Had to pick between two trail forks in the Shenandoahs and I chose wrong

So I'm hiking the Rose River Loop last weekend and I hit a split where the map showed two ways back to the car. One was a 2 mile ridge walk and the other was a 1.5 mile creek side trail. I figured shorter is better right? Picked the creek trail and ended up crossing the same damn stream 8 times on slippery rocks. Took me almost 2 hours and I soaked both boots. Anyone else ever take the "shortcut" that ended up being way worse?

2 comments

2 Comments

stella_lane3d agoMost Upvoted

Actually I used to be one of those people who always picked the shorter trail thinking it was the smart move. But after a similar mess in the Blue Ridge where I chose a creek shortcut that had me climbing over fallen logs and wading through mud for an extra hour, I totally changed my mind. Now I look at the elevation changes and terrain notes before deciding. That ridge walk might have been longer but probably had better views and dry feet the whole way. Lesson learned the hard way just like you did.

the_paul3d ago

My buddy Dave took a shortcut on the Appalachian that turned a 4 mile day into an 8 hour bushwhack.