Camas Lake in the Bitterroots
One of the greatest aspects of hiking is the opportunity to explore new areas, even places near your home. Camas Lake is just one of those places…close to home and never explore. That was true until today when Vida and I made the hike to the lake and we were awarded with spectacular views and […]
Blackfoot River Valley – Simply Amazing
Spent an awesome morning hiking and exploring on a private ranch in the Blackfoot River Valley. The landscape was an enticing mixture of rolling hills, ponderosa pine stands, and meadows. Cow elk were everywhere with calves dropping (we did see two little spotted guys). The most unique sight of the day was a western painted […]
Morrell Falls – Crowded Beauty
Morrell Falls is a quite popular destination for hikers and families looking for an afternoon stroll to one of the most photogenic waterfalls in Montana. Swan Mountains dominate the skyline as you weave through a rather monotonous lodgepole forest for the first mile and half. These eventually gives way to a spruce-fir forest with Morrell Creek […]
Chaffin Butte
Sometimes the most magical places are in the back yard and in plain sight. Chaffin Butte (the “C” hill above Corvallis) is just such a place. This short, steep trail leads through sagebrush to the top of Chaffin Butte with panoramic views of the Bitterroot and Sapphire Mountains. [sgpx gpx=”/wp-content/uploads/gpx/Chaffin Butte.gpx”] The trail quickly drops […]
Morning spent in the blind
Managed to get out to Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge for a little birding and photography. Spending most of my time in one of two photo blinds where a number of waterfowl swam by at close range. Walking around the Wildlife Viewing Area, loads of California Quail scurried about and a broken top snag was […]
Calypso Rain
I’ve always love to walk to the rain. Everything becomes slow, and yet vibrant at the same time. Everything becomes a contradiction. There’s silence, yet sound surrounds. There are no people, but I’m not lonely. [sgpx gpx=”/wp-content/uploads/gpx/Early afternoon hike.gpx”]
Birding – Easy Like Sunday Morning
Birding on a warm, lazy Sunday morning in April is like visiting with old friends. These friends are returning from journeys, both short and epic. The landscape of the Montana is being filled with color and sounds as the migrants return. The return coincides with a explosion of life that tracks with increases daylight and […]
Buttercup Loop on Blue Mountain
Made this great loop around the lower reaches of Blue Mountain for a great mountain bike ride that featured 2 climbs and a good portion of single track. A big plus was that hardly anyone else was out on the trails…I might be a bit greedy on that one. [sgpx gpx=”/wp-content/uploads/gpx/Buttercup Loop.gpx”]
Mount Jumbo from Lincoln Hills
Vida and I shared on the best early season hikes around Missoula, the short, steep ascent to the top of Mount Jumbo. The temperature soared into the upper 60s as we departed from the Lincoln Hills trailhead, which sits below the Saddle. At the saddle, the wildflowers were just starting to pop with Sagebrush buttercup […]
Hidden Treasure/MoZ Downhill
Starting at the Crazy Canyon, I made it to the top of trail 301.2, and started a bomb downhill that ended in Missoula. The ride along the MoZ, which was constructed for mountain biking, is stunning with views of the entire valley and wide switchbacks for a little fun. [sgpx gpx=”/wp-content/uploads/gpx/Hidden TreasureMOZ Downhill.gpx”]
1st Hill Run of 2016 – Vista Point
1000 vertical feet, 2 bursting lungs, and 1 amazing view from Vista Point. I was more than a little nervous about running uphill, so far I have doing only relatively flat runs. So let’s do a REAL run, and go up to Vista Point in the Blue Mountain Recreation Area near Missoula. It was an […]
Blue Mountain National Recreation Area – Trails 3.06 & 3.03
Living near Missoula, Montana, we are fortunate have the Blue Mountain National Recreation Area just outside of the city limits. This 4,900-acre recreation area includes 41 miles of system trails, and on this day I hiked along trails 3.03 & 3.06 for a quick 3 miles. In the video, I rant against the militia currently occupying […]
Birding along the Kenai Trail – Lee Metcalf NWR
[sgpx gpx=”/wp-content/uploads/gpx/Kenai Trail – Lee Metcalf NWR.gpx”] A place that I have visited many, many times, the Lee Metcalf National Refuge has always had a special draw on me. The series of ponds host a variety of waterfowl and other water throughout the year, and has one of the few extensive wetland areas in the […]
Hiking to Bass Creek Falls in the Bitterroots
[sgpx gpx=”/wp-content/uploads/gpx/Bass Creek to the Falls.gpx”] Happy New Year! And what better way to kickoff 2016, then with a winter hike into the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness and, specifically, Bass Creek Falls. The hike is relatively easy at a length of 3.25 miles to the Falls and an elevation gain of slightly more than 1000 feet. The […]
Jerry Johnson Hot Springs
[sgpx gpx=”/wp-content/uploads/gpx/Jerry Johnson.gpx”] Jerry Johnson Hot Springs are located a tad over a mile from the Lochsa River in Idaho. The hike starts with a crossing of the Lochsa River, followed by a gentle hike along Warm Springs Creek. On this day, I had the entire place to myself from parking lot to the pools […]