My Journey
- Thread starter YukonMontanaTannerTrapper
- Start date
jdlobb
Adventurer
Almost your entire state is bought and paid for by federal tax dollars. Colorado does, literally, belong to all of us. Texans included.
AlwaysRoaming
Member
As a Texan who spends significant dollars in NM, CO, WY, UT and NV every year, I support this message. I try to leave each state as I found it.
ITTOG
Well-known member
The problem is it seems most people do the opposite. They tend to ruin a lot of stuff.
YukonMontanaTannerTrapper
Explorer
We waited eight days for the next break in the hot summer weather to come. On the morning of the eighth day we loaded up the rig and drove west on the interstate.....finally escaping the pull that the Crazy Mountains have had over me lately.....
Just west of Cardwell, Montana we departed the interstate and drove north along Highway 69.....the first "leg stretching" stop of the trip happened to be in front of this very cool looking church.....
We continued driving north and eventually connected with another interstate in Boulder, Montana. Our time on that interstate was short lived as we exited just north of town and headed into the Elkhorn Mountains.....
Our plan for this trip was to climb Elkhorn Peak (9,394') the following day.....and possibly climb an additional peak.....Crow
Peak (9,422').....on the same day.....that was unlikely.....
This was new country for us as we'd never set foot in this mountain range prior to this visit. Picking this mountain was totally random.....I just had that urge to climb something while we were hanging out at the cabin.....
I think it was safe to say that the dogs had the exact same urge. The dogs are funny.....there's always this certain level of excitement when they see me loading up the rig.....they know.....
Then the excitement will die down as we travel the pavement.....but when the rig hits a gravel road.....then it's total insanity.....
The drive to the planned campsite wasn't really anything spectacular like many of the mountain ranges are in Montana.....
this sand dune in the middle of the forest was soooo unexpected.....I could only wonder how this was even possible.....
Just west of Cardwell, Montana we departed the interstate and drove north along Highway 69.....the first "leg stretching" stop of the trip happened to be in front of this very cool looking church.....
We continued driving north and eventually connected with another interstate in Boulder, Montana. Our time on that interstate was short lived as we exited just north of town and headed into the Elkhorn Mountains.....
Our plan for this trip was to climb Elkhorn Peak (9,394') the following day.....and possibly climb an additional peak.....Crow
Peak (9,422').....on the same day.....that was unlikely.....
This was new country for us as we'd never set foot in this mountain range prior to this visit. Picking this mountain was totally random.....I just had that urge to climb something while we were hanging out at the cabin.....
I think it was safe to say that the dogs had the exact same urge. The dogs are funny.....there's always this certain level of excitement when they see me loading up the rig.....they know.....
Then the excitement will die down as we travel the pavement.....but when the rig hits a gravel road.....then it's total insanity.....
The drive to the planned campsite wasn't really anything spectacular like many of the mountain ranges are in Montana.....
this sand dune in the middle of the forest was soooo unexpected.....I could only wonder how this was even possible.....
YukonMontanaTannerTrapper
Explorer
The gravel road took us further into the forest and higher up into mountains and once again I had a surprise come my way.....
Of course I had looked at Google Maps prior to leaving the cabin and of course I saw that there was a small town located at the end of the gravel road.....Elkhorn, Montana even had a Main Street.....but I never gave much thought to Googling the town name itself.....
Well.....it turned out that this old mining town had quite the history.....
We parked at the lower end of town (it's built on a pretty good slope) and decided to make this spot our campsite for the night. Just as the sun was setting we took a walk into town.....
Plenty of old abandoned buildings still stand in this old mining town.....and one thing that really stood out to me here.....the Forest Service has plastered this town with informative signs.....literally everywhere.....
Fortunately for the readers here, I won't post a single one.....
The following morning we got our typical early start into the mountains.....the mountains that call home to many Grizzly Bears.....so for this hike I attached a can of bear spray to my chest strap.....hoping to see at least one.....
Initially the trail was along an old mostly abandoned roadbed.....
.....that led to some old abandoned wood cabins.....
The hiking initially was so easy.....along that roadbed that ever so gradually climbed the western side of the Elkhorn Mountain Range.....
Of course I had looked at Google Maps prior to leaving the cabin and of course I saw that there was a small town located at the end of the gravel road.....Elkhorn, Montana even had a Main Street.....but I never gave much thought to Googling the town name itself.....
Well.....it turned out that this old mining town had quite the history.....
We parked at the lower end of town (it's built on a pretty good slope) and decided to make this spot our campsite for the night. Just as the sun was setting we took a walk into town.....
Plenty of old abandoned buildings still stand in this old mining town.....and one thing that really stood out to me here.....the Forest Service has plastered this town with informative signs.....literally everywhere.....
