GOLD CREEK BLACKFOOT MISSOULA AREA

[CATSLEDMAN1]

march 22

hard snow with 2-8" of fresh, go anywhere, drop scratchers down low.

not much parking at end of plowed road, couple of rigs with trailers used it up, ok to run up icy road from gravel pit.

hard snow that beat on you, other sunny and nice, didn't get wet still cool.

all good

 

[CATSLEDMAN1]

best snow no riders

far as I can tell, three riders in the whole area, best snow depts. with 14" of new on lots of snow, sunny skies, warm in the hot sun , going to be even better, this week.

good riding, everyone gone. spring again.

 

[CATSLEDMAN1]

Sat the 5th

Wow............no one ??

Last weeks 16" of new was a crust 5800' and up, all good, more snow up high, going away down low like all spring riding.

Dry road basically to end of plowed, by late this afternoon you could drive another mile or so beyond end of plowed, few dirt patch's on way to high country.

Two other sledders in the valley, let Joe S and his bud try out our sno bikes, we all had fun in the sun doing that.

Big loop up through the West Fork all morning , one set of tracks.

2 pm on we went over to Black mtn / Gold peak / Boles meadows / fawn creek / Joko road. Yup we cut a track so some one still owns a sled in Montana. Burned all our gas by 5pm, lots of wot covering country, sore butt, big smile lots of sun and some blowing blizzard all good.

 

[CATSLEDMAN1]

Sat the 5th Sun snow Sun Snow Overcast Sun

Wow............no one ??

Last weeks 16" of new was a crust 5800' and up, all good, more snow up high, going away down low like all spring riding.

Dry road basically to end of plowed, by late this afternoon you could drive another mile or so beyond end of plowed, few dirt patch's on way to high country.

Two other sledders in the valley, let Joe S and his bud try out our sno bikes, we all had fun in the sun doing that.

Big loop up through the West Fork all morning , one set of tracks.

2 pm on we went over to Black mtn / Gold peak / Boles meadows / fawn creek / Joko road. Yup we cut a track so some one still owns a sled in Montana. Burned all our gas by 5pm, lots of wot covering country, sore butt, big smile lots of sun and some blowing blizzard all good.

 

[Scott]

I have ridden the blackfoot once in the last 15 years.

 

[CATSLEDMAN1]

big blackfoot

25 years ago we groomed up there to shoofly, club had rides to Seely, grooming to Garnet.

back then I was riding more in Kelly creek, hoodoo, Williams peak and the bighole. Had a bunch of Hamilton pals I rode with, so down there or meet west of town.

they all be too old or dead or gone. guess I got tired of driving also. gold creek close and no one there. since 2000 its the most open riding in western mt, that and growing up a lot of my childhood east of Missoula riding without some sagebrush sticking through the snow makes me nervous. scott thanks for the encouraging posts, nice to clock in when I ride down south etc and get parking news so if I''m there I like to share the news.

Spook lake and swamp lake if weather good this weekend.

 

[CATSLEDMAN1]

day before EASTER toooo nice out

lol

 

[CATSLEDMAN1]

day before EASTER toooo nice out

sunny and 60 up high today, nobody ? nada, new snow above 6000 ft , you could just faintly see some tracks from last week, couple of sleds were in the west fork yesterday Friday the 18 but we had it all to ourselves today.
snow completely over the shoo fly meadows sign, old diamond trail markers covered or just at snow level. best snow of the year, best weather of the year, nobody.

drove up the mineral mountain road 1/2 mile, parked in front of first deep sno bank in road, had a couple of dirt stretches of 20 ft or so to ride then lots of snow.

bikes and dirt.......we drove through snow in background and all good beyond
lake in background is THE Hart lake not the other heart lake or the other hart lake
sun has been melting cabin roof snow pretty fast, 10" of fresh though sometime durning last week.

 

[CATSLEDMAN1]

more snow more sun still good riding

two miles up Mineral Mtn road, unload and ride up the first clearcut to the left, top of that was into new 8" of new heavy wet powder.........wow dense stuff but made for great going, beautiful out there, had the whole world out there to ourselves, NO BODY, no sled tracks. Sunny and warm and one 15 minute light blizzard, not bad for late April.