Seven All-weather, Wash ‘n Wear TrailBlazers and one canine once again headed to Oklahoma to hike another branch of the Robbers Cave Trail. Buffalo Bob, Trail Boss of the Day, had called Drew of Channel 40 Weather fame for a consult on the weather. He predicted light hit or miss AM showers with rain picking up at noon.
It started to rain as we reached Wilburton en route to the trailhead. We got decked out in rain gear, but the rain mostly stopped as we hit the trail. Some sections of the trails are not well maintained and the signage and the trail map (more diagrammatic than accurate!) left something to be desired, but between Bob’s low-tech map and Dick’s high tech GSP we found the trail. Those darned double blue blazes were a tad elusive, but we found our way after using the horse trail to get across the creek. Along the way we saw views of the creek, a couple of ponds, and lots of rock formations. Around noon we had a brief snack and then pushed on for fear of rain. It started raining for the last mile – Drew was right on - and as we approached the end it was raining quite a bit harder, but it was not quite a downpour! Let’s put it this way – backpacks will need to dry out for a while! The rain put a literal damper on any desire to do any cave exploration, something to be left for another day, so we headed for the parking lot where there was a little pavilion that proved to be a perfect lunch spot. Most of us looked a little bedraggled except for Judy who looked great!
We went on to the Visitors Center to see the nature room and talk trails with a ranger, and then checked out the little museum with its interesting tidbits about local history. Good day in spite of the elements!