Probably due to the combination of distance from Springwater and the midst of a mid summer holiday weekend, only 7 hikers participated on this one.  We’ve had better attendance when its been 10 degrees in January.  This day, we had nearly perfect hiking conditions, 80 degrees and a pleasant breeze.

John was the only biker, and did a solo 2 hour ride on his bike.  Katherine and Char did the tourist hike, from Freshour Rd. to the west end meeting place.  They had a nice deer sighting on the trail.  Gene, Pat and Tony went from the county fair grounds on CR 10.  About a half mile from there, just before the trail crosses CR 4, there were raspberry bushes loaded with plump ripe berries and each hiker collected a load of them.  There were plenty of green berries for future picking for any lovers of our area’s summer bounty.  As usual, Tony took plenty of pictures to post on Facebook.

The after hike social was at a picnic table outside the New Covenant Baptist Church, on the south side of CR 46, where the trail crosses it just east of CR 10.  This church is very accommodating to hikers.  Georgia brought assorted crackers and cheeses, including one with tequila and lime, which was a new one for us.  Katherine had her usual delicious and healthy salad of assorted fruit, and Char, known for her desserts, came through nicely again with a very tasty cake.