Caterpillar Trail
Caterpillar Trail is 2 miles of fast, fun mountain bike and hiking trail parallel to Ashland Loop Road. Starting/Ending at the White Rabbit trail head.
Driving to the bottom of Caterpillar
– A 10 minute drive from Ashland Plaza takes you to the White Rabbit trail head. Take Main Street south through town and turn right on Gresham at the library. Go uphill until you hit Holly and turn right. Holly dead ends into Terrace so turn left there. Terrace ends at Ashland Loop road which is an intersection at the Crowson Reservoir. Don’t look for a lake, it looks like an underground cement UFO. Turn left at the UFO and wind along Ashland Loop road until you hit Morton Street. It’s a confusing ‘Y’ intersection so remember to stay right and continue on Ashland Loop Road uphill. Within 300 feet you will become a dirt road. Classic country road etiquette applies here. When you encounter oncoming traffic, creep to the right at a wide section of the road to pass. You’ll have 1 mile of this adventure until the road ends at the parking lot.
Parking
– A large dirt lot with an info sign and porty-pottys during the busy season.
Driving to the top of Caterpillar
– It’s a 20 minute drive to the Four Corners area. Head south through town towards the university on Main Street/ Siskiyou. Pass the University and within a mile, you will turn right at the stop light on to Toleman Creek Road. Toleman Creek starts to wind around uphill and slowly turns from asphalt to gravel. You will have one intersection tempting you to turn left, but continue straight ahead. You will soon dead end into the Four Corners parking area.
Parking
– A large, flat, well defined gravel parking area. Your car will love it.
The Trail
– From the White Rabbit parking lot, it’s not super clear how to start Caterpillar Trail. There are some minor hiking/biking trail conflicts. I’d follow the signs for White Rabbit Trail uphill from the parking lot and within a couple hundred yards you’ll hit an intersection with some very clear Caterpillar Trail signs. Or… you can just start up the fire road past the yellow pipe gate. Caterpillar will be on your left at first and then cross the fire road and run parallel on your right. You can jump on Caterpillar there and take it uphill until it ends at Lambs Saddle. You know you’re at Lamb Saddle when you’re at a 5 way intersection and don’t know where to go. Toothpick Trail goes to Toleman Creek Road. The fire road continues uphill to Four Corners. Lamb Mine trail dead ends… or, you can always go back down to your car.
From the Four Corners area you can head quickly downhill on the fire road until you hit Lamb Saddle. Maybe 2 miles. Or, you can grab the mountain bikers favorite Catwalk Trail right next to the parking area – hit the Toothpick Trail – turn left on that, which puts you out at Lamb Saddle. Once you’re at Lamb Saddle, look downhill at the fire road, and off to the left is Caterpillar Trail. There is a small sign, but it’s… well, small. You will head slightly uphill to start, but then it’s mostly downhill parallel to the fire road. You officially end at the White Rabbit trail hub so from there your trail options are plentiful. They are all Alice in Wonderland themed, but plentiful.