Date of Hike: Sunday, December 6, 2015
Total Distance: 5.24 Miles
Avg speed: 1.24 MPH
Total Time: 3:37:6
Conditions: Sunny, 50 degrees
Difficulty: Moderate
After a month away from hiking due to what I believe to be plantar fasciitis in my right foot, I finally made my way back out to the trail again. I dealt with plantar fasciitis last year in my left foot and now it made its way to the right, not fun! The pain I'm experiencing is similar to what I went through last year as well. It's enough to be a nuisance but not so bad where it limits my ability to walk.
For the first time since I started this blog, I met up with a hiking partner and fellow blogger from A Taste for the Woods, Neil Brennen. Most of the time, I usually hike alone since most of my friends or family don't have any interest. If I hike with someone, I don't post about my adventure(s) because I usually don't take nearly as many pictures and spend more time chatting. This time around, there was a good mix of chatting and taking pictures that were worthy of posting.
With this being said, we met at the Sadsbury Woods Preserve located in Coatesville, PA. The approximate address is:
1 Ramblewood Drive
Coatesville, PA 19320
GPS: 39.998981, -75.911708
Although I don't think you'll have any problems, take note that the parking lot for the Sadsbury Woods Preserve is relatively small. There may be enough room for 5-6 cars at the most. For a copy of the trail map, click here. You may want to bring a copy of the map with you, according to the NLT (Natural Lands Trust), they're said to be available at a kiosk but I didn't see them.
Established in 1996, the Sadsbury Woods Preserve is a total of approximately 508 acres, 5.5 miles of trails, and was assembled over the course of 15 years and 20 transactions. Apparently, the land was a combination of 12 different properties that were sold to the NLT for preservation.
The woodlands at the preserve are the largest remaining intact within Chester County. The large area of interior forest within the preserve are important because they provide a critical habitat for neotropical songbirds.
The Sadsbury Woods Preserve is different from many of the other preserves maintained by the Natural Lands Trust. For the most part (at least the ones I've visited), most of the preserves have a good amount of open fields, grasslands, etc. with some woodlands mixed in. With a few exceptions, Sadsbury Woods is almost entirely wooded.
To start the hike and for the first leg of the journey, the trail weaves back and forth some but is headed mostly in a southerly direction. There are two named loop trails within the preserve (Yellow and Purple) which in the beginning are merged.
Not far from the main trail head, we ran into a holly tree that had been decorated for the holidays. After shooting off a few pictures, the gentleman who had decorated the tree walked past us and said that he decorates every year. Pretty cool if you ask me!
The merged Yellow and Purple Trails take a turn to the southeast, then to the southwest.
Eventually, the Yellow Trail continues to the southwest with the Purple Trail turning to the south. We continued south on the Purple Trail.
I originally wasn't going to include this in my post but what's left of this metal can wasn't the only chunk of remnants of what once was that we found during the hike. More on this a little bit later.
At this point, we were at the southeastern corner of the the preserve. Shortly after crossing over this bridge, the Purple Trail leads to Old Mill Road. We continued in a southwest direction on Old Mill Road past private property until we spotted a trail marker that led us back into the preserve.
This creek is on the southern end of the preserve and is known as Buck Run which is a tributary of the West Branch Brandywine Creek. Take note that the water at this crossing is above ankle deep in the middle. I was able to hop across the rocks to get to the other side...
My hiking partner however, wasn't so lucky and had to walk through the water! Thankfully, it wasn't too cold out, it's no fun walking in the cold with wet feet!
Once we crossed over Buck Run, this was just about the only section of the preserve that was still out in the open. A little further up the hill, you could see that several trees had been planted in order to restore the habitat. At this point, the Purple Trail is heading west.
The Purple Trail skirts along the southern edge of the preserve for a distance, then takes a turn to the north. Once you turn to the north, you'll have to cross over Buck Run again. This time, it was a bit easier to cross but regardless, use caution. Wet rocks are as slippery as ice!
Another curiosity of mine. Throughout the preserve, there are stone walls everywhere which I would guess were used to show property lines since several people/families used to own pieces of the land at one time.
