How to Play Bear River Solitaire

This tableau is split into three sections, each with its own small 'hole' pile that acts as a landing spot for any card. The foundation's starting rank is drawn at random each deal, so no two games play quite the same.

Setup

1. At the start, one card is dealt to the first foundation pile to reveal this deal's random base rank; the other three foundation piles start empty but share that same base rank.
2. Fifteen tableau piles are arranged in three sets: five piles (3 cards each), then a hole (2 cards), repeating three times.
3. All cards face up, with a maximum of three cards per pile.
4. No stock or waste pile; all cards are on the table from the start.

How to play

• The base rank is determined randomly at the start and shown on the first foundation card.
• Build foundations up from the base rank, same suit, wrapping around (Ace follows King).
• In the tableau, place a card one rank higher or one rank lower (same suit) on top of another.
• Only the top card of each tableau pile can be moved.
• Hole piles follow the same rank-and-suit rule as the tableau, but when a hole pile is empty, it will accept any card.
• When a regular tableau pile (non-hole) empties, no card can fill it.

How to win

Objective: Build all cards to the foundations by matching the random base rank and following suit.

You win when all cards are on the foundations. You're stuck when no legal moves remain.

Tips

• Remember the base rank for this deal—it varies each game, affecting your foundation strategy.
• Hole piles are valuable; use them to unlock tableau piles that are stuck.
• Build both up and down in the tableau to create flexibility in your moves.

Play Bear River free on Windows

CardTray is a free solitaire app for Windows that includes Bear River alongside 300+ other games. It saves every move as you play, so you can close the window and pick the game up later, replay any deal, and take on a new Daily Challenge deal every day. Browse every game in the Game Gallery.

Related games

More games from the Fan family:

• Flower Garden — A classic game where all the cards are dealt face-up from the start, though only the top card of the Bouquet reserve is ever in play.
• Phoenix — Phoenix is a variant of Arizona where the tableau builds in alternating colors and the leftover cards form a reserve pile you play from one card at a time.
• Wildflower — Everything is dealt face up at the start, and a leftover pile of cards sits ready to feed new plays.