Terill Ridge camp out

Our campsite along Terill Ridge, Hoosier National Forest

On April 7th 2023, we returned to one of our favorite camping spots in the Deam Wilderness area of Hoosier National Forest.  The weather was still chilly, but the sunlight clearly had turned a corner to feel like spring had arrived.  Unsurprisingly, on this nice spring weekend, we encountered a full parking lot at the Terrill Ridge Fire Tower, and for the first time, even saw a NFS staff member meeting the public and offering information to the many visitors.  We quickly donned our packs and took off down the trail. ​

​ We rushed down the mostly dry road bed expecting the forest to be full of visitors. However, we did not encounter that many people -or snakes- while out on the trail.
 It took us a little less than hour to get to our campsite in the crisp spring coolness.  The lack of foliage gave us a great view of the small pond and a symphony of spring peepers greeted us. Several spring storms had knocked down plenty of firewood and we gathered enough to have a roaring fire all evening long.
After setting up camp near the pond, we took off to hike the Sycamore Trail.  The trail had a wet spot or two, but we were surprised by how dry it was, even sections by the creek were dry. This allowed us to make great time and knock off the miles easily.  
The wild flower were up; we spotted purple flox and yellow trout lilies among many different white flowers.  What really surprised us was the fact all the campsites on the trail were empty. I guess our early start paid off and we had the forest to ourselves, for now. After around 8 miles of hiking, we returned and had a great evening by the fire, no bugs yet.  The next day, we explored the area further and found another campsite about a mile back in the woods.  We will be sure to return the are to check this new site out, possibly for the fall colors.

Sunset in on Terill Ridge, Hoosier National Forest

Trout Lilies along the Sycamore Trail, Hoosier National Forest