My boys, husband included, love to hike though they will never admit it. They will complain every inch of a trail until we get to the top and back down. Then it’s all smiles and talking about how they can’t wait to go hiking again. The Massacre Ground Trail was one of these hikes that they complained about but loved. Little known fact but when it rains in the valley, there is a waterfall that flows heavily out in the East Valley. As soon as it rained I knew this was going to be our trail for the week.
We knew it was going to be an interesting hike because the trail would be wet but we were excited to see a waterfall so close to home. The trail started off easy per usual and slowly worked its way up. We went through normal terrain then started to hike up and down for a little while. Once we hit about 2 miles I was curious as to where this thing was.
We kept trekking and found ourselves on a path through thick plant life which was a surprise. This isn’t normal for the valley. Through the greenery we had to cross over creeks a few times and pass ways with horseback riders. I have to admit, this hike made me miss Hawaii more than ever. It reminded me of all the trails I conquered there but I digress.
Once we made our way through the brush, we arrived at a steep mud filled path. We had to hold hands, climb, use plants, anything we could to get up that hill. Don’t forget, we were baby wearing too! That was probably one of the hardest parts of the hike due to the mud alone. From there on out the trail was rather easy but hard to follow. You start climbing rock and there’s no set path so you kind of wander around a bit.
We finally saw the waterfall in the not so far distance and started to pick up the pace. It didn’t take long before we were climbing down to meet the flowing beauty. The water was chilly but we didn’t care. My oldest and I climbed up to the middle of the falls and took a couple impromptu photos. They aren’t the best but we didn’t. If I had my nice camera I would have gotten better photos but oh well. There’s always next time.
I would rate this hike as moderate when wet and probably easy when dry. The trail is dog-friendly and we were greeted by many smiling fur babies during our hike. I think this hike is also kid friendly for anyone who has kiddos who don’t mind going the distance. Round trip the trail was 6.6 miles so if yyour little ones aren’t up for that you may need to opt for a shorter one.
