Blind date with the Phantom

Dear Phantom, Thank you for the flowers.

After passing the "Phantom Trail" sign over and over again on my regular Talepop/Liberty Canyon/Grasslands trail run, I decided to check it out the next day. I had no idea what to expect. I meant to look it up online when I got home, but I forgot. The first run on any trail has a magical, exciting quality. You don't know how steep it will be, how much singletrack versus fire road, what are the views, is it shady, exposed... My blind date with Phantom was A-MAZ-ING. I was a bit late because I got confused on the brief stretch of blacktop that connects to the two trailheads and headed in the opposite direction, but quickly course corrected. As soon as I hooked up with the second trailhead, a grassy, billowy meadow opened up with a narrow strip of singletrack winding into the trees at the bottom of the canyon. Wow. Phantom is gorgeous! I seriousy lucked out with this one. And it just kept getting better and better. At about a mile into the trail, some purple tulip-like flowers smiled coyly at me as they bent gracefully over the trail. They were surrounded by delicate white flowers on a bed of vibrant green grasses. Luscious!