Upper Paddock Creek trail

Mid January and we were missing the park, we headed to the Upper Paddock Creek Trail. There is a nice parking spot just past a drainage bridge, large enough to get just one car off the road.

Just a stark and brisk day to be in the park, but what else could you expect from an early January day. With surprisingly little snow we headed out to get a few miles under our feet and see how the landscape has been doing this winter. I having done the part of this trail during the late summer was excited to see what the differences would be with the passing of the seasons.

We started at the trail head off of the Scenic Loop Drive and slowly descended into the valley. Passing across fields we encountered the most interesting pit of mostly dry mud, trekked over an array of animal prints and poop, leaped across a mucky creek bed, contemplated taking the old trail that had eroded into a steep bluff and found ourselves flanked by painted canyons and standing on grassy table tops with dried and not so dry creek beds below us. A mile and a half in we were in an unrecognizable different world than where we had parked out truck. We took a few moment to take in the beauty and enjoy the weather before turning around and heading back to civilization.

No wildlife today, a trail that is accommodating to those who do not hike much but may pose challenges to very small children. 

Painted Canyon Visitor Center Access Trail & Western Upper Paddock Creek Trail

Starting Point : Painted Canyon Visitor Center

Exit towards Painted Canyon Visitor Center. You will see large signs and find yourself in an establish parking lot.

Upper Paddock Creek Trail

The center is a great place to start a hike, they have bathrooms, water fountains, snack machines and if you arrive during business hours the visitor center has an array of things. I stopped by the visitor center my first time in the park to get maps, hike advice and a local wildlife and plan update. The staff was very helpful and the maps they have are better than the ones I found on line.

Wildlife and Plants in the Theodore Roosevelt National Park South Unit: Bison are a relatively calm animal however it is advised that you give them their space, they are large and can be dangerous. The park is home to rattlesnakes, don't go sticking your bare hand into tall grass patches that's when they have the highest rate of bites. Beyond those two, things are fairly standard.

The access trail starts to the south west of the visitor center. Standing in the parking lot you will see an access road going off the western side, follow this road about 1/5 mile till you see a brown marker on your left side. Near the brown marker you will notice a foot path veer away from the road, this is the trail head.

The brown markers for this trail are about 6 inches across and 4 feet high. They are fairly easy to find.

The trail almost instantly heads into the canyon. Footing can be questionable during the decent due to the soft nature of the soil. There are several areas where the trail has caved in, as the canyon slowly grows. Keep an eye on your footwork and you will be fine.

There are a few places where small creeks cross the trail, I have gone in fairly wet times and been able to easily jump these creeks.

At the base of the Access Trail you come to a sign that point north/ west and south/ east. Both directions will put you on the Upper Paddock Creek Trail.

On this day I went north/west. I was interested in doing a 6 mile hike this day, 2 miles to get into the canyon and went about 1.5 miles west on Upper Paddock Creek Trail.

I saw some great butterfly's and birds.  I sat at a nice outcropping and read a book for about an hour and than returned back the way I came. This hike was very isolated, I did not see any people or mammals from start to finish.