Yacht Club Trail
Pineview West Trail
Welcome to the trail!
Here’s another section to add to your journey along the Pineview West Trail in addition to the North Arm Trailhead and Windsurfer Beach segments I’ve shared before. Today I’ll tell you about roughly a mile in the middle that often gets overlooked, but can be a great option for when you need a little hike for your tykes right in town. Let’s hit (what I’m calling) the Yacht Club Trail.
How to get there
From Valley Market in Eden, head south on highway 158 towards Ogden Canyon. In about 1.7 miles you’ll pass Snowberry Inn on your right. Keep an eye out in the next half mile for a sharp left turn onto a dirt road, just before the Pineview Yacht Club. Turn here and follow the dirt road about a quarter mile to a small parking area. There is a pit toilet restroom available here.
Trail at a glance
Total distance: 0.9 miles one way (1.8 miles out and back)
Destination: bench overlooking the reservoir
Tyke perks: reservoir views, birds, bench at end
Notable flora: Douglas fir, teasel, burdock, Oregon grape, sagebrush, oak, maple, forget-me-not
Fascinating fauna: birds (crow, chickadee, pelican, osprey, other water birds and songbirds), butterflies
Watch out for: bikers, thorny bushes
While you’re hiking
Start at the sign at the north end of the lot. In about 200 feet, the trail forks. Turn left here (going straight will take you down to the Old Highway and into the lake (if the water is high enough), which is another fun adventure if you’re up for it!).
Keep following the trail as it gently winds back and forth through the trees. At about mile 0.35 you’ll make a big switchback over a stream below the highway. At mile 0.7 you’ll cross a smaller trail that comes from the highway to the cliffs at the edge of the lake. Just stay on the main trail, unless you want a detour to check out the view.
In another tenth of a mile you’ll come to “the big hill” and at the bottom of the hill, at mile 0.9, there will be a small trail off to the right. Turn here to get to the overlook bench. See if your Valley Elementary-going tykes can spy their school across the way.
Turn around and head back the way you came. (Or, for extra credit hiking bonus points you can add another 1.2 miles to your roundtrip total by hiking all the way to the North Arm Trailhead and back!)
Happy hikers
Amazingly we’re in August already, and as summer winds down, I’m scraping the bottom of my list of “new” hikes to share here on Tyke Hikes. But just let this pic above be your friendly reminder (and mine, too) that new hikes aren’t always better hikes. We’ve hiked Paper Airplane Trail more than almost any trail in the valley (minus the North Arm Trail) and it’s always a good time, especially with friends! So as things start to wrap up here with these newsletters, my challenge for you is to re-hike one of your favorites, and see how the trail (or your tykes) have grown and changed since the first time. Happy trails!