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By Sharon May - Managing Editor
Pine Valley is a delightful place to visit. The drive from St. George is probably the best outside of Zion National Park – past fields of shiny black lava rocks and the bright reds and oranges and the strangely bone-white rock mounds of Snow Canyon and Red Cliffs Desert Reserve framing Highway 18.
The bright colors crawl under a green blanket of juniper and pines as the road climbs gently through Veyo and on to Central, at which junction a sign points your wheels toward Pine Valley, where the heat-weary pioneers of early Washington County built the first summer cabins and a classic country chapel.
The valley is still as charming and inviting – despite having a few more “cabins” gaining ground on Pine Valley Mountain and horseless carriages charging about. A cute country store and café and a steakhouse add to the village’s appeal as destination for a getting-out-of-town drive.
I imagine the grassy meadow of the valley floor was once a receptacle for mountain streams and today’s reservoir a remnant of that ancient lake.
A blue creek tumbles and splashes through six attractive campgrounds – now closed for winter (I made note of a certain number campground to reserve next summer).
But until snow covers the trails, fall is an excellent time for excursions into the Pine Valley Mountain Wilderness. The brisk chill and warm sun make for invigorating hiking weather.
Because the road is closed beyond the Pine Valley Reservoir, hikers of trails at the north end of Pine Valley will need to park across from the reservoir and continue on foot to the Whipple and Browns Point trailheads. To get to the Browns Point Trail, follow signage to the trailhead, which is located just outside the St. George Rotary Club lodge property. (Please respect this private property and don’t trespass.)
After an easy quarter-mile teaser through tall pines, the Browns Point Trail begins a moderate climb that continues through switchback after switchback, taking hikers up the rock-jumbled, pine-crosshatched face of the mountain. The trail is a moderate chug for the almost two-mile hike to a rocky promontory overlooking the entire Pine Valley and waves of blue-gray ranges beyond.
On the other side of this boulder-heaped ridge, to the east, is a deep bowl of green treetops and tan rifts of bare outcroppings – the Pine Valley Mountain Wilderness that lies between Oak Grove and Pine Valley and New Harmony to the northwest.
The Summit Trail winds along the tall spine of this divide between the northwest and southeast faces of the mountain range, and the Browns Point Trail crosses the Summit Trail in four miles from the trailhead. Another three miles will take hikers down the other side to Oak Grove.
According to Rick Flanigan, of the Pine Valley Ranger District, the Browns Point Trail to the Summit Trail is cleared, but at the top, before heading to Oak Grove, there is some brush coverage over the trail, and route-finding skills are required. He also said the route has some steep climbs. Signage was posted, but he isn’t sure if all of it is still up. But with strong legs and route-finding skills, the entire way from Pine Valley to Oak Grove is open and accessible, according to Flanigan’s report.
Two circumstances cut short my hike on my recent foray on the Browns Point Trail: One, I didn’t have a vehicle waiting for me at Oak Grove and would have had to bed down among the trees for the night – without benefit of a sleeping bag or camping gear. Two, with a late start and the clock kicked back an hour, daylight was quickly turning to chill shadows.
So at the two-mile point, poised at the highest point of the mountain face above the Valley and itchy to find out just how this trail crawls all the way to the other side in just five more miles, I reluctantly turned back. By the time I minced all the way downhill to the trailhead with my grumbling knees, the temperature had dropped 20 degrees to 43, and the campground area was spine-tingling dark.
But I plan on returning – a lot earlier – to hike Browns Point trail up and over the top of the Pine Valley Mountains and down to the other side at Oak Grove. Call it my Himalayas.
Before you go, let someone know your route and expected time of return. Have layers of clothing, water and food. A Dixie National Forest, Pine Valley Ranger District map is available at the Interagency Office at 345 E. Riverside Drive, St. George. Their phone number is (435) 688-3200. Plan your hike carefully – and please stay safe.

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