Today, a dozen of us visited the Northwest Equestrian Trail in the Odessa area to put in our last off road training run before the Alafia X-Country race next weekend. Alfredo, Vanessa and Jackie had explored it before, and they lead us on a great off road run. This trail has been used for a while by members of SWAMP Club (Southwest Assoc. of Mountainbike Pedalers) and, of course, horses.
Runners and hikers are now welcome, but anyone using the trail is required to obtain a permit/pass from the rangers at nearby Lake Rogers Park. The gate at the Equestrian Park is, for the time being, kept locked.
The park is a great asset to the trails available to hikers and runners. The entrance/gate is on the north side of South Mobley Road just east of Ed Radice Park. You'll see several big sand piles which are temporary until the parking lot is built.
A main trail runs along under the power lines and five trails, identified as A, B, C, D, and E, split off in loops from the main trail. These trails are wide - I'd say 10 to 15 feet across - and almost entirely shaded.
The elevation is flat; you don't have the undulation that you find at Lake Rogers Park, making it a less strenuous trail in that sense, but maybe a third of the trail is sandy, which is always demanding. Much of the trail is covered in pine needles and maybe a third of it is grassy. There are some roots, but not too many. All in all, an ideal place for hiking and running.
We ran almost all of the trails and, according to our Garmins, had covered five miles by the time we returned to our cars. According to the park ranger, if you run all five trails, the distance is about 7 miles.
If you look around just above eye level, you will be surprised to see a variety of fruit, including limes, oranges, and grapefruits. Apparently the area used to be a citrus grove, but without the fruit; you wouldn't know it because the citrus trees are dwarfed by much larger trees.
Oh, and a lovely pond sits just off to the side of Trail B, complete with alligator - at least that's what I hear. We didn't see it today, though.
There are two kiosks with ice water, one near the entrance and one in the middle of the park. When you get your permit, the park ranger will provide a map; however, he showed me a huge, laminated aerial map that will soon be mounted at a kiosk near the entrance.
We didn't see any horses, and there wasn't much evidence of their past presence - if you know what I mean - on the trails.
If you decide to get a permit, you'll need to go to the ranger station for Lake Rogers Park. It is on the left side of Gunn Highway just south of Fox's Corners. A sign says Lake Rogers Park, employees only, but you can go on by. Just ahead you'll see a dumpster. Drive to the right of the dumpster, and you'll see the ranger station right in front of you.
Please add your comments or questions below.
I loved running on the equestrian trail. Since it's actually made up of about 5 smaller trails you can easily create a course of any distance. I can't wait to run there again. I bet the fruit will be ripe for pickin' by the next time!
Posted by: Wendy | November 17, 2008 at 11:28 AM