The Purple Trail keeps heading in a northward direction, then making a slight turn to the northeast before intersecting with the Yellow Trail. Once at the Yellow Trail, you can turn to the east which would bring you back to the parking lot, or to the west which was the direction we went.
As previously stated, the Sadsbury Woods Preserve is one of the largest remaining unfragmented woodlands in Chester County. You can see that the trees are pretty tall, some of which were enormous (for Southeastern PA that is).
One of the many trail markers throughout the preserve. Although I didn't take many pictures of them, the trails are well marked and easy to identify.
Shortly before the Yellow Trail takes a turn to the north, there was a small side trail that I thought was part of the preserve trails (Compass Trail) but ended up being a dead end.
This was actually pretty interesting even though it was a dead end. The trail that was there had either some sort of fungus or moss on the rocks giving it an interesting shade of green.
Once we were back to the Yellow Trail, we continued west until reaching the Compass Trail, this time it was the right one!
You could tell that this trail wasn't used as much as the others throughout the preserve since the leaves on the ground look relatively undisturbed.
Throughout the preserve, there was also quite a few rock formations (other than the stone walls).
The Compass Trail eventually leads to Compass Road. Since it was another dead end, we turned around after exploring for a distance and headed back to the Yellow Trail.
I'm not familiar with fungus but this was pretty interesting. It was almost black but when you look on the opposite side, you could still see some color. I'll have to do some research on this but I wonder if the fungus is effected by the change in seasons and cooler weather.
On my return to the Yellow Trail, I hopped off the trail to check this area out. This is what's left of the Compass Quarry which was established between 1950 and 1960 to collect building stone. The quarry was abandoned in the 1980's and in 1998, acquired by the Natural Lands Trust as part of the preserve.
Although this can't be identified, here was another chunk of metal half buried in the dirt close to a stone wall. Whatever it was at one time, it was solid and likely very heavy as I couldn't move it. Being half buried didn't help but it was thick and very durable whatever it was. I had also found another piece of equipment but didn't take any pictures like I should have! Perhaps this was used when the quarry was in operation.
Once we were back to the Yellow Trail, it makes another turn to the northeast in the general direction of the parking lot. By now, we were getting pretty close to completing the hike.
According to the Natural Lands Trust, this could be an old quarry and logging road and one of two that originate from local private residences. While efforts have been made to restore the area back to its natural habitat, the roads remain un-vegetated.
Almost back to the parking lot, here's another picture of the holly tree that had been decorated with Christmas ornaments.
Back to the parking lot and the adventure for the day was complete. Sitting on a rock next to the lot was this little sneaker. I hope whoever may have lost it returned to recover it, it seems to be brand new!
That was it for our adventure at the Sadsbury Woods Preserve. In all, it was a nice hike and one that I'd like to return to, especially after finding out a little more about the history of what was once there. The trails are well marked and defined and the terrain was various enough to keep you paying attention and pose a decent challenge. While this certainly isn't a problem when you enjoy exploring, if you're looking to hike longer distances, you can make this one of your stops instead of it being the only one since there are only 5.5 miles of trails at this preserve.
My only gripe has nothing to do with the preserve. While we were getting close to wrapping up our hike, there was someone jogging with their dog and when he approached, his dog wasn't on a leash and ran right up to us barking. You could tell it wasn't being hostile but having a large dog (chocolate lab) run up to you while barking could easily scare someone who isn't dog friendly. I grew up with dogs and have passed them a countless number of times on the trail so it didn't bother me until after it happened a second time (we met up with the same dog as the jogger had made his was around the loop trail). Please folks, if you have a dog you know will approach someone without hesitation while barking, you should have them on a leash.
Ok, I'm off my soap box...until next time, happy hiking and happy exploring!
Thanks to Neil Brennen for coming along for the adventure!
If you'd like to check out his blog, click here and his Facebook page can be found here.
Please give my Facebook page a like!
