Blazed a trail 3 years back that I swore was the best route ever, until I actually paid attention to the map this spring

I was hiking the Timber Creek loop in the Sierra Nevada and kept hitting this confusing fork. Turns out I was missing a cutoff that shaves off 2 miles and avoids a steep climb. Has anyone else followed a wrong path for years because you just assumed it was right?

2 comments

2 Comments

lindaw296d agoTop Commenter

But wait, isn't there something to be said for sticking with a route you know, even if it's not the most efficient? In my experience, some of those "wrong" ways become the best part of the hike, and you end up finding cool stuff you'd miss on the shortcut. Your mileage may vary, but I'd rather be slow and steady than risk a faint trail that might not even go where I think.

andrew77d ago

Yeah I know that feeling. I followed an old fire road for years on a local ridge thinking it was the shortest way to the summit, then found a faint use trail that cut the hike in half. Makes you wonder how many other little shortcuts or better lines we walk right past just because we got locked into one route early on.