40 Acre Rock Trail

This loop trail starts at the top of the dome (0.6 mi hike in from the upper parking lot) where the trails are poorly-marked and it can be tricky to get started. Enjoy the dome for now, the hike starts my descending the dome towards the right. Hike along the gently sloping rock face look for a white/green blaze on a small tree pointing right and follow the trail down. Follow a few gentle switches as the trail becomes clear and better blazed, at the bottom will cross over a stream as well as the end of our trail that we will circle back to after a clockwise trip around the swamp. From 6 o'clock to 9 o'clock make sure to appreciate the height difference between the swamp on the right and the creek on the left. After completing our southern loop around the swamp, cross the earlier bit of our trail and snake through the woods past a small water "feature" to a small waterfall. There is a small cave which should be pleasantly cool at this point of the hike and much like the rest of the park there is plenty of low grade graffiti lining the inside of this cave. From the waterfall its a small series of switches to navigate back to the top of the dome where you can enjoy one last view of your hike.