Hi folks!

I just want to say that I love being right. I especially love being right
when my older brother is wrong. I am over 40 years old and I still get this
adolescent rush. Had it been my decision, the new box would have been called
the Burned Turkey Letterbox, because that was the name of the loop we were
walking. My brother insisted I was wrong, that the loop name was spelled
"burnt". Okay, fine, we spelled it they way he wanted. Let's just say that
later, when researching the trail name, my brother still wouldn't give in
totally and he insisted, tongue in cheek, that the park service people made a
spelling error (who spelled it "burned"), not him (who grammatically
preferred "burnt"). Hence, we have the BURNT Turkey Letterbox on the BURNED
Timber Loop. :) Enjoy finding the letterbox below! -Annette

BURNT TURKEY LETTERBOX

LOCATION: Tin Can Camp, Taylor Creek Trail and Burned Timber Loop, Josephine
County, OR, near Grants Pass / Merlin.
DROPPED: November 27, 2002, by the Horse Trap Gang.
PATH: Dirt, foresty. Significant elevation gain at first. Evens out a bit
at the Burned Timber Loop.
EST. DISTANCE: 1.2 miles round-trip hike to the letterbox, 2.6 miles with
Burned Timber Loop tacked on.
CLUE DIFFICULTY: Easy easy

Thanksgiving Day 2002, the Horse Trap Gang dropped this box on the Burned
Timber Trail, hence Burnt Turkey Letterbox. A pleasant drive to a scenic
hike that few people take is only 16 paved miles from I-5.

(If you find any problems with this box or wish to share any successes, etc.,
please email Annette at ARoseLb@aol.com.)

DIRECTIONS TO TRAILHEAD:
Get off Interstate 5 at the Merlin Exit (No. 61, 3 miles north of Grants
Pass) and head west on Merlin-Garlice Road 11 miles (through the town of
Merlin, over Hellgate Canyon Bridge and past Indian Mary Park). A mile after
the park you pass Morrisons Lodge on the right, and immediately on your left
appears Briggs Valley Road (aka Taylor Creek Road).

Take that left and proceed 5 miles on this narrow, winding, beautiful road to
well-marked Tin Can Camp (just after Burned Timber Road veers to the left).
The road has followed Taylor Creek, and on the other (i.e. southeast) side of
the creek a trail likewise parallels it. Park your car.

CLUES:
Cross the footbridge at Tin Can Camp. Climb a short pitch to the
intersection with Taylor Creek Trail, then go left. Follow Taylor Creek
Trail 1/2 mile, crossing Burned Timber Road and Burned Timber Creek (complete
with waterfall) in the process. High above Taylor Creek you reach a junction
where the sign says it is another 3/4 mile to English Meadow on the main
trail.

But you are going to switchback to the right, following the sign to Burned
Timber Trail. 100 yards after this junction sits the hollowed-out stump of a
long dead tree (burned, perhaps?). The stump is four feet wide and right
next to the trail, on your left. You don't need to leave the trail to find
the Burnt Turkey Letterboxit is in the hollow of the tree, at approximately
chest level (depending on how tall you are), covered by a piece of bark.

The actual Burned Timber Loop Trail is still ahead. Continue 100 yards after
the letterbox to cross Burned Timber Road again (you could actually drive
your car here, but there weren't any good landmarks to direct people when we
visited). Soon after crossing the road, the trail forks. Take either fork
and you will end up back here in 1.2 milesa nice little loop well worth the
additional effort.