After a few suggestions of different trails to hike we decided that Johnston Canyon and the Ink Pots were right up our alley. The first part of the trail starts at the parking lot. You go up a dirt path and follow the river upstream. Shortly into the hike the path goes from dirt to a boardwalk bolted to the canyon wall.

This addition to the trail is great. You get a bird’s eye perspective of all the different features of the trail. There are countless waterfalls, rays of light shinning into the canyon, mossy rocks, peculiarly growing trees, and a fair share of fallen ones as well. This walkway consists of about half of the trail where you follow the river. Once you pass the last series of waterfalls the trail goes inland.

Swerving and curving in all directions this trail is pretty fun to hike. It’s also not a very challenging hike so many many people can enjoy this beautiful trip. We got lucky that we did this trail during off season as it was much more secluded than it would’ve been in the Summer.  On the way up there are various gaps in the tree line which allow you to look out at the surrounding mountain peaks. This really makes you feel like you’re in the middle of nowhere.

One of my favorite parts of this trail was that the dense forest changed from grassy to snowy. This made me feel as if I traveled through seasons starting at Summer from the bottom and ending in Winter at the top.

Once at the top of the trail there are a series of pools and a river that hosts a spectacular crystal blue shade of water. In some of the pools you can see the ink pots bubbling below the crystal blue while the other pools act as a mirror to the surrounding nature and landscapes. As you look around you’ll notice that you’re surrounded by mountains. Not only that but the trail keeps going, and splits in many different directions. If we had more time and a tent, that would have made our adventure continue, but we didn’t, so we enjoyed the view, the water, a half frozen banana, and the company of the birds.