The first prominent feature along Turkey Run's trail 3 is the famous Wedge Rock, a large chunk of rock that fell away from the canyon wall long ago. This rock is much larger than it looks, allowing hikers to walk beneath, and until recently, they were "able" to climb up to the top to take in the view of the entire canyon. On this visit to the park, we noticed a few new fences keeping people away from the back of Wedge Rock.
In summer, this trail is lush with ferns, moss, and the trees above, and it stays well below the outside temperature, making the hike through this area very comfortable, and almost otherworldly. On this day in December, the temperatures were above normal, so it was difficult to determine if the opposite happens, if the temperature is warmer than the rest of the park.
From this angle, Wedge Rock appears so small in contrast to the canyon walls, and the towering tulip poplar trees on top of the canyon. Usually there are plenty of visitors on this trail, helping to give the formations scale, but on this day, we encountered only three other people on our three hour hike. This is another great benefit of visiting this park in winter, it's not crowded, and the snow and ice bring a whole new look to the landscape.
When visiting in winter - even if the snow melts, wear ice cleats. The sun doesn't make it down to the canyon floor, so the packed snow and ice remain in place for quite a while, and some areas of the icy trail could lead to dangerous falls.
Immediately after climbing the small waterfall on trail 3, the canyon narrows. Depending upon the amount of recent rainfall, the stream could be a bit too deep to walk through (or in cold weather, even 3 inches of water is too much), so small stairs and hand-holds have been carved into the canyon walls. These "stairs" are about six inches wide and four inches deep, and barely have enough room for the tips of your shoes, but they are handy if you wish to keep your feet dry.
We decided to stay on the ground and risk getting our feet wet because the recent snowfall made the canyon walls and "stairs" a bit too slippery. When the park is crowded this is usually a bottle neck as people wait their turn to navigate the small carved stairs.
Soon after these two tight areas of the canyon, you reach the turn toward the Punch Bowl, a small waterfall with some very interesting canyon features. Heading forward, the canyon begins to open up, and with the person walking along the trail, you get the idea of just how large this part of the canyon is.
