Odds of seeing a bear on Bear Creek Trail are about the same as seeing a rattlesnake on Rattlesnake Creek or hiking along Dead Horse Creek and finding a dead horse floating feet up. Still, I am alert. I have bear spray and a whistle ready, while knowing in most encounters it is OK to slowly back away.
This is the bear’s home — and it has not put out a welcome mat. A new tree springs out of a nurse stump as Bear Creek surges by. Lupine paint the shoreline purple along Bear Creek.
The trailhead about 9 miles south of Wallowa, Oregon, sits at 3,720 feet elevation. Following the creek for 19.2 miles, the trail reaches a maximum elevation of 7,700 feet.
I, however, am only interested in the sampler, not the full meal deal. I love hiking along creeks and rivers. As spring turns to summer, Bear Creek is roaring with snowmelt.
Wild roses and clover put on a show at trailside. I tiptoe through the occasional seep, where white and yellow moths flutter between mud puddles. Wild strawberries are also blooming, promising a tasty treat.
About one-quarter mile in, a bridge crosses Bear Creek. Being an old guy, I walk slowly. I take snapshots of anything calendar-worthy as an excuse for catching my breath.
It’s the hottest day of summer, so far, yet along the creek, in the shade of giant firs, it is cool and comfortable. At trailside, arnica, wearing bright yellow fashions, droop in the heat. The less flashy treacle berry are also in bloom.
Delicate petals of Clintonia grace shadowed g.
