I started thinking about this after discussing a matter with other The One Ring loremasters: would Bilbo be able to find his way to Rivendell, or should they all still have to search?
First, there’s the question of what’s Bilbo’s actual familiarity with Rivendell? Because that can strongly impact the question. If he hasn’t been back since, he can’t offer any help!
Table of Contents:
What’s Bilbo’s Familiarity with Rivendell?
For myself, it seems apparent that Bilbo has to have visited Rivendell more than the several instances we learn about in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. We know that Bilbo remains odd and disappears from the Shire occasionally. But the biggest evidence to me is that he becomes quite proficient in Sindarin and has translated several Elvish poems and songs into the common tongue (or the Hobbit tongue), as we see in the final accounting of his writings at the end of Lord of the Rings.
Together with extracts from Books of Lore translated by Bilbo in Rivendell.
Tolkien, J.R.R.. The Lord Of The Rings: One Volume (p. 1027). (Function). Kindle Edition.
To me, that seems hard to do this well with simply a short number of years spent in Rivendell at the end of his life – a period where the Ring’s preservation powers were no longer affecting him and he became increasingly tired. Is that the most likely time to pick up a new language, rather than continue to translate a language he’s learned well enough in years before? I, personally, do not think that he did most of this learning after giving up the Ring, when old age started setting in on him in earnest. Though it is not out of the question.
It is also noted that he taught younger hobbits songs and stories, and that happened years before he left the Shire for Rivendell.
‘He did not make it up,’ said Strider. ‘It is part of the lay that is called The Fall of Gil-galad, which is in an ancient tongue. Bilbo must have translated it. I never knew that.’
Tolkien, J.R.R.. The Lord Of The Rings: One Volume (p. 186). (Function). Kindle Edition.
Another exchange shows that Frodo has been taught at least enough Elvish to have Bilbo be surprised at Frodo’s ignorance.
Suddenly Bilbo looked up. ‘Ah, there you are at last, Dúnadan!’ he cried.
‘Strider!’ said Frodo. ‘You seem to have a lot of names.’
‘Well, Strider is one that I haven’t heard before, anyway,’ said Bilbo. ‘What do you call him that for?’
‘They call me that in Bree,’ said Strider laughing, ‘and that is how I was introduced to him.’
‘And why do you call him Dúnadan?’ asked Frodo.
‘The Dúnadan,’ said Bilbo. ‘He is often called that here. But I thought you knew enough Elvish at least to know dún-adan: Man of the West, Númenórean. But this is not the time for lessons!’ He turned to Strider. ‘Where have you been, my friend? Why weren’t you at the feast? The Lady Arwen was there.’
Tolkien, J.R.R.. The Lord Of The Rings: One Volume (pp. 232-233). (Function). Kindle Edition.
This passage demonstrates that Bilbo obviously has a relationship with Aragon. That relationship seems connected to Rivendell based on his ignorance of Strider’s Bree-name. We certainly know that Bilbo is the one who composed the All that is Gold lines that are associated with Aragorn.
There’s a strong possibility that this relationship developed in the end of his life. Bilbo settles in Rivendell in 3001, and Aragorn and Gandalf leave to hunt for Gollum in 3008, which does leave enough time for a friendship to develop in that period.
But it is also possible that Bilbo and Aragorn have a much longer relationship. Aragorn would presumably have been present in Rivendell during the stopover on the way to the Lonely Mountain. However, he would have been 10 and called Estel, with no knowledge of his heritage (which is revealed to Aragorn in 2951). There is also the potential that Bilbo visits Rivendell again sometime (or more than once) between 2951-2956, before Aragorn begins his errantry.
Another factor to consider is the change in disposition of the elves, as reflected on in the post Notes on ‘The Coming of Bilbo to Rivendell’ from The Blog of Mazarbul. In The Hobbit, the elves are mostly bemused at Bilbo, but he is a respected figure by The Lord of the Rings, and perhaps even a figure of curiosity. To me, this transformation in opinion speaks to more encounters than those described in The Hobbit.
While not cannon, in TOR 1e, the adventure “Concerning Archers” places Bilbo in Rivendell, too. That’s canon in my game, at least, and colors my thoughts.
Opinons From Other Loremasters
All of this musing is set to anchor a question of game mechanics:
My players have decided to travel to Rivendell for the first time with Bilbo. Bilbo’s visit was planned in advance. Would you still have them search for the entrance? Seems like they should have no trouble with Bilbo, but any return visit would require the searching.
Some opinions that I appreciated from the TOR discord:
- FreesiaJasmine: “I would say canon says Bilbo knows the way for sure. Whether it’s simply a matter of him telling them the way so they can come back or not, though… I play it that the valley has guards so even if you find the way in, if you’ve not been given permission, you still ain’t getting in (except in pincushion form), but I also generally make sure my heroes have permission – or at least some of them do and are made responsible for the behavior of the others!”
- DanW: “Even Gandalf struggled to find the white stones, so I would have them roll.”
- robert20210126: “I’d assume that Vilya (Elrond’s one of the Three) plays a part.”
- DanW: “I don’t think that finding Rivendell should play out as a genuine peril (unless they’re being chased by a giant ward or something), rather a few rolls to signal that it’s hidden and special. Get the players’ anticipation level up.”
- DanW: “I might have Bilbo inconveniently disappear on the way. Thinking about it, he could literally disappear.”
- RedneckRPGer: “How about have Bilbo get them in the general location, and then one of the Imladris Scouts/Guards recognise Bilbo and then escort the group to the Hidden Valley?”
