I finally took the river fork on the Pine Valley trail

I thought it just added extra miles for no good reason. But last trip, a bear on the main path forced me to divert, and I found the river route way more scenic and calm.

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3 Comments

cameron_harris207mo ago

Seriously, you're calling that a win? Getting chased off the main trail by a bear sounds like a lucky break, not proof the river fork is better. That main path climbs right up to that epic ridge overlook, which you totally missed. The river route is just a flat, muddy slog with mosquitos all summer. You traded the best view on the whole trail for some extra miles in the trees.

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garcia.wade7mo ago

Calling it a "flat, muddy slog" might be true in summer, but I went in early spring and it was all blooming and peaceful. Sure, no ridge view, but I had the whole river valley to myself and spotted a herd of elk down by the water, which felt pretty special.

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piperh197mo ago

Actually, just a heads up for anyone reading Garcia.wade's cool elk story. Those are usually cows and calves down by the river in spring. Bull elk mostly hang higher up until fall. Still a really neat sighting though!

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