After a month away from hiking due to what I believe to be plantar fasciitis in my right foot, I finally made my way back out to the trail again. I dealt with plantar fasciitis last year in my left foot and now it made its way to the right, not fun! The pain I'm experiencing is similar to what I went through last year as well. It's enough to be a nuisance but not so bad where it limits my ability to walk.
For the first time since I started this blog, I met up with a hiking partner and fellow blogger from A Taste for the Woods, Neil Brennen. Most of the time, I usually hike alone since most of my friends or family don't have any interest. If I hike with someone, I don't post about my adventure(s) because I usually don't take nearly as many pictures and spend more time chatting. This time around, there was a good mix of chatting and taking pictures that were worthy of posting.
With this being said, we met at the Sadsbury Woods Preserve located in Coatesville, PA. The approximate address is:
1 Ramblewood Drive
Coatesville, PA 19320
GPS: 39.998981, -75.911708
Although I don't think you'll have any problems, take note that the parking lot for the Sadsbury Woods Preserve is relatively small. There may be enough room for 5-6 cars at the most. For a copy of the trail map, click here. You may want to bring a copy of the map with you, according to the NLT (Natural Lands Trust), they're said to be available at a kiosk but I didn't see them.
Established in 1996, the Sadsbury Woods Preserve is a total of approximately 508 acres, 5.5 miles of trails, and was assembled over the course of 15 years and 20 transactions. Apparently, the land was a combination of 12 different properties that were sold to the NLT for preservation.
The woodlands at the preserve are the largest remaining intact within Chester County. The large area of interior forest within the preserve are important because they provide a critical habitat for neotropical songbirds.
The Sadsbury Woods Preserve is different from many of the other preserves maintained by the Natural Lands Trust. For the most part (at least the ones I've visited), most of the preserves have a good amount of open fields, grasslands, etc. with some woodlands mixed in. With a few exceptions, Sadsbury Woods is almost entirely wooded.
To start the hike and for the first leg of the journey, the trail weaves back and forth some but is headed mostly in a southerly direction. There are two named loop trails within the preserve (Yellow and Purple) which in the beginning are merged.
Not far from the main trail head, we ran into a holly tree that had been decorated for the holidays. After shooting off a few pictures, the gentleman who had decorated the tree walked past us and said that he decorates every year. Pretty cool if you ask me!
The merged Yellow and Purple Trails take a turn to the southeast, then to the southwest.
Eventually, the Yellow Trail continues to the southwest with the Purple Trail turning to the south. We continued south on the Purple Trail.
 |
| Looks like a woodpecker was busy on this tree! |
 |
| Not much left in the woods for color but if you look around, you'll still find some. |
I originally wasn't going to include this in my post but what's left of this metal can wasn't the only chunk of remnants of what once was that we found during the hike. More on this a little bit later.
At this point, we were at the southeastern corner of the the preserve. Shortly after crossing over this bridge, the Purple Trail leads to Old Mill Road. We continued in a southwest direction on Old Mill Road past private property until we spotted a trail marker that led us back into the preserve.
This creek is on the southern end of the preserve and is known as Buck Run which is a tributary of the West Branch Brandywine Creek. Take note that the water at this crossing is above ankle deep in the middle. I was able to hop across the rocks to get to the other side...
My hiking partner however, wasn't so lucky and had to walk through the water! Thankfully, it wasn't too cold out, it's no fun walking in the cold with wet feet!
 |
| Looking upstream on Buck Run |
Once we crossed over Buck Run, this was just about the only section of the preserve that was still out in the open. A little further up the hill, you could see that several trees had been planted in order to restore the habitat. At this point, the Purple Trail is heading west.
The Purple Trail skirts along the southern edge of the preserve for a distance, then takes a turn to the north. Once you turn to the north, you'll have to cross over Buck Run again. This time, it was a bit easier to cross but regardless, use caution. Wet rocks are as slippery as ice!
 |
| Looking downstream on Buck Run |
 |
| Neil Brennen working his way across Buck Run |
 |
| Looking upstream on Buck Run |
Another curiosity of mine. Throughout the preserve, there are stone walls everywhere which I would guess were used to show property lines since several people/families used to own pieces of the land at one time.
