In a minute or two the Caterpillar took the hookah out of its mouth and yawned once or twice, and shook itself. Then it got down off the mushroom, and crawled away in the grass, merely remarking as it went, ‘One side will make you grow taller, and the other side will make you grow shorter.’
– Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
Description
– Distance: ~1.1 miles
– Min/max elev.: 3321’/3555′
– Elev. gain/loss: 335’/-185′
Click here for routes and maps with Caterpillar trail.
The Caterpillar Trail is a multi-use singletrack path between White Rabbit and Toothpick trails. It starts on the low end just above the White Rabbit trailhead and proceeds south, crossing FS 2060 near Jabberwocky and Red Queen trails and proceeds up some switchbacks past intersections with the Lewis Loops and Lizard trails.
Caterpillar is one of the more gentle (less steep) trails in the Ashland watershed. With the advent of the Lizard and Jabberwocky trails, fewer riders are descending Caterpillar.
History
Caterpillar was built primarily by volunteers from SOMBA (Southern Oregon Mountain Biking Association) during a weekend IMBA (International Mountain Bicycling Association) trail building seminar in the early 2000s. Additional assistance and support was provided by the Rogue River National Forest Service.
Like many trails in the area, Caterpillar is a name from Lewis Carroll, in this case Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.
Written by Torsten Heycke 04/30/2020