Hiking the Cube Iron/Silcox Roadless Area, Northwest Montana

Joined by Vida and Haines, we hiked a loop route through the Cube Iron/Silcox Roadless Area. This particular route has been on my hike bucket list for 20 years since I first discovered the trails on a map. This loop starts at the Four Lakes basin trailhead and climbs at a good pitch to Cabin […]

O’Brien Creek: A “hidden” hiking treasure

The turnaround

While Blue Mountain sees throngs of hikers, dogs, and urban refugees, O’Brien Creek does not nearly the sheer volume of users even though it is only a couple miles away. In fact, it is weird to meet someone else on these loop trails. [sgpx gpx=”/wp-content/uploads/gpx/O’Brein Creek.gpx”]

Hiking to Deadman’s Point, Blue Mountain

Deadman's Point in the Blue Mountain Recreation Area

Spring hiking usually means experiencing all the seasons in the span of 15 minutes, and today was a seasonal puree. The trail was clear, muddy, and icy – all at the same time. The route following Hayes Creek and then ascended a short slope to the ridge. From there, I traced the ridgeline to Deadman’s […]

Waterworks Hill up the Randolph Homestead

Waterworks Hill

Waterworks Hill lies to the northeast of Missoula, and it sports a nice network of trails over and around its grassy slopes. The hike to the “summit” (you can’t call it a summit, can you?) is a quick one mile and around 700 feet up, but the real fun is in extending your trek to the […]

Solitude of Snow – Hiking Alone

True solitude comes when the snow is falling silently in the mountains of Montana. Hiking to the top of a point in the ridge above Missoula is a challenge in the knee powder of the most recent storm.