First “Real” Hike of 2019! Bass Creek

Finally, finally…we are out and hiking again with the whole crew (Vida, Jeff and myself), and for the first “real” hike of 2019, we put on the YakTrax and hiked to the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness boundary. [sgpx gpx=”/wp-content/uploads/gpx/Bass Creek 331.gpx”] We started the day at the Larry Creek trailhead as the deeply rutted ice-packed road to […]

Mount Sentinel via Pengelly Ridge

Lone ponderosa pine on the slopes above the M

Normally, I think of Mount Sentinel has the M with its constant flow of folks making their way to the whitewashed concrete letter, but Mount Sentinel is a large area with an extensive network of trails. On a sunny day, Vida and I decided to tackle the slope from Pengelly Ridge to the top, and we […]

Friday Pass – Hike into the Elk Summit Country

Friday Pass is that way

Friday Pass is a low pass between the KoosKoosia Meadows area and the Wind Lakes in the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness Area in Idaho. The hike to Friday Pass is a relatively manageable uphill until Swamp Lake (guess why it is called that?) when the trail goes steeply to the pass. Once reaching Friday Pass, you can […]

Schley Mountain Hike – Great Views of the Great Burn Roadless Area

Vida nearing the top

At the peak of Schley Mountain, you have awesome 360-degree views of the Great Burn Roadless Area. This hike is 3 miles point-to-point, with mild 500’ in elevation gain. Good views from the site of the former Schley Mountain lookout. [sgpx gpx=”/wp-content/uploads/gpx/Schley Mountain .gpx”]

Hiking to Canyon Lake – Revisiting a Challenge

Canyon Lake was drawn down considerably

Canyon Lake, a trail that seemed to almost kill us the last time we hike it. The last mile to the lake had my knees sounding like rusty hinges and my legs shaking. I still remember the sore legs for several days after that hike. So, why do it again and see what happens. To […]

Fish Lake – Another hike in the Lost Horse Country

Vida hanging out on the shores of Fish Lake

From the Bear Creek Pass Trailhead, several great hikes spread into the Lost Horse Country, and the trail to Fish Lake is exceptional. Starting out, we hiked through a mixture of forest and boulder fields until we reached a junction in the path. By this time we were solidly within the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness Area. Continuing […]

Hiking to Little Rock Creek Lake

Little Rock Creek Lake

The best hikes, like this one to Little Rock Creek Lake, are always those spur of the moment, look at the map, and go. “Let’s go for a hike.” “Never done Little Rock Creek Lake.” “Let’s do it!” And with that, we were off to the Little Rock Creek trailhead, located above Lake Como to the […]

Bear Creek Falls (low-flow version)

Bear Creek Falls from the chasm (for the first time)

It has been awhile since we have been to Bear Creek Falls, so why not a quick hike to the cascade and see how it looks without any rain in a month and a half. Arriving at the falls in less than an hour, the chasm contained only a trickle of water compared to the raging […]

Day Hike to Coquina Lake in the Lost Horse Country

Coquina Lake under smoky skies

Nestled in a tight basin, Coquina Lake is a true gem of a day hike in the Lost Horse country of the Bitterroot Mountains. I have fallen in love with the Lost Horse country, which I have not hiked until this summer (next hike will be the Spruce Lake). From the Bear Creek Pass trailhead, […]

Mount Sentinel after the first rain in 45 days

Missoula from Mount Sentinel

It rained…I almost forgot what rain was, but there it was falling from the smokey sky. Vida had the idea of hiking in the cool air, so we decided on a quick hike up Mount Sentinel from the Crazy Canyon trailhead. Mount Sentinel (formally known as Mount Woody) stands above Missoula, and it is the […]

Hike down into Walton Lakes, Idaho

Meadows surround the southern edge of the lower Walton Lake

Two hikes in a row have started a hefty downhill, which the end of the day is uphill (shaking a fist at the gods). From a ridge near Tom Beal Park, you descend nearly 1000 feet to the first lake of the Walton Lakes. The trail is generally in great shape. The huckleberries were abundant […]

Quick afternoon Blue Mountain Lookout jaunt

Blue skies over the Blue Mountain Lookout

For those of us that live in western Montana, we are extremely fortunate to have so many great hiking destinations in such close proximity to our homes. Blue Mountain stands over Missoula, and on top of its forested slopes is a little-used fire lookout. The hike to the summit is a rather quick 1.9 miles […]

Scooting up Skookum Butte

Last view of Skookum Butte as we descended

It has been 2 years since I have made the short hike to the historic lookout atop Skookum Butte. This time, Vida joined me, well, she rather tolerated me as my hiking speed was limited to a crawl due to a cause of bronchitis and asthma (together in some kind of oxygen-deprived stew of disease). […]

Northern Saw-whet Owl along the Bitterroot

Northern Saw-whet Owl

“There’s an owl!”, Vida exclaimed. Following her pointed finger to a small clump in a ponderosa pine thicket, a small Northern Saw-whet Owl sat motionless. I had been hearing a dervish of scolding Black-capped Chickadees and Red-breasted Nuthatches, apparently they had even found the owl previously.

Hanging Prayer flags at the Garden of 1000 Buddhas

Today Vida and I had the great opportunity to work at the Garden of 1000 Buddhas as the Ewam Sangha prepares for the month-long retreat in July. Along with Charlie Pearl (our personal favorite), we moved lumber and replaced the tattered prayer flags near Rinpoche’s house. Prayers flags are very important in Tibetan Buddhism as […]