A short late fall hike at Central Beach

note: we are meeting at 12 noon, CST

we must consider every winter hike to be automatically tentative, subject to weather.
this hike was originally scheduled for Saturday, November 19.

fortunately, the forecast today is great.

make sure you read the parking instructions thoroughly--you don't want to get a ticket.

if you don't have a pass, you may want to try to car pool. you can contact other hikers in the comments below, or by clicking their name or photo in the attendance list to send them a message.

to view photos from previous hikes at this location, see
https://www.meetup.com/ricks-hiking-fun-group/photos/32177983/
and
https://www.meetup.com/ricks-hiking-fun-group/photos/32374548/ .

this is a very interesting part of the park, with haunting beauty and a tragic history of ecological disaster, which reminds us of how fragile ecosystems are, and how tied together all of nature is. i will expand on this at three point of interest stops.

dear friends--

this will be a short lasso-shaped hike of about 2-3 miles at a scenic part of the National Park shoreline, suitable for all weather conditions except maybe deep snow.

we will park at the Central Beach lot, and gather at the picnic tables above the western end of the lot. we will wait till 12:30, then depart on foot.

if anyone is late, follow the simple directions below and you can catch up with us.

hike directions:

we will walk down the path and road to the scenic viewing area above the Lake at the end of Central ave. after some time for views and photos, we will turn left and descend to the beach. we will walk west till we arrive at the east end of the Beverly Shores seawall.

then we will climb up to the abandoned part of Lake Front dr, and walk west on the old roadbed till we come to the east end of Beverly Shores. we will continue on Lake Front dr till we come to the Beverly Shores residents' parking lot; the lot is on the left, and says Beverly Shores residents Permit Parking only.

we will climb the stairs there, going inland over the dune. at that point, we will walk on Palmer ave, which will turn into Wilson, then take a left on Drexwood, a left on Vera, and a left on Drake.

we will continue down Drake to the lakefront, then turn right and return via the abandoned roadbed to the west end of Central Beach. then we will continue east on the beach, and up the dune back to our vehicles.

for anyone who wants a longer hike, you may add a mile round trip by continuing east on the beach to Kinzele Creek (you will know you've arrive, cause you can't continue without getting wet), then returning to the viewing area and climbing the dune.

please check the weather before departure and have appropriate clothing and equipment https://weather.com/weather/today/l/46301:4:US . bring along a snack to eat on the trail, plus enough water (one quart minimum).

i will pass a hat for a small donation to cover expenses: mostly, this is the cost of using the meetup website, but sometimes I need some dinero to pay for occasional gifts to neighbors who let us use their parking, prizes for contests. as long as i can cover this with people putting $2-3 in a can, i prefer not doing anything more binding or complicated.

remember, this is now a fee area, so before you come to the lot, make sure you study the thoroughly Byzantine and non-user-friendly fee structure at the National Park website

https://www.nps.gov/indu/planyourvisit/fees.htm

you need to be a trained Marxist to understand the difference between all the various fee classes there! (they actually have a separate fee category for 4th graders--i kid you not!)

i'm not sure how much they are enforcing this, especially in late autumn, but you don't want to get a fine that is larger than the entrance fee. you can buy permits at the Visitor Center, and also at local businesses (eg the Marathon station at US 12 & Broadway, or Virk's on US 12 in Pines).

if you expect to come to the park more than a few times a year, it pays to buy an annual pass. this pass works for ALL National Parks. remember, it's for a good cause too.

please bring a mask in case there will be times when we might need one. also bring hand sanitizer.

if you have Covid-19 (or any other contagious disease), with or without symptoms, please DO NOT ATTEND.

if you have Covid-19 symptoms, whether you've been tested or not, please DO NOT ATTEND.

traditionally, we would meet somewhere for dinner after a hike, but i don't feel safe doing indoor dining yet, and will not be organizing any apres hike event. if anyone else wants to organize dinner somewhere together, go ahead.

hope to see you there,

Rick

directions: from US 12, find Central ave, in the town of Pines, and turn north (towards the Lake). go past Beverly rd, then turn left into the parking lot. park, then turn west, walk to the end of the parking lot, and walk up the stairs on the right. we will be waiting at the picnic tables.