Metro to Mountain Journal

This week we went to Beaman Park in northwest Davidson County for our weekly hike. Beaman Park is the sister park to Bells Bend and like its sister the Park had excellent facilities.

Parking at the Highland Trailhead we hiked the Ridgetop Trail. It is 2.2 miles one way as the trail follows a logging road on the top of the ridge. With the trees still full of leaves we were not given many vistas but the trail was an easy grade and marked very well with blazes (red) and signage. At the end of the trail there was a sign saying the end of the trail!

It was time to turn around or sit for a while on the provided benches.

On our return trip we took the "Shortcut Trail." It is not really shorter, but we enjoyed it because it was a trail instead of a logging road. The trail leads you back to the logging road at a major junction.

From the junction we followed the Henry Hollow Loop down a nice trail to Henry Creek. Crossing the creek we detoured to the Nature Center on the Sedge Hill Trail. The trail was nice and even though it did climb the Hill. Switchbacks kept the grade of the trail to moderate and rest benches were provided at every switchback.

The Nature Center was closed. We did however walk around the facility and look in the windows. It was a great facility. The building also has a gangway that extends from the building into the tree canopy.

Returning to Henry Creek, we continued our hike to the Creekside Trailhead on the Henry Hollow Loop. This section of the trail was very nice and scenic. After taking a few pictures of the trailhead, we continued on the loop.

It was a short hike back to the Highland Trailhead. By contouring across the hill, the grade was no steeper than that of any of the other trails.

A few trail notes...

• The map is upside down! North is at the bottom of the page. That might not bother you, but it was driving me crazy until I finally figured it out.
• The kiosk maps at Highland and Creekside Trailheads do not show the Nature Center or the Sedge Hill Trail connecting the Nature Center to the Henry Hollow Loop.
• All the trails were shaded by tree cover.
• All three of the trails were good, but the Henry Hollow Loop was our favorite.
• To hike all of trails, it’s about 7.5 miles.
• All of the trails are easy to follow with blazes and signs. All of the trails were well maintained.
• The Nature Center looked great, too bad it was closed.
• The Friends Website hasn’t been updated since 2007 and the Blog since 2008. Sad. The county’s web site was updated.
• It was about 16 miles from downtown Nashville to the Park. Our visit made us want to return for more. It was definitely worth the drive.

Happy trails.