Desert Boy had made some elaborate structures.

Desert Girl had her turn to play (we were the only visitors at that time), so Desert Boy and I wandered over to the Native American section and checked out the moundhouse.

We also visited the old iron buildings. Originally the state park was called Iron Mission, as some pioneers were sent to mine the Iron. Hence the name Iron County (my aha moment!). I had never really given much thought as to where blacksmiths obtained their supplies.

We just skimmed the surface of this state park, there is so much more to learn. They have a very active friends group.

So what else is there to do in Cedar City that is kid friendly?

The main reason we were there was to go to the pediatric dentist. The kids are happy here, watching movies. A little later they found out they had their first cavities, which definitely wasn't so happy.

We went to the Garth and Jerri Frehner Natural History Museum on the Southern Utah University campus. The museum is small, but has some interesting items. Desert Girl liked all the shells. Desert Boy liked the animals you see below. Check the exhibits tab on their website to see more photos of what they have, including the famous two-headed calf.

Just down the street is the Southern Utah Museum of Art. We went there for the first time last year and really liked it, so we went back and were intrigued with a new exhibit, about dresses. (Okay, Desert Boy wasn't that interested, but he got to do some coloring, and that kept him very happy.)

A perennial favorite is the Cedar City Aquatic Center. Since we weren't in a hurry, we spent hours there. I may or may not have fallen asleep briefly in one of the comfortable reclining chairs along the edge.

When we left the aquatic center, we took a look at the pond (reservoir) adjacent to it. It's called Lake at the Hills. There are sand volleyball courts, fishing, and a beach. Apparently you can rent kayaks in summer. We'll have to check it out again!

We also enjoyed walking around. We went to the Cedar City Public Library and bought a bag of books for $5. We also enjoyed the wildlife art they had on display, and the kids read for half an hour. Then they climbed on the playground just outside the library. One the way back to the motel, the kids insisted that I take a photo of them posing with this statue in front of City Hall. They are trying to imitate the statue.

Something else we did was take an ethnic gastronomic tour of Cedar City. We ate Thai at Sweet Basil (always delicious!), Guatemalan at El Quetzal (the tamales and tacos were deliciosos, the empanadas not so much), Japanese at Ninja (the kids show what they thought of it below--I liked the sushi), and French at the French Cafe (fantastic tarts, crepes, and quiche). Desert Girl wants to learn some French now.

We still have Indian, Peruvian, Chinese, and possibly more to try. An older food review somewhere complained about the food desert of southern Utah, but I'd have to say that Cedar City has quite a variety.


For a few more ideas of what to do with kids in Cedar City (that don't involve hiking or biking, which the kids wanted to take a break from), check out this list.