The Purple Trail keeps heading in a northward direction, then making a slight turn to the northeast before intersecting with the Yellow Trail. Once at the Yellow Trail, you can turn to the east which would bring you back to the parking lot, or to the west which was the direction we went.
As previously stated, the Sadsbury Woods Preserve is one of the largest remaining unfragmented woodlands in Chester County. You can see that the trees are pretty tall, some of which were enormous (for Southeastern PA that is).
One of the many trail markers throughout the preserve. Although I didn't take many pictures of them, the trails are well marked and easy to identify.
Shortly before the Yellow Trail takes a turn to the north, there was a small side trail that I thought was part of the preserve trails (Compass Trail) but ended up being a dead end.
This was actually pretty interesting even though it was a dead end. The trail that was there had either some sort of fungus or moss on the rocks giving it an interesting shade of green.
 |
| Sumac Tree, or at least what was left of it, all the leaves have fallen |
Once we were back to the Yellow Trail, we continued west until reaching the Compass Trail, this time it was the right one!
You could tell that this trail wasn't used as much as the others throughout the preserve since the leaves on the ground look relatively undisturbed.
Throughout the preserve, there was also quite a few rock formations (other than the stone walls).
The Compass Trail eventually leads to Compass Road. Since it was another dead end, we turned around after exploring for a distance and headed back to the Yellow Trail.
I'm not familiar with fungus but this was pretty interesting. It was almost black but when you look on the opposite side, you could still see some color. I'll have to do some research on this but I wonder if the fungus is effected by the change in seasons and cooler weather.
On my return to the Yellow Trail, I hopped off the trail to check this area out. This is what's left of the Compass Quarry which was established between 1950 and 1960 to collect building stone. The quarry was abandoned in the 1980's and in 1998, acquired by the Natural Lands Trust as part of the preserve.
Although this can't be identified, here was another chunk of metal half buried in the dirt close to a stone wall. Whatever it was at one time, it was solid and likely very heavy as I couldn't move it. Being half buried didn't help but it was thick and very durable whatever it was. I had also found another piece of equipment but didn't take any pictures like I should have! Perhaps this was used when the quarry was in operation.
Once we were back to the Yellow Trail, it makes another turn to the northeast in the general direction of the parking lot. By now, we were getting pretty close to completing the hike.
According to the Natural Lands Trust, this could be an old quarry and logging road and one of two that originate from local private residences. While efforts have been made to restore the area back to its natural habitat, the roads remain un-vegetated.
Almost back to the parking lot, here's another picture of the holly tree that had been decorated with Christmas ornaments.
Back to the parking lot and the adventure for the day was complete. Sitting on a rock next to the lot was this little sneaker. I hope whoever may have lost it returned to recover it, it seems to be brand new!
That was it for our adventure at the Sadsbury Woods Preserve. In all, it was a nice hike and one that I'd like to return to, especially after finding out a little more about the history of what was once there. The trails are well marked and defined and the terrain was various enough to keep you paying attention and pose a decent challenge. While this certainly isn't a problem when you enjoy exploring, if you're looking to hike longer distances, you can make this one of your stops instead of it being the only one since there are only 5.5 miles of trails at this preserve.
My only gripe has nothing to do with the preserve. While we were getting close to wrapping up our hike, there was someone jogging with their dog and when he approached, his dog wasn't on a leash and ran right up to us barking. You could tell it wasn't being hostile but having a large dog (chocolate lab) run up to you while barking could easily scare someone who isn't dog friendly. I grew up with dogs and have passed them a countless number of times on the trail so it didn't bother me until after it happened a second time (we met up with the same dog as the jogger had made his was around the loop trail). Please folks, if you have a dog you know will approach someone without hesitation while barking, you should have them on a leash.
Ok, I'm off my soap box...until next time, happy hiking and happy exploring!
Thanks to Neil Brennen for coming along for the adventure!
If you'd like to check out his blog, click here and his Facebook page can be found here.
Please give my Facebook page a like!
