We didn't do the loop, just hiked to the spring in Hidden Valley.

This was our first trip up Bluff Spring Mountain so it was more of an exploration trip. From the end of the Ely-Anderson Trail, at the summit of 4041, we followed game trails down to the creek bed, and then followed the creek on the west side, high, to avoid the heavy brush. We found the concrete-stone wall near the spring area but really couldn't locate the actual spring, but there was water following in the creek. We checked out the east and west view points but did not have enough time to make the trek up either one so we figured those will be our targets on the next trip. We did find the metal chair that is supposed to be used by Al Reser. On the route out of the valley we stayed on the east side of the creek bed then headed up on the east side of of the hill north of the 4041 summit. We located/followed carins we found back up to the summit area. To me, neither route was easier/harder then the other. On the way down Ely-Anderson we crossed path and chatted with a hiker/packer who was heading up to spend the weekend. Great trip

Definitly looking forward to the next trip up (late February).