Just got back from a 4 day loop in the Wind River Range. Saw something wild.

Hiked the Cirque of the Towers loop last week. On day two, we took a wrong turn near Lonesome Lake. Ended up on this old game trail. It cut a solid 3 miles off the next day's climb. Totally unmarked on any map I had. Anyone know of other hidden shortcuts in that area?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_henry3mo ago

Ever hear about the old miner's path near Big Sandy? My buddy swears he found it once and it saved him a full day.

jennifer_west3mo ago

Found it last fall and cut hours off our hike.

kim.wren11d ago

Found that same trail last summer by accident. Followed a creek drainage that looked promising and it cut around some steep switchbacks. Saved us from what would've been a brutal push through loose rock. The trick is checking satellite imagery before you go, sometimes those old trails show up as faint lines if you zoom in close enough. Keep an eye out for cairns too, some are old and half knocked down but still mark the way.