Hike: Bridger Foothills Trail #534

As I was getting bored of hiking the College "M" Trail twice daily, I decided to hike up the beginning of the "M" Trail and then turn off onto the Bridger Foothills Trail #534 and explore this area. I followed this trail for 8 miles before I had to turn back due to a lack of water. This trail begins half way up the "M" Trail and continues 21 miles until it reaches Fairy Lake. At somepoint, I would like to hike the entire trail, but I would have to figure out all the logistics.

Bridger Foothills Trail #534 is a nice hike. It is primarily a hike through the forest. There are some great views and near mile 6 there is a beautiful creek that flows through. As it was a very hot day, this creek provided some much needed cooling off. Also, in this creek, I was able to see my first Montana frog. As I approached the creek, I was able to see tens of butterflies of different varieties fluttering all around. It was amazing to hike through a wooded area near a creek and be surrounded by gorgeous butterflies.

This hike was a nice one as it was one I had never done before, but it feels very unfinished; kind of like I never made it anywhere. But, at the end of the day, it was a nice walk in the woods. When I do this trail again, I will take the same route, but at the 6 mile marker continue a mile further to Cottonwood Canyon or continue on the trail to Sypes Canyon. I do not like hikes that I have yet to finish, but this was a long one and one that I was not familiar with before hiking it. This trail
 was not populated; I only saw two ladies hiking about 7 miles in. Other than that, it was just me.

Until next time....

MontanaMarci!


Bridger Foothills Trail #534 basics:

Elevation Gain: Varies depending on length
Trail Distance: 20.8 miles (one way)
Estimated hike time: depends on mileage
MontanaMarci's Favoritism Rating: 2^s
Trail Highlights: Lots of butterflies
Difficulty: 3/5

Butterfly along the trail

Another butterfly

On the way back to civilization

View from above