On a litter of fall leaves, we followed the Flumes Trail from the parking lot up the left side of Bear Creek.    Small waterfalls rush down the creek valley alongside the trail.   The upper section is a loop with remains of old flumes still standing or in pieces on the ground.   Most of the upland logging was done in the winter one hundred years ago.   The trees were felled and branches removed.   Horses were used to skid the logs on the snow, stockpiled for spring.   Flumes were built from the landing area down the Bear Creek Valley to float the logs down to the Adams River.   This was done in the spring when the water volumes were sufficient to bring the logs down the hills.   The Bear Creek Flumes were the largest in North America when active.   It had  trestles up to 82 feet  high and was capable of moving 9,800,000 ft of logs per month.    The structures were dismantled after the areas became logged out.  

(archive photo)

Today a few small sections can be seen in the woods.    The trails follow a loop route up the hill and back,  a total of about 3.5km.   It can be combined with the lower Flumes Trail to make a day of hiking, with lunch on Adams River.   From the Squilax-Anglemont Road drive north, but turn onto Holdings Road for 5km.   Bear (Loakin) Creek Road comes in from the left.   Look for a sign and left turn just past this intersection.   A parking area and trailhead signs point the way.   This is a good route in any season, but especially nice in the heat of summer.  

Lee Rentz photo