- Bluff Mtn trail with Little Baldy in the distance
You've probably hiked Silver Star, perhaps many times (if you haven't, put it on your list -- it really is spectacular). If you've only hiked the Silver Star/Ed's Trail from the north or Grouse Vista from the south, you should explore some of the other trails that lead to Silver Star -- you can read about them in the Field Guide. One of my favorites is the Bluff Mtn trail, which follows the open ridge extending west of the Silver Star Summit. It offers 6 miles (one way) of hiking mostly out in the open with views in all directions, and as a bonus, through spectacular wildflower displays in early summer. This is certainly a longer hike than the more frequently used routes, but is correspondingly much less crowded. I saw just two pairs of hikers and one backpacking duo, all in the first mile of the hike.
The Bluff Mtn trail passes around Little Baldy, the naked rock pile that you can see from the summit of SS, sticking up from the ridge. I've always wanted to hike up to the top to sample the view, so I added that to the list for today's hike.
First, getting there: the Field Guide and many posters warn about the bad conditions on road 41 getting to the trail head. I took Dole Valley road which turns into DNR1100 then a short section of 4109 and finally road 41. The 1100 road was perfectly fine. The 4109 road (which is also the way up to the north Silver Star trailhead) was pretty rutted, but perfectly manageable if you go slow. Road 41 wasn't too bad -- many pot holes, but not too many ruts, and it was mostly dry. As long as you take it slow, it was fine. Road 4109 was by far the worst part of the drive, but it was relatively short.
On the way back, I took FR41 all the way to Sunset Campground. The section of 41 from the intersection with 4109 to Sunset Campground was awful. Huge mud holes. Most of it was dry, so it was doable, but it was VERY slow going. If there had been rain recently I don't think I'd have risked it with a passenger car.
Since the Bluff Mtn trail runs along a ridge, it's mostly level until you reach Silver Star. In fact, it drops down in elevation until passing by Bluff Mtn -- meaning that it's (slightly) uphill on the way back -- a point I had forgotten. Along the way you get views of Bluff Mtn, Little Baldy, and the north ridge that the Starway trail follows.
- Bluff Mtn trail starts following a 4WD track
- Silver Star in the clouds
It's clear this trail doesn't get the traffic that other trails on SS do. Vegetation is encroaching on much of the trail. Someone has done some work to clear it, especially for about a quarter mile right after the trail leaves the 4WD track, and a couple spots along the cliffs of Bluff Mtn, which was much appreciated.
- Portions of the trail look like this
- Someone has cleared short sections of the trail. Thanks!
This trail needs more boots on the ground, so go out and hike it!
In the first couple of miles you get good views of Bluff Mtn and Little Baldy. I decided to go off trail to the summit of Bluff Mtn, by following the trail all the way past Bluff Mtn where it reaches a saddle, and then heading up towards the summit through forest (easy hiking) and bear grass filled meadows (harder hiking). From the summit you have nice views into the valleys to the east and south, with the Silver Star ridge partially obscured to the west.
- View north from Bluff Mtn
Back on the trail, it's a short distance through one of the few forested sections to the east shoulder of Little Baldy. I headed off trail and up the ridge towards the top of Little Baldy, through bear grass and other low lying shrubs. After about a tenth of a mile and after gaining about 400', I stumbled on a use trail. I thought, great, it'll be easier going following a path. At this point the trail left all vegetation and was crossing rock. Strangely, the trail didn't gain much elevation, and instead wrapped around the south side of Little Baldy, more or less paralleling the Bluff Mtn trail a few hundred feet below.
- Trail around Little Baldy
Once reaching the west side of Little Baldy, the trail headed down the ridge, towards the Bluff Mtn trail. Now this was really interesting to me because from earlier on the Bluff Mtn trail, you have views of Little Baldy, like this:
- Little Blady. Notice the trail across the rock along the right.
I remember seeing that trail and thinking I'd have to explore where it comes from/goes to.
So I left this use trail and headed up to the summit of Little Baldy. The view from on top is fantastic! While it's a few hundred feet lower than SS, the view is quite similar, with all the volcanic peaks in view.
- Bluff Mtn trail from top of Little Baldy
At the top, I still didn't see any sign of a trail to the top. I followed the north ridge of Little Baldy down to investigate the trail I had seen earlier. Sure enough, there's a very obvious trail across the rock, about 150' off the summit. I followed it all the way down the rocky ridge until it disappeared in the shrubs. For fun, I explored the open meadows and rock outcroppings further along the ridge. Then I headed back up and followed the trail as it passed around the east side of Little Baldy. Curiously, where ever vegetation or shrubs passed over the trail it was completely obscured. It's not just that the trail becomes faint, it's just not there at all. This seems to indicate that the trail isn't used much any more, and it's presence isn't due to current use. It must be an old trail. How old? Is it an old trail from the time of the Yacolt burn, one that has just been lost over time? Is it older -- perhaps a remnant of Indian trails used to access the vision quest sites in the area? I followed the trail around Little Baldy, and while it gets completely lost in a large patch of shrubs, it's pretty clear that it joins up with the trail I had first stumbled on. So, oddly to me, the trail doesn't go up to the summit. It comes from the north ridge, passes around LB and joins the ridge towards SS.
While searching trip reports about Little Baldy, I learned that many folks bushwack up the north ridge to access the Bluff Mtn trail, making a loop with the Starway trail, or the Copper Creek trail. I'm hoping someone will have some additional information about these remnant trails.
If you're want a shorter hike, Little Baldy would be a fine destination, being about an 8 to 9 mile round trip with really nice views. However, some of the best views and flowers are along the ridge between LB and SS, so I continued on.
At about 5 pm, I reached the foot of the cliffs below the SS summit. With 6 miles to return to the TH and since I've been to the top of SS many times, I decided to turn around and head home. The ridge is even more beautiful in the slanting evening sun.
- Wildflowers along the ridge trail
The bear grass is mostly wrapping up, but there are still pockets going strong. Looks like it was a banner year for bear grass up there.
This is a great hike. It's beautiful in the early summer when the flowers are blooming, and is also lovely in the fall when the foliage turns. I hope you put it on your list.
