Geeking Out Over 18 Mile Creek

Water? Check. Rockin’ rocks? Check. Interesting trees? Check.

18 Mile Creek has all of my favorite “hey, before we continue, we need to stop and appreciate this” elements.

Seriously. I had a hiking buddy who formed a habit of running way ahead of me, finding cool rocks, and leaving those rocks on the middle of the trail for me to find. And I stopped and appreciated them. And usually snuck them in my bag.

Back from the anecdote tangent.

Located in Hamburg, about 20 minutes from of Buffalo, 18 Mile Creek is recreation area open year-round involving an easy, four-mile trail. The trail is predominantly flat, with a few optional slopes leading closer to the creek.

I saw some intriguing pictures of the place on Facebook and figured I’d check it out. Since the trail is popular, I predicted it would be worn-in even in snow. And I was right.

Although I like hogging trails to myself, I’ve found I prefer well-walked-on trails when there’s snow on the ground. That way those who are more ambitious than you — or, in most cases, those who have snowshoes or skis — can break-in the trail for you.

The crown jewel of the 18 Mile Creek is… the creek.

A really cool thing about freezing temperatures is what it does to waterfalls. How the water continuously freezes on top of itself is just… well, look at it.

Then there are cliffs.

These cliffs are steep and the surface is all scree. Things fall down them easily.

I would know.

I stupidly threw my water bottle on slanted ground so that I could use both my hands to take a picture. Gravity did it’s job and the water bottle got stuck on a branch several steep feet down. I tried prodding at the bottle with a stick to say that I tried retrieving it, but… I sent the water bottle to it’s death.

As a supplement, I ate snow for the next few hours. (Probably not recommended but… *shrugs shoulder emoji*).

Then there are the plants.

So many kinds of trees. Coniferous. Deciduous. More specific tree names.

I don’t know much about trees, or plants in general, but I’m in awe of how they grow on the edge. Barely hanging on, bracing the wind. I call these plants “motivational plants,” because if plants can flourish in harsh conditions, so can people. (In flawed theory).