Return to Paris Mountain
Brissy Ridge is part of the network of trails scattered throughout Paris Mountain State Park and I visited the area during the summer.
After last week’s enjoyable jaunt in Paris Mountain State Park, I decided to try out one of the other hikes there. The Brissy Ridge trail is part of the network of trails throughout the park, listed as 2.3 miles round trip and on their ranking of 1-10 in terms of difficulty (10 being most strenuous), it rates as 7 and 9. It’s a fairly well-traveled and well-kept trail, and there were hikers and runners along the trail.
I wouldn’t consider it quite as strenuous as all that, but part of that might be the direction in which I chose to take the trail. I went counter-clockwise, entering the trail at the first sign I saw near the parking lot. The trail begins with a number of switchbacks and relatively steep inclines, but going counter-clockwise, you are going downward, rather than upward.
The trail eventually levels out and crosses a small branch of Buckhorn Creek. The trail continues with a fair amount of ups and downs, mostly downs, as it heads toward another creek that flows out of Buckhorn Lake, around which this trail winds. This stretch of the trail, which is a bit over a third of the total trail length, is for hikers/runners only, indicating that other segments allow perhaps mountain biking. This segment, indicated as being level 9, stops at the road that leads to Camp Buckhorn (I’m seeing a naming trend here).
Once you cross the road, the level of difficulty is rated as 7, and it gradually rises in elevation to about the same level that one started. This is right where the Kanuga trail branches off of the Brissy Ridge trail. From here, the trail follows along the ridge that leads around the highest elevation in the park, atop which there is apparently a radio tower. This last stretch is very pleasant and you can see views of the surrounding mountains through the trees.
My main subjects for photography where the many different varieties of fungi that grew along the trail, on the trees, and around boulders and stones, as well as many strangely bent and twisted hardwood trunks.
