Reids Basin Rock Climbing

Please try to avoid disturbing the wildlife in the meadows. They're gorgeous but fragile ecosystems increasingly disturbed by the presence of humans. I regret routing my own approaches through these. There is significant cougar and bear pressure on the deer and elk that live up here, and the herd seems to get smaller every year. If you're a hunter reading this thinking "sweet an elk spot" I would recommend hiking up from smith & moorehouse because you'll encounter a bigger more established herd down lower in the canyon. The small group that feeds in these meadows struggles every year. I've bow hunted them successfully in the past, but I wouldn't do it anymore. The one or two barely legal bulls in the herd each year are very small, and highly pressured. The elk much further down the canyon receive comparably little pressure, are more mature, and less wary.