Fortunately for the readers here, I won't post a single one.....
The following morning we got our typical early start into the mountains.....the mountains that call home to many Grizzly Bears.....so for this hike I attached a can of bear spray to my chest strap.....hoping to see at least one.....
Initially the trail was along an old mostly abandoned roadbed.....
.....that led to some old abandoned wood cabins.....
The hiking initially was so easy.....along that roadbed that ever so gradually climbed the western side of the Elkhorn Mountain Range.....
YukonMontanaTannerTrapper
Explorer
Unlike many (most ?) of our Montana hikes which parallel creeks or rivers, or have multiple water crossings, this hike had little access to water.....the dogs took advantage of several small springs that seemed to open up near the trail which provided them with a cool drink of wonderful mountain spring water.....
Like water, views were also nearly nonexistent as well (at least until we got up high). This was one of the few spots where we did catch a glimpse of the mountains and valleys looking to the west.....
One section of the forest floor was covered in soft, almost fluffy plants.....really almost cloud like they were.....
And it wasn't just me that noticed it.....the dogs persistently stopped to roll around on that forest floor.....I swear it looked (and probably felt) too good to be true.....
It wasn't until we were at +/- 8,700' above sea level that we finally broke out of the forest and hiked through a grassy field.....to the south we hiked by Windy Point (9,026').....
Next we passed along a section of steep rocky cliffs.....again they were located to the south.....
Just beyond that ledge.....it was a near vertical drop.....
In the next picture you see Elkhorn Peak (9,394') the higher point on the right.....
The last +/- 300 vertical feet of climbing was through a massive rockfall.....I used the AllTrails Ap at this point which led us to an actual trail through the rockfall. Looking back I'm just amazed at what a well maintained trail that this was. In the next picture you see a very large stone enclosure built on the summit.....I was not a fan of this.....
The winds were light that afternoon so the stone enclosure had no value to us.....actually just the opposite.....it blocked the views. We ate lunch within it confines and downed the four bottles of water that I'd hauled up the mountain.....
Like water, views were also nearly nonexistent as well (at least until we got up high). This was one of the few spots where we did catch a glimpse of the mountains and valleys looking to the west.....
One section of the forest floor was covered in soft, almost fluffy plants.....really almost cloud like they were.....
And it wasn't just me that noticed it.....the dogs persistently stopped to roll around on that forest floor.....I swear it looked (and probably felt) too good to be true.....
It wasn't until we were at +/- 8,700' above sea level that we finally broke out of the forest and hiked through a grassy field.....to the south we hiked by Windy Point (9,026').....
Next we passed along a section of steep rocky cliffs.....again they were located to the south.....
Just beyond that ledge.....it was a near vertical drop.....
In the next picture you see Elkhorn Peak (9,394') the higher point on the right.....
The last +/- 300 vertical feet of climbing was through a massive rockfall.....I used the AllTrails Ap at this point which led us to an actual trail through the rockfall. Looking back I'm just amazed at what a well maintained trail that this was. In the next picture you see a very large stone enclosure built on the summit.....I was not a fan of this.....
The winds were light that afternoon so the stone enclosure had no value to us.....actually just the opposite.....it blocked the views. We ate lunch within it confines and downed the four bottles of water that I'd hauled up the mountain.....
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YukonMontanaTannerTrapper
Explorer
Before heading down the mountain I took pictures from the summit.....looking north, then east, then south, and finally to the west.....
We didn't see any Grizzly Bears that day.....Black Bears either.....I actually don't recall seeing any wildlife whatsoever.....but it was yet one more great day in the wilderness.....so thankful for these opportunities.....
We spent a second night camped in the National Forest and on our third day out we drove north to hang out in Helena, Montana.....
I've always liked this town.....the capital city of Montana. The historic section of town is great for people watching and a great place for walking the dogs. And having someone prepare lunch and dinner was a nice way to end the trip.....
We spent the third night camped on a side street in downtown Helena, Montana.....
.....and headed home on Day Four.....
.....already planning our next trip to the mountains.....
We didn't see any Grizzly Bears that day.....Black Bears either.....I actually don't recall seeing any wildlife whatsoever.....but it was yet one more great day in the wilderness.....so thankful for these opportunities.....
We spent a second night camped in the National Forest and on our third day out we drove north to hang out in Helena, Montana.....
I've always liked this town.....the capital city of Montana. The historic section of town is great for people watching and a great place for walking the dogs. And having someone prepare lunch and dinner was a nice way to end the trip.....
We spent the third night camped on a side street in downtown Helena, Montana.....
.....and headed home on Day Four.....
