[b]Date Hiked:[/b] April 2, 2022
[b]General Condition:[/b] Clear (no obstacles and tread well defined)

The Bear Basin Connector was Clear. No deadfall. A but of stooping required in some places. The ground can be a bit loose here and there.

[b]Date Hiked:[/b] March 7, 2022
[b]General Condition:[/b] Difficult (brushy and/or many deadfalls, faint tread)

My daughter and I hiked the Pine Ridge Trail from the trail head at Big Sur Station. The PRT still had 2-3" of snow on it from the crest of Pine Ridge down to the Bear Basin Connector Trail junction. We had seen a handful of footprints in the snow on that section. We were hoping to get to Pine Valley Camp and Round Rock, but as we made the turn down onto the Bear Basin Connector Trail, we saw absolutely no footprints in the snow and the brush was growing over the trail to the point where we would have had to have ducked down with our packs on for a considerable distance. It was evident that it had not been maintained in quite some time and there was little likelihood that any one would find us if we ran into any sort of issues, so we turned around. We ended up camping that night at Pine Ridge Camp and hopped on the Big Sur Loop trail as our plan B.

[b]Date Hiked:[/b] April 13, 2021
[b]General Condition:[/b] Passable (some brush and/or deadfalls, tread evident)

Like the adjacent Bear Basin Trail, this mixes brushy and open sections. In some places the brush is coming in from both sides, and if the whole trail had been like that, I’d have rated the trail as difficult. Fortunately, the bad stuff is relatively short. Note the deadfall shown in the April 8, 2021 report is actually on the Bear Basin Trail, although just a few hundred feet below the lower end of this trail.

[b]Date Hiked:[/b] April 8, 2021
[b]General Condition:[/b] Passable (some brush and/or deadfalls, tread evident)

[b]*** VWA/USFS Volunteer Ranger/Trail Crew Report ***[/b]

[b]Description:[/b]

The Monterey Ranger District Forest has partially reopened, VWA/USFS Volunteer Rangers continue to prepare opening other parts of the closed forest and are continuing their regular patrols. Today volunteer Rangers were on the Bear Basin Connector. They cleared 11 downed trees and closed off several use trails with strategically placed logs and rocks.

[b]
Trail conditions are as follows:[/b]
[b]PRT Jct. to Pine Valley Camp -[/b] Passable, There are 4 downed trees ranging from 18 to 25 inches across the trail. Lots of encroaching brush.

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[size=85] [b]DISCLAIMER:[/b] This report is for informational purposes only. Trail conditions may change at any time. The Ventana Wilderness Alliance assumes no liability for the use of this information.

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[b]Date Hiked:[/b] March 27, 2021
[b]General Condition:[/b] Passable (some brush and/or deadfalls, tread evident)

Traveling SE from Bear Basin Trail Junction to Pine Ridge Trail, brush encroaching, heavily in certain spots. Some downfall to climb over, and a few thick patches of brush to army crawl beneath.

[b]Date Hiked:[/b] April 2, 2020
[b]General Condition:[/b] Passable (some brush and/or deadfalls, tread evident)

Nice views of the Ventana Cone and Bear Basin at the westerly end of this little connector. Just a bit of tricky deadfall for a overnight backpacker near that end, mostly clear with very evident tread. Ceanothus tunnels are narrowing a bit, but not too bad at all. Clear signage at the easterly end of the trail.

[b]Date Hiked:[/b] December 31, 2018
[b]General Condition:[/b] Passable (some brush and/or deadfalls, tread evident)

I just hiked the Bear Basin connector trail on 12/31/2018 and it was passable, but mostly clear. There were a few spots where the growth was encroaching the trail, but the tread was clear and all obstacles were easily avoided or passable. The Bear Basin trail (not the connector trail...) was totally gone, I didn't even see it as an option, and I was looking because my hope was to get to Bear Basin Camp. Oh well, it was a beautiful (and steep at parts!) hike that looped around to Pine Ridge and was thoroughly enjoyable.

[Ed.: the Bear Basin Trail starts at Pine Valley and the Connector takes off at the top of the ridge, leading to the Pine Ridge Trail. So if you did the loop, you were on the Bear Basin Trail for part of the way. It is beyond the Connector and down into Bear Basin that the trail becomes impassable.]

[b]Date Hiked:[/b] May 9, 2018
[b]General Condition:[/b] Passable (some brush and/or deadfalls, tread evident)

Getting pretty brushy on both the Bear Basin Trail and the connector. We broke back a bunch of branches to get through, but there's plenty left to clear. There's also a spot about midway on the connector where a big dead tree has come down across the trail. The trail continues left along the tree, NOT forward. It took us a minute to spot it.

[b]Date Hiked:[/b] May 27, 2018
[b]General Condition:[/b] Passable (some brush and/or deadfalls, tread evident)

Voracious spring growth of ceanothus is really closing up sections of this trail with brush interlocking at eye level in sections. In addition, the weight of the prolific white ceanothus flower blooms is causing the brush tunnel to collapse. The difference between my last visit 1.5 months ago and now was substantial. Fortunately, the blow downs have been removed on this trail and the tread underneath the brush is still obvious. However, this trail will need some brushing to clear out the tunnel or it will transition to "Difficult" soon.

Note that the Bear Basin Connector officially goes from the Pine Ridge Trail to a junction with the Bear Basin Trail, but for practical purposes there isn't a junction anymore. At this "junction" the south part of the Bear Basin trail used to drop south into Bear Basin but that stretch of trail is disappearing with no tread and brush. The north part of the Bear Basin Trail continues north into Pine Valley and is maintained. Most hikers want to go from Pine Valley to the Pine Ridge Trail (or vice versa) and will transition from the Bear Basin Trail to the Bear Basin Connector Trail without even noticing.

[b]Date Hiked:[/b] May 2, 2018
[b]General Condition:[/b] Passable (some brush and/or deadfalls, tread evident)

Path is evident but brushy at eye level - I had to break out my eye protection goggles.

Jack