On the Summer Solstice, June 21st, we hiked up Blue Bunch Mountain in Bear Valley, a splendid place near the Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness. The trail starts near the Fir Creek Campground and crosses a solid pack bridge over Bear Valley Creek. The four-mile long primitive path up the 8,700 foot mountain is steep and gains over 2,300 feet. We ran into snow, a welcome excuse for some of us to stop before the top.

We learned how the meadows below us almost became a series of RV parks in 1980. Instead, they are Wilderness, thanks to efforts by some Idahoans in the late 1970's. Bear Valley was once grazed by cattle, which harmed wild salmon and other fish species, but conservationists worked to retire grazing allotments here and succeeded. Bear Valley Creek is a much healthier stream for salmon now. Elk are more plentiful, too, since the cattle left.
.

About the Photo Slideshow ______________________ There are 10 photos in the slideshow above. Download times vary from 2-3 seconds for high-speed connections, and 2-3 minutes for dial-up. Enjoy the whole show (which will load and play automatically) OR use the quick links at left to view and print individual slides (just use the BACK button on your web browser to return to this page when you are done with each slide). All photos are by Lynne K. Stone, BWCC, Copyright 2008, unless otherwise noted. > Slide 1: Above Bear Valley Creek > Slide 2: Bear Valley Creek > Slide 3: Wilderness Sign > Slide 4: Bear Valley Creek & Meadows > Slide 5: Hikers on Blue Bunch Trail > Slide 6: Old Watering Trough > Slide 7: Hikers & Giant Snag > Slide 8: Burned Tree Sculpture > Slide 9: Cliff Points to a Landmark > Slide 10: Tree Sculpture

Look at the Next 2008 Outing--->
Basin Butte Lookout & Little Basin Creek Meadow

For more information, email us.