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| Do you see the manicured evergreens? They surround the graveyard that was part of the small Black Diamond Community. The only thing left, besides random sheet metal, that indicates people actually lived here in the past. |
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| We were freezing, so hence the quick pose and Emory being covered in the blanket I typically use for park outings |
On a chilly and wet day we were feeling way too cooped-up so we trekked out to Antioch and to the Black Diamond Mines for a, what we thought would be a hike, turned out to be a stroll. It should have been a hike, but the day was colder than expected, and the road which we thought would be somewhat paved turned out be very muddy dirt. Our "hike" was short but worth the drive. The views made it all worthwhile. Let me just say, I felt as though I was out in the middle of no where. I haven't felt that in a long while. Once we turned off onto the Black Diamond Mine Exit and wound our way back to this gem of a state park, oh you feel like the wilderness is going to engulf you. A feeling I wish I could feel more often.
Upon our arrival we were greeted by the howling of coyotes and the mooing of the cows that were grazing nearby. The park used to be a functional gravel mine and was sustained for many, many years. There is an odd vibe that comes with territory that has literally been abandon, but abandoned with very little trace that people ever dug massive holes into the Earth or even once constructed homes, towns, or lives. All that remains is the grave yard that the park maintains. We didn't get to go look at the graves as the road was flooding due to all the wet weather. We have high hopes that we will return to this place soon, and I will share our actual hike. We had a great time stretching our legs and getting some much needed fresh air.
We plan to return when the weather stabilizes a little more. In the meantime, check out the cool video about the mines by Open Road, and plan your next hiking excursion! I am positive this will be a perfect spring trek.