And a counter-opinion:
I don’t recall any extravagant amount of time he spent trying to learn the path, though. Not even sure why he’d want to put in that kind of work. Even less likely a goal the more he aged.
I see Bilbo more as cheerily blundering along the woods, confident that sooner or later one of the elves will find him and escort directly to a banquet table.
What I Did
In my game world, Bilbo has certainly been back to Rivendell several times and has an ongoing relationship with the Elves.
This does not eliminate the need to find the stones, though Bilbo would have an easier time of it.
However, I had Bilbo disappear at an inopportune moment, causing the party to search for him and the path. Narratively, I described this as a situational problem: BILBO was invited to Rivendell, but he had extended this invitation to his friends as well, only remembering as he closed in on the valley that his two guests had not actually been invited by the elves… something he needed to sort out with the Rivendell wardens.
The players still executed the search, and they eventually found by Bilbo and the wardens, who then led them into the valley proper.
References
- Phillip’s Notes on The One Ring 2e – for more Loremaster notes and resources
- Aragorn/Bilbo Relationship Timeline | Mythgard Forums
The earliest moment when Bilbo could have met Aragorn was in The Hobbit when 10-year-old Aragorn was living there with his mother. But Aragorn did not then know his true identity: he was Estel, and I don’t think anyone in Rivendell would have told the truth about the boy to a hobbit passing through.
Aragorn learns his true identity at age 20, in 2951, which is two years after Balin and Gandalf visited Bilbo at the end of The Hobbit. So even if Bilbo had visited Rivendell during those 10 years he is still unlikely to have learned who Estel is.
Aragorn meets Gandalf when he’s 25 (2956) and from age 26-49 he’s wandering Middle-earth, serving in Rohan and Gondor.
Frodo is born in 2968; his parents die in 2980 (same year Aragorn meets Arwen again in Lorien!). If we assume that Bilbo adopts Frodo in 2980/81, it is unlikely that he would have left Frodo for long trips to Rivendell after the adoption.
The Farewell Feast is 3001; that same year Gandalf ‘opens his heart’ to Aragorn and the Ranger guard on the Shire is doubled.
Bilbo settles in Rivendell in 3002.
Gilraen, Aragorn’s mother, dies in 3007. From 3008-3017 Aragorn and Gandalf seriously search for Gollum.
So when did Aragorn tell Bilbo his story? The first option is that Bilbo visited Rivendell sometime between 2951-2956, before young Aragorn goes on his great wanderings. Aragorn, being new to his true identity, might have told Bilbo his story. But his identity was secret for a reason, and would he have revealed that secret to a visitor, even a respected one?
The second option is that Bilbo didn’t hear Aragorn’s story until he settled in Rivendell. This is after Gandalf ‘opened his heart’ to Aragorn, who would then have had good reason to establish a relationship with Bilbo. This leaves only 6 years of regular contact (before Aragorn takes up the hunt for Gollum), but that’s long enough for mortals to become friends.
My head-canon, thean, is that Bilbo composed the All That is Gold poem after Gilraen died in 3007, to comfort his friend and let him know that he, Bilbo, believed that Aragorn would fulfill his destiny and bring Estel back to the world.
- Notes on ‘The Coming of Bilbo to Rivendell’ – The Blog of Mazarbul
Further, I quickly decided that if I was going to attempt something fairly unique, it would be best to consider Bilbo from an outsider’s perspective…and not just any outsider, but the Elves of Rivendell. It may seem a strange choice, for upon Bilbo’s first coming to Rivendell, the Elves seem to think of him (not unjustly) as a fairly banal figure; amusing and good-hearted, but of little consequence.
Yet it struck me that this perspective must have been altered by the time Bilbo returns to Rivendell to dwell there, following his 111st birthday. Not only is Bilbo a character altered by his experience, he is (I would contend) altered to the point of being amazing…even to the Eldest. For now, he is girt with a blade out of their own ancient history, bedecked in mail surpassing that of many of their captains and lords, with tales of dragons and eagles and gollums. Bilbo is not just strange, he is wondrous, even to an Elvish perspective.
And he is ungreyed by age. Half a century and more has passed – a small span of time to an Elf, but not so small as to be wholly unremarkable. The Elves are not unfamiliar with mortals, they know how swiftly they wither and perish…yet Bilbo does not, Bilbo has not.
And, of course, there is the matter of his magic ring. Of course, none truly guessed that it was the One at this time (and how much greater would their wonder have been upon realising what he had truly borne!), but for a mortal to have stumbled across, worn, and willingly given up even a lesser ring, one of the essays in the craft…even that is extraordinary. Even that is a feat.
So not only is Bilbo exceedingly strange, he must be strange to the fairies themselves. It’s a rare thing, I think, for an Elf to truly experience that Faerie wonder…yet I am sure that Bilbo must have inspired it in them. He is extraordinary, quite simply, even to Faerie creatures. And I felt like trying to explore at that and pick at it was a worthwhile attempt.
- How did Bilbo learn 🧝elvish? | 🧙The Tolkien Forum🧝
It seems that he had some knowledge of Elves before LOTR or The Hobbit but had probably not met them personally before his journey unlike Frodo. The Baggins family never did anything unexpected and you probably knew what they would say to a question so usually you didnt bother asking them. Frodo did however most likely taught by Bilbo who became friends with the Elves after the Hobbit.
it was only due to freequent visits to Rivendell that he grew learned in the lore of the elve tongue…
He often visited elves, so one would presume he picked it up, as one would pick up Spanish, if one took a holiday in Spain annually, for instance.