COVID-19 Perspective: We did not run into any issues within the park. The trails were a bit narrow in some places but we did not encounter anyone on those portions. That being said, I am sure during different times of the day the trail could be quite busy but I think as long as a person is careful about choosing non-peak times to go, it would be ok.
Kid Perspective:
- Running Wild – No real areas of concern, let them enjoy the trail and lead you😊
- The Trail – This is the Hiking Club Trail within the park. We parked in the parking lot leading to Norberg Lake (this is where we saw the majority of the people). After a fairly steep descent down to the lake, the rest of the trail was relatively flat with gradual slopes dispersed throughout. The trail starts with packed dirt, follows a gravel road for a distance and back to packed dirt. The last portion had some bigger rocks on the trail, so watch your footing, Biff definitely biffed it.
- Trail Conditions – No issues.
- Bugs and Pests – Bring the bug spray, we started to encounter more mosquitoes near the group camp.
- Plants – Nothing to note.
- Bathrooms – Vault toilets are located within the campground and boat launch – these were open when we went.
- Cell Service – A little touch and go in a few areas but pretty good overall.
Trail Information:
- Length – 3.47 miles
- Moving Time – 01:53:01
- Elevation Gain – 112 ft
- Difficulty – Easy
Highlights:
- Combo – Seeing the bear!
- Biff – Seeing the bear!
- Blaze – I liked that we finally made it to the park and that it was in the middle of nowhere!
- Ripper – Norberg Lake was absolutely gorgeous! I loved how absolutely clear the water was!
This park has been on my list for some time now but due to it’s location it has been a hard one to get to. We had camping reservations here for the weekend after our Montana trip but unfortunately had to cancel because Blaze needed to work. So…we decided to make the trip up on a Saturday, spend the night at my parent’s cabin and head home in the morning. We left mid afternoon and did not get to the park until around 5pm or so and it was perfect! The sun was beginning it’s descent and we were treated to some spectacular color!
We made a quick pitstop at the Ranger Station for the passport stamp, then turned around to head back to the parking lot (we did not want to get too far into the park if we could avoid it). Once we were getting ourselves geared up, we discovered that Biff had forgotten to bring socks! Thankfully we had his hiking sandals with and that was just going to have to work for this one. He was not overly pleased because rocks and sand kept getting into them – at least it was a short hike. Overall, he was a trooper though and trekked along the best he could. This was definitely a lesson learned for him – he double and triple checks now to make sure he has socks!
I am still in awe of how beautiful Norberg Lake was – this alone was well worth the LONG drive we had to get here. We made a quick pitstop to throw some rocks in the lake, explore a little and then it was off to the races.
It is about 0.2 miles to get to the road to the campground from Norberg Lake, the trail is a bit narrower in portions here so be watchful. What surprised us most was that we found the password just off the gravel road on the sign for the park. The passwords are usually a bit more buried in the trails.
Another 0.3 miles on the gravel road took us to where the Hiking Club Trail splits from the road to the group camp site. Happily skipping along the gravel road, the kids thought they were pretty sneaky stealing treats out of my pack. It was fun to pretend that I couldn’t feel their little hands yanking and pulling out the treats. Here we took the opportunity to load up with bug spray. With the bug spray though, the mosquitoes barely bothered us.
The Norberg Lake trail was about 1 mile long and offered scenic views of East Bay, which was also amazingly clear. I can see the allure for camping here and will definitely plan on securing a backpacking site next season. Imagine waking up next to the crystal-clear water with no one else around. We also saw an impressive wasp nest and ended up carrying Biff because the rocks in his shoes were getting the better of him.
We had hoped to swim in the beach but it was starting to get late and we still had several hours to drive before we could call it a night. Luckily the kids were satisfied with getting their fingers wet and playing on shore for a period of time. Definitely a beach I would love to spend the afternoon at!
The last portion of the loop takes you through the woods, near to the main road running through the park. On the bright side, you could hear the traffic but due to the dense tree coverage you actually cannot see any of the cars. There are no lake views on this portion of the trail but instead you find yourself in awe of the massive trees seemingly creating a canopy over you. Rocks began to get bigger and more frequent here, causing Biff to biff it pretty good but he wiped himself off and continued on without too many hysterics. The kids especially enjoyed discovering the “twisty tree” and the “trident tree”, while Dad and I could not take our eyes off of the setting sun.
And we were back at Norberg Lake ready to make the climb back up to the car. BUT not before we checked out the lake one last time!
We thought that our adventure for the day had ended here but boy oh boy were we wrong! We saw a bear just outside of the park limits, right off the road maybe 15 feet from us!! We stopped to watch the graceful creature meander his way next to the road, stopping to watch us in return. They do not call this Bear Head Lake for nothing!
And that is it for this park – definitely one to add to your bucket list, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. Until next time, Happy Hiking and Stay Safe!
Hiking with Kids! 