BABLER PARK DOG HIKE, Hawthorne Trail

Weather permitting, we will hike the HAWTHORN TRAIL, which is 1.2 miles long and pretty easy. We have to drive to the trailhead at the back of the park.

PARK MAP. Hawthorne Trail shown in yellow. Meet at ALTA SHELTER.
Dr. Edmund A. Babler Memorial State Park Map | Missouri State Parks

Predicted weather includes ice this weekend, so be sure to check here before heading out. We will cancel if roads are bad.

Some of us may be go graveyard hunting. Weird, but we like to explore old hidden spots like this. There's supposed to be one right near the campground, another near the entrance of the park.

Usual hiking rules apply:

Bring water for your dogs
Short leash only, no retractables.
Wear appropriate footwear - hiking boots,
Poles recommended, but these are not really hard trails.
Expect mud after a rain or snow melt.
YAK TRAX in snowy conditions

DRIVING DIRECTIONS:

Use your GPS or meetup mapping to get to the park. Once inside the park, come to the fork in the road. You can get to this trailhead going either way, but to the right is shorter. By the swimming pool area, you'll turn onto another road and go back up the hill to this trailhead at the very back part of the park.

ALTA SHELTER on Theodore Martin Drive. Meetup map pin should get you there.