Hercules Glades Wilderness

At one time it felt like I visited the Glades every month, but recently, I’ve been preferring longer, less popular places to hike. I’ve not spent a night at the Glades since April 2024.

Most of the trails at Hercules Glades are easy to follow, the exceptions being:

• Some parts on the northern section of the Pees Hollow Trail.
• The area of Long Creek Trail where it runs along the creek.
• And the western end of the Pilot (Tower) Trail after its junction with the Devil’s Den (Lower Pilot) Trail. That latter section is very little used, overgrown, and difficult to follow in places. I sometimes think I’m the only person who hikes that section nowadays.

The Pilot (Tower) trail runs to the north of both the Upper and Lower Pilot Knobs and is mainly tree-lined. With a few exceptions, visibility to the south is blocked by trees, ridges, and knobs. The dense oak woodland restricts visibility to the north. There used to be good views just before and just after Lower Pilot Knob, but the scrub has grown and encroached on the glades, limiting the places where you can see beyond the Wilderness’s boundaries.

The trail is somewhat even going, descending slowly towards the west. It has several reasonable climbs/descents, but the large loose rocks, so common in the Ozarks, can make for slow going. The level sections of the trail can be very wet from various ‘seeps.’ After heavy rain and in wet seasons, it’s not uncommon for the trail to resemble a creek more than a trail!

Weather

The above image is courtesy of my subscription to windy.com (Check out the free version, it is the best weather site I’ve found. If you are a weather nerd, subscribe! I’m not an affiliate; I just want to see them remain in business).

The various weather models on Windy.com agree fairly closely on when the storm will arrive but disagree on how much snow will be dropped on the glades. The forecast is for a total snowfall of between two and a half and seven inches. Temperatures will be lower than I like to hike in, but I’ve recently hiked at 26°F, so the predicted 30°F to 40°F hiking temps should be fine. Overnight lows of 17°F are also lower than I usually like, but I’ve been out at 15°F before and was too warm, so I’ll survive.

Gear

This trip calls for my full winter setup of 10°F rated under and top quilts, and my bad weather tarp. Because of the low temperatures, I won’t be taking my water filter. I’ll be using Aquatabs instead. If needed I can always melt some snow.

Clothing. I’ll have my usual Merino wool top, Bass Pro base layer bottom, some Merino wool socks, my Sealskinz waterproof socks, and my wooly toe socks. I’ll also have both my down jackets, some buffs, shemagh, snow pants, a pair of fleece pants, and I’ll be stealing Ginger’s gloves (again). There’s some duplication here in case stuff gets wet. You’ll notice that I haven’t included my Bass Pro base layer top. I’ve not used it on recent trips, so it’s time to leave it behind, saving some space and pack-weight for the other extras I’m packing. Finally, I’ll have my LightHeart Gear rain jacket, and a pair of Bass Pro rain pants to keep my legs dry in the snow.

Footwear. I’m not taking sandals on this trip! I’ll be hiking in my Xero Terraflex II trail runners/gym shoes, and I’m taking my ‘outside’ Crocs for use as camp shoes.

Food. In addition to my usual supplies, I’m packing full dehydrated dinners, not noodles, for lunches. The extra calories and hot meals will keep me happy. Just in case I arrive late at ‘Deep Hollow’ I’m carrying in 3.5 liters of water.

I checked my pack weight, and it was 32lbs including all the food, water, fuel and spare clothes. Not bad, as that’s over 7lbs of water I’m carrying.

The Plan

I’ll be out for two nights, hiking most of the length of the Pilot (Tower) Trail and back, at Hercules Glades Wilderness, camping at ‘Deep Hollow’ and ‘Twin Falls Hollow.’

• Day One. Hike the six miles to a spot I’ve named ‘Deep Hollow.’ I’ll be able to check the water situation when I cross ‘Twin Falls Creek’ just over three miles into my hike. If the creek’s running, there should be water at ‘Deep Hollow.’ The snow is due to start falling around nine p.m., giving me plenty of time to settle in.
• Day Two. The storm is set to end in the afternoon. I’ll leave as early as I can and hike back to ‘Twin Falls Hollow’ and spend the second night at one of my favorite spots overlooking the hollow. The western end of the Pilot (Tower) Trail is going to be ‘interesting’ to hike if there is a lot of snow. I’ve never hiked in snow, and I’m pretty sure the trail is going to be all but impossible to see, so I’ll need to allow a good long time for the hike — three to four hours.
• Day Three. Hike the three miles back to the trailhead. I want to be on the trail before noon to allow plenty of time for the hike and the drive back to Springfield. I need to be home before five to get scrubbed up and ready for our dinner with Bishop Diane just after six o’clock.