Spring is now officially upon us—even though we were robbed of a snowy winter. Undoubtedly, it’s time to put the skis away; wipe the tears from our eyes; and think, instead, of hiking.
There is one trail that has been on my mind lately: Lower Whites Creek Trail, with a patch of California poppies alongside it, their bright orange contrasting beautifully with the vibrant green of springtime growth.
While many hikes around Reno offer stunning wildflowers (I just noticed fields of soft lupine along the Poedunk Trail on Peavine Mountain), Lower Whites Creek Trail offers a great variety of flowering plants, plus incredible views, a lovely creek and a snow-capped Mount Rose. Right now is a great time to visit this trail—before the summer hits and its exposed sections become uncomfortably warm.
Lower Whites Creek Trail follows––can you guess it?––Whites Creek for about 3.6 miles from Whites Creek Park in Galena (2525 Killington Drive, Reno) to North Timberline Drive, where the Upper Whites Creek Trail (and the other neighboring trails like Thomas Creek and Jones Creek) can be picked up to hike further into Mount Rose Wilderness. There is around 950 feet of elevation gain throughout those nearly four miles, but it feels negligible while hiking. AllTrails lists this as a “moderate” hike, but I call it “easy to moderate” in my hiking guide, Urban Trails: Reno. Whites Creek Park has portable restrooms and is open from sunrise to sunset. Washoe County’s website provides greater detail about the park.
Access the trail from the northwest corner of the Whites Creek Park parking lot. It can be a little difficult to find, as it’s not marked very clearly. Look for giant boulders that act as stanchions at the edge of the lot; walk past them to access the creek; and find your way to the trail. The trail is well-trafficked, and hikers from the neighborhoods that border the trail have made their own access points throughout, so at times, it can be confusing which trail to follow. These diversions are short, however, and it should become obvious relatively quickly which are departures from the main trail.
The trail follows the creek on and off for the first mile or so. In this section, enjoy the Anderson’s milkvetch, antelope bitterbrush, aspen onions, thistles, mule ears, mariposa lilies, poppies and desert peach. Pockets of aspen shade the trail; where they do, the trail feels lush and vibrant.
After the first mile, the trail diverts from the creek into a sage-dominant landscape for about 0.6 miles, then rejoins the water. About another mile west, the trail features pockets of shade from aspens once again.
The trail crosses four roads in total: at mile 0.5 (Thomas Creek Road), at mile 1.8 (Mountain Ranch Road), at mile 2.1 (Callahan Road) and at mile 3.3 (a dirt road). Please take caution with these, especially the first three—and especially with children and pets. It is difficult to see oncoming traffic at Thomas Creek Road and Mountain Ranch Road, and neither are marked with a crosswalk to help alert drivers.
Though the turnaround can feel underwhelming—ending at a road versus a peak, lake or other notable feature—the trail itself is tranquil, meandering and lovely. Be sure to follow the Leave No Trace principles while hiking here and elsewhere: Plan ahead; prepare; travel on durable surfaces (aka stay on trail); dispose of waste properly (if you must pee, pee at least 300 feet from the creek); leave what you find (don’t pick flowers!); minimize campfire impacts (for the love of all non-denominational deities, don’t start a fire); respect wildlife; and be considerate of others.
But most of all, slow down enough to enjoy what we have today—because who knows what the weather, environment and fascist overlords will throw at us tomorrow?