2024/03/24_Report_Not the Crying Dogs waterfall

We started with a group photo dedicated to CMH friend and legend, David G, who has just started the path to recovery from a serious road accident.

After a midweek rain shower, the improved weather and air quality – although the AQI was still above 100 – brought actually the sort of morning when you want to bounce into life. We had a good turnout of 14 hikers, including some fresh faces.

On setting out toward the Crying Dogs waterfall, we had just walked past a big new sand-mining quarry when a local resident scooted up to us and explained that the area was within the national park no-go zone designed to prevent fire-starting. We duly turned back. There were apologies from the leader, who had forgotten about this aspect when he posted the hike, but everyone took it well, and all-but-one immediately signed up for a Plan B.

Plan B was to do a short loop featuring the stair climb from Wat Ban Pong to the White Pagoda (which is constantly becoming more magnificent). Two different short loops, actually: both taking in the forest path to the standing Buddha behind the pagoda (and the Buddha footprint where monks were holding a ceremony), but one cutting back very quickly to the access road, and the other doing something different, as explained by its ever-resourceful impromptu leader, below.

Othmar writes:

We enjoyed the hike up the stairs to the White Pagoda with our combined group. Re-grouping at the top, from a surprising large group, only 3 decided to tackle a slightly longer version from the top of the White Pagoda back down to the temple.

The extended hike was all on good trails. A couple climbs, a couple of decision points; small trail straight up the hill, or more prominent path a slightly longer way around..? We headed straight up.

Lesson learned, at the second, shorter hill we took the slightly longer, but more gentle way around.

From there we followed farm roads along orchards with beautiful views back to the White Pagoda and into the valley to the south.

The hike, from the parking lot at the bottom of the stairs back to same; 5.8km with 280m altitude gain/loss in 1:50min.

This energetic sub-group reached the Ozarks only about half an hour after the casual-strolling majority, so in time for its members to be included in our concluding group photo.

Leadership and reporting by Michael and Othmar. Photos by Michael, Othmar, Janet and Young-hee.