Took advantage of a nice winter afternoon by getting out for a couple of walks in Clifton Park after work today. My first stop was Veterans Memorial Park off of Macelroy Road just a few short minutes from Exit 10 on the Northway. The Elks Access Road leads to a lodge straight ahead but to reach the Elks Trail you must follow the signs towards the ballfields and pavilion. There is ample parking available.
A wooden kiosk with trail map is found at the trail head. There are several different trail options to choose from.
I took a left from the parking lot and followed the red trail, which was broken in by snowmobile tracks.
There is very little elevation change at all here, making for a pleasant, easy stroll on a clear winter day.
A bench to relax on, just not today.
The trails were very easy to follow because of the snowmobile tracks. This also made snow shoeing very easy.
There were a maze of snowmobile tracks to follow, but very hard to get lost. I walked north through these large trees into a large meadow.
Bare winter tree.
I finally turned back, taking my time enjoying the fresh air. Stopped by the baseball field, which I'm sure is a busy place come spring time.
Walked 1.86 easy miles at Veterans Park and with the time I had left in the day, headed over to Kinns Road Park, a five minute car ride away. This is a community park, with many trails wandering through the woods(see map below). The constant sound of traffic from Kinns Road and houses all around make it almost impossible to truly get lost here though.
A large pine plantation greets you as you enter the woods. These trees seem almost like they reach for the sky.
Clear skies were slowly being replaced with an overcast.
A large water tower of some sort.
Seems to be a popular place with all the trails being very well broken in. I didn't even need the snow shoes for this walk.
The last section of the outer loop trail literally passes by and almost through people's backyards. I noticed that some residents put up fences, but others basically share their yard with the trail, making for an odd situation.
Did the entire outer loop trail and a couple of smaller connector paths for a total of 1.37 miles. Total mileage for the day was 3.23 miles.
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