The Gift of Changing Tastes: Delyle Ridge Trail in Clark Fork, Idaho
Hike # 6 - My Favorite 50 at 50 Hike So Far
When I was young, I hated Brussels sprouts. The smell: boiled skunk cabbage. The texture: gushy eyeballs. The taste: wet socks. Gag.
Today, they’re my favorite vegetable. I microwave a package and gobble up every tiny green head for a snack. I order them as an air-fried appetizer with bacon bits at my favorite restaurant. My salad last Saturday night: shredded Brussels sprouts, dried cherries, crumbled gorgonzola, sliced apple, toasted pine nuts, and a lemon-poppy seed dressing. Yum.
Why mention this? It’s a reminder that our tastes and opinions can change. So it was for me, and my judgment of the Delyle Ridge Trail (#122), a 3.5-mile out-and-back trek outside Clark Fork, Idaho, 72 miles north of Coeur d’Alene, and 8 miles west of the Montana border.
I hiked this trail a few years ago. What did I remember of it? A horrible road to the trailhead: half pothole, half dust. Rusty nails sticking out of rotting wood at the peak, where swarms of ticks crawled up our ankles when we sat to enjoy the view. The highlight: identifying the tiny speck of green roof that is our house miles away, on the opposite side of the Clark Fork River.
I revisited Delyle Ridge this week because access to nearby moderate-to-hard trails in the Trestle Creek area, which can be completed in a day, is blocked while the county works to improve erosion and road conditions. I wasn’t in the mood to drive two-plus hours each way to reach other similar hikes.
To my surprise, it became my favorite of the six treks I’ve completed so far on my hikenorthernidaho50at50 journey. It helped that the road up had recently been packed and smoothed. No jolting bumpity-bumps or fear of flat tires.
What really deepened my appreciation for this hike was greater knowledge about local flora I gained in the interim, thanks to the Idaho Master Naturalist Program, I was enamored the moment I stepped past the trailhead marker into the quiet woods.
Thick wisps of Beard Lichen, used by Native American tribes to treat infections and wounds, draped the cedars. Thimbleberry leaves towered over the soft forest floor. Their ruby fruit was irresistible, bursting with sweet juice in my mouth. Huckleberry shrubs by my knees were dotted with tart, plump, purple delights.
The day was overcast, but the forest was vibrant. Decorated with sunshine-yellow St. John’s wort, red and neon-green Indian Paintbrush flowers, and maple leaves painted a fuzzy scarlet by harmless mites. Fallen trees from winter windstorms litter parts of the path, which is little wider than a game trail. It’s a paradise few visit. I almost hesitate to write about it, lest I invite hordes to come scavenge its treasures.
March on, and the trees and bushes recede. To the left and right, the land drops away, leaving air, clouds, and mountain ranges. It is not far, about a mile and a half, before the scramble to the peak begins. Here is the tricky part of the hike. There are a few false paths created by others who’ve tried to shorten the journey. I stuck to the winding switchbacks.
At the top, I felt like an eaglet flying for the first time. The world below: mountains lined with green-velvet trees, a wide river flowing past forever, the wild, for once, more abundant than the mark of man.
Imagine the view on a blue-sky day.
Plus, I saw not a single tick.
I descended, and drizzle fell, carrying the damp scent of the earth. There was a time when being wet in the woods would have bothered me. Now I reach out my arms, let the rain dance across my skin, and welcome the water during this season of fire.
This is one of the great gifts of aging, the chance to appreciate what once seems unremarkable, even a bit unpleasant. Plus, time to eat more Brussels sprouts.
JUST THE FACTS: Delyle Ridge Trail
Distance: 3.5 miles (total out and back)
Estimated Time: ~ 2 hours
Elevation Gain: 675 feet
Key Highlights: Lush cedar forest draped in beard lichen; abundant thimbleberries and huckleberries; open ridge views; quiet, lightly trafficked trail with downed trees adding adventure.
Difficulty: Moderate with a steep scramble near the summit
Call for Comments: Have you hiked Delyle Ridge Trail? Share your stories, tips, and local history in the comments, or submit to Reader’s Hike to have your adventure highlighted.
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