The trike only trail began as alternative to our other garden paths, taking advantage of the unique perspective you get from riding a recumbent trike. It was originally limited to bent trikes because of its low ceiling, and later, a bridge of three narrow tracks. A year later, new additions to the trail include tunnels, holes, and labyrinths.

 

    Animal tunnels under my brush piles gave me
    an idea for the bent trail.

    


This is the rhododendron tunnel.

The rhododentron tunnel is also a hole. Heavy late May rains made for a wet tunnel transit.

The oak tree tunnel is built on a framework of oak limbs, with other branches and leaves woven in to simulate a serpentine cave. I am still in the process of covering it.

The two- segment cherry tree tunnel was created the same way, using other trees as they became available.

Expanding the idea of tunnel, I visualized riding under the bridge to the bamboo forest. In summer.

    Under a bridge led to under a bench, a rolling
    recliner slipping between the legs of and oversized lawn chair.

    



    

    The rhododendron tunnel and the bamboo bridge
    were the first holes; the Port Orford Cedar dip is another. It
    is so named for the seven trees planted around it. When they
    grow, it will gradually become a living tunnel.
 

    The idea for a labyrinth came from the twisted
    trunks of two apple trees, which lived their previous incarnation
    as a bench.

    

In June of 2010, record heavy rains softened the ground and weighted down the leaves so much that it all toppled over. I mourned the loss of the Blenheim, a delicious heirloom apple, but immediately began to see possibilities for the unique branching structures. How many places could I fit through on a trike? Four. There are advantages to having more than one obsession.

The apple tree trunks are woven in with Beauty of Littleworth rhododendrons to make an intricate labyrinth, with multiple entrances and exits.

It was so much fun riding through this maze, I tripled the size of it, using trunks from several other kinds of trees. Unlike the tunnels, no leaves are woven into the labyrinths so that their complex structures remain visible. It is exciting to see how fast you can go through the labyrinth without running into anything.

I arranged the Alaska Cedar labyrinth mostly from straight logs of various evergreen trees. It has a heavier feel than the apple tree labyrinth, but the rider still has to navigate a circuitous route through it.

These structures were all made from blowdowns and prunings on the property over the course of a year. I wonder what the trike only trail will look like with the next ten years or so of windstorms and trimming.