.....already planning our next trip to the mountains.....
YukonMontanaTannerTrapper
Explorer
Arjan.....they're at their best when plying mountain trails.....you're welcome.....
We had to wait eight days for the next break in the hot summer weather and when it finally came.....on the eighth day.....we drove east along the interstate. We passed through Livingston, Montana.....and continued on driving east. When we came to the exit for Big Timber, Montana we took it. We passed through town but then no further.....as our plan was to spend the night at the Sweet Grass County Fairgrounds.....
It was a Thursday evening when we arrived so the fairgrounds were practically empty.....still we camped as far away from everything as we possibly could. Then we took a long walk along the paved entrance road which led us back into town.....
The next morning we hung around the fairgrounds for a few hours and maybe it was 10 a.m. when we finally hit the road.....
We took Highway 191 north out of town.....
Then we took a left onto Wormser Loop Road.....the first gravel road of this trip.....
After maybe three more miles we took yet another left hand turn.....continued driving back to the west.....
Then 13 more miles of gravel roads on Big Timber Canyon Road.....some parts of that road so very good.....and some parts of that road not so very good. And at the terminus of that very last road, we arrived at the trailhead of our next little adventure.....
So here we were.....once again.....getting ready to hike to another lake (actually a pair of lakes) in the Crazy Mountains. The skies up to this point had not looked overly concerning but here at the opening of the canyon they looked entirely different.....
It was dark looking into that canyon and it sure did feel like rain was coming. I crammed my rain poncho into my daypack along with my lunch, my water, and of course a favorable amount of dog treats.....
It was probably around 11 a.m. when we finally hit the trail.....
We had to wait eight days for the next break in the hot summer weather and when it finally came.....on the eighth day.....we drove east along the interstate. We passed through Livingston, Montana.....and continued on driving east. When we came to the exit for Big Timber, Montana we took it. We passed through town but then no further.....as our plan was to spend the night at the Sweet Grass County Fairgrounds.....
It was a Thursday evening when we arrived so the fairgrounds were practically empty.....still we camped as far away from everything as we possibly could. Then we took a long walk along the paved entrance road which led us back into town.....
The next morning we hung around the fairgrounds for a few hours and maybe it was 10 a.m. when we finally hit the road.....
We took Highway 191 north out of town.....
Then we took a left onto Wormser Loop Road.....the first gravel road of this trip.....
After maybe three more miles we took yet another left hand turn.....continued driving back to the west.....
Then 13 more miles of gravel roads on Big Timber Canyon Road.....some parts of that road so very good.....and some parts of that road not so very good. And at the terminus of that very last road, we arrived at the trailhead of our next little adventure.....
So here we were.....once again.....getting ready to hike to another lake (actually a pair of lakes) in the Crazy Mountains. The skies up to this point had not looked overly concerning but here at the opening of the canyon they looked entirely different.....
It was dark looking into that canyon and it sure did feel like rain was coming. I crammed my rain poncho into my daypack along with my lunch, my water, and of course a favorable amount of dog treats.....
It was probably around 11 a.m. when we finally hit the trail.....
YukonMontanaTannerTrapper
Explorer
We hiked into a dense forest filled with pines and spruces and through fairly dense under brush.....
The trail followed along the meanders of the Big Timber Creek.....
Crossing the creek on this hike was made simple due to the man made foot bridges.....
While this trail does get its fair share of hikers and the trail itself is well troddened.....we were fortunate to only have one encounter with another hiker (on the way up that is).....
It's hard to believe that it was cold on that late in July day but I assure you that it was. The one hiker I passed as we gained elevation wore gloves and a beanie hat......me.....I was a little tougher than that.....I went without.....
Snow still lingered on the north facing slopes.....
I suspect that this little canyon had its own little weather patterns.....it was 50 degrees at the start of the hike but as we gained elevation I could tell that the temperatures were continuing to drop.....
The trail followed along the meanders of the Big Timber Creek.....
Crossing the creek on this hike was made simple due to the man made foot bridges.....
While this trail does get its fair share of hikers and the trail itself is well troddened.....we were fortunate to only have one encounter with another hiker (on the way up that is).....
It's hard to believe that it was cold on that late in July day but I assure you that it was. The one hiker I passed as we gained elevation wore gloves and a beanie hat......me.....I was a little tougher than that.....I went without.....
Snow still lingered on the north facing slopes.....
I suspect that this little canyon had its own little weather patterns.....it was 50 degrees at the start of the hike but as we gained elevation I could tell that the temperatures were continuing to drop.....
We spent a week at Half Moon CG 10 years ago. Great hiking and just enjoyed hanging out, except for the Rave party that came in on one of the nights.