Elk Mountain Trail

Fantastic. Fire road climb. Then fun single track with lots of rocks Incredible meadow. Narrow ridge line single track. Flows back to next fire road. Something for everyone!!!

Very pretty, but very boring hike. Better for mountain biking. Took us 3.5 hours.

Probably a really fun bike ride but kind of a boring hike. Really sucks you have to take the road back to finish the loop. Also, there's a good car camping spot a little up the road from the trailhead parking if you're planning on staying.

19-20 July 2019: The first 2 miles is just hiking up the dirt road from the parking lot to the actual trailhead. If you’re not planning to hike the full loop, I suggest you park there instead. Once you’re actually on trail, it’s well maintained through pretty forest. The path is a bit rocky with sand and loose gravel. As you descend you’ll get glimpses of a pond and then a small lake with a decent sized creek leading out of it. This is your best chance to get water. After that the “creeks” are really just marshy areas in the meadow with occasional sections of standing water. I set up camp in an area that was obviously an elk bedding area. Throughout the evening a herd of at least 30 elk with a couple calves wandered in and out of the area. While they kept a close eye on me, they didn’t seem too concerned by my presence. The worst part of the hike is on the way out: over a mile of walking the pavement back to the parking lot.

This was a fun trail! It was a bit cold when I started my hike around 48 degrees, give or take. It also rained a bit but nothing too crazy. The views were amazing! I only saw people on mountain bikes and they were far in between. By the end of my hike at around 1pmish the sun came out and I was able to take my jacket off. I’d definitely recommend this hike but keep in mind it’s rated as moderate- accurately so.

Fun ride from our favorite camping spot. I have ridden the loop in its entirety and have also cheated and received a ride to the trail head, either way its a blast! From the trail head you get to travel down a pretty rock trail through moderately thick pine trees. The meadow is rolling hills and a lot of fun. A little climbing on the north and east side, then a barn burner decent down a 4wheeler trail to the main road. I have seen deer, elk, black bear tracks, and a possible wolf track while on this ride. The SNRA advises of no grizzly bears in this area.

Just went on this hike today to Elk meadow and back. Always been a favorite. Saw a young maybe one year old Grizzly on the trail, it ran away when it saw us. Then later saw a mother Grizzly and her cubs in the meadow. Luckily mom didn't see us. So keep a lookout!