Tell me about Western WY - Alpine/Jackson/Togwotee

[Blk88GT]

A group of ~8 of us want to head down to this area and try a few different places over the course of a week at the end of January.

I've never done any riding in this area although I have experience riding a number of other areas in the West.

We'd like to do a few days in each area and I'd like to know what are good places to stay, ride etc. We're open to hiring a guide as safety is paramount to our group and I've heard that the Alpine area is unforgiving terrain wise.

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[M8Chris]

For alpine id stay at the flying saddle or rockin m ranch. I've only stayed at flying saddle but have heard great things about rockin m ranch nice thing if you stay at the ranch you can hire a guide from them and they seem to be very helpful people! There's great riding all around star valley and you can get plenty of it up greys river!

 

[WFO]

Call Lincoln County Customs. They are the only place with the permit to legally guide. They carry the correct insurance, etc and have gone about it the right way. Besides, there is nobody in Alpine that knows the Greys River better than Troy. I'd plan on going to Alpine first and make sure you can cancel other accommodations without any penalty. Alpine is hands down the best riding in Western Wyoming, or the Western US or that matter.

LCC - (307) 654-6637

Have fun and be safe!

Dub

 

[Blk88GT]

Thanks for the info guys. I was looking at staying at the Bull Moose Saloon right in town since it's close to everything, but it has horrible reviews that mention bed bug issues!

Rockin M Ranch seems a little far out of town for us. Can we ride right from the Flying Saddle?

 

[wjl]

link to lodging in Alpine.
http://www.alpinetopoftherockies.com/lodging/lodging.htm

http://www.bullmoosesaloon.com/index.html

http://www.flyingsaddleresort.com/lodge.html

Read about Tog in the sticky above and here it is the Forum ride, lots of info

http://www.snowest.com/forum/showthread.php?t=353976

 

[snengineer]

Thanks for the info guys. I was looking at staying at the Bull Moose Saloon right in town since it's close to everything, but it has horrible reviews that mention bed bug issues!

Rockin M Ranch seems a little far out of town for us. Can we ride right from the Flying Saddle?

yes you can ride from the ranch and saddle, stay at bull moose at your own risk, reviews are true of the past but not sure about now. there a couple VRBO's that might suit your group.

 

[M8Chris]

Yeah I wouldn't stay at the bull moose if I were you after all those reviews. Your really not that far from town at flying saddle. Literally 5 minutes if that.

 

[Blk88GT]

We won't be staying at the Moose, you can bet on that. I can't say we won't go to their bar though!

 

[lcc]

Give us a call we can we are the only back Country legal guide service in the Star Valley area and can Accommodate your group for the riding you want to do. we have ample parking for your sleds plus we're a full service shop if the need arises, we will allow you to melt off and ck out your sleds in the shop while your here, you can even hit us up for some set-up info as well. The Greys definitely is the place to see and Ride in the Winter.

 

[dcooper]

check ferry peak lodge for a house rental if you're not into the hotels.

http://alpinewyomingcabinrental.com

 

[rockinmranch]

Rockin' M Ranch

This is Rob with the Rockin' M. There are many great places to stay in Alpine. Our place is not the typical hotel experience. We have seven cabins located in a ranch type setting on the banks of the Salt River. The cabins are fully equipped with full kitchens, all needed cooking supplies, gas barbeque grills, gas fireplace, direct T.V, and two onsite hot tubs. We have plenty of parking for trucks with large trailers. Most of our guest like doing some barbeques in the evenings, playing some cards, and have some drinks in the hot tub after a long day of riding.
As for the riding, we sit in Wyoming about 1/2 mile from the Idaho Border and the Idaho trailhead is 1/2 mile from our highway turnoff. Plenty of places around the cabins to go for short rides or tune sleds. The Targhee National Forest is less than 1 mile from the cabins. There is a groomed 4 mile trail to Alpine. About half of our winter guests use their snowmobiles as their transportation to town and Greys River trailhead. The other half may prefer to trailer for there is great riding to the South out of Bedford.
As for guiding, we currently have two snowmobile guiding permits, one on the Idaho side (Targhee National Forest) and one on the Greys River Side (Bridger National Forest). Many of our guests will hire me or one of our guides to take them out the first day in the Greys River to get them oriented to the area and then go self guided after that. In general, the Greys River area is relatively easy to get around after the basic landmarks are learned. All drainages run to the Greys River and the Greys River runs to Alpine. For guests wanting to get into the more extreme backcountry (large bowls and basins) in the Greys River, I would recommend going with Troy at L.C.C. We have different limitations on our permits prescribed by the Forest Service and are not able to guide in some of the backcountry areas that Troy is able to. On the Idaho side we are the only legal snowmobile outfitter providing a guide service in the Targhee National Forest. I love the riding on the Idaho side. Although there is plenty of steep country, the drainages are not as steep and rugged as the Wyoming side. Awesome boondocking with very few tracks and even less people.
We also offer Polaris and Ski-Doo Snowmobile rentals. I am happy to deliver to any Alpine hotels or L.C.C. You don't have to stay with us to rent from us. We do give a discount on our cabins for guests who also rent sleds from us. I have been guiding in the Greys River mountains since 1993. I am happy to sit down with any guests that we rent to and go over maps and riding areas with you.
Thanks for reading!!
Call anytime,
Rob 307-654-2288
http://rockinmranchwyoming.com
rockinmranch@silverstar.com

 

[Blk88GT]

Rob, thank you for posting, that was very informative. We will be needing at least one rental as one of our guys flies in from Denver. I'll make sure he gets your info!

 

[TheJett29]

Rob

You are a super guy. Hope to meet up with you this year.

 

[skidawg]

Alpine area

Rob,
I don't know who you are, but when people like yourself, who come on these forums and post unbiased opinions about an area and business, in my eyes is highly commendable. My group is thinking about riding the Alpine area this winter and will seriously consider staying at your ranch and using you for one day of guiding. Thanks for the very informative post!

 

[Pro-8250]

Rob,
I don't know who you are, but when people like yourself, who come on these forums and post unbiased opinions about an area and business, in my eyes is highly commendable. My group is thinking about riding the Alpine area this winter and will seriously consider staying at your ranch and using you for one day of guiding. Thanks for the very informative post!

Same here

 

[Pro-8250]

This is Rob with the Rockin' M. There are many great places to stay in Alpine. Our place is not the typical hotel experience. We have seven cabins located in a ranch type setting on the banks of the Salt River. The cabins are fully equipped with full kitchens, all needed cooking supplies, gas barbeque grills, gas fireplace, direct T.V, and two onsite hot tubs. We have plenty of parking for trucks with large trailers. Most of our guest like doing some barbeques in the evenings, playing some cards, and have some drinks in the hot tub after a long day of riding.
As for the riding, we sit in Wyoming about 1/2 mile from the Idaho Border and the Idaho trailhead is 1/2 mile from our highway turnoff. Plenty of places around the cabins to go for short rides or tune sleds. The Targhee National Forest is less than 1 mile from the cabins. There is a groomed 4 mile trail to Alpine. About half of our winter guests use their snowmobiles as their transportation to town and Greys River trailhead. The other half may prefer to trailer for there is great riding to the South out of Bedford.
As for guiding, we currently have two snowmobile guiding permits, one on the Idaho side (Targhee National Forest) and one on the Greys River Side (Bridger National Forest). Many of our guests will hire me or one of our guides to take them out the first day in the Greys River to get them oriented to the area and then go self guided after that. In general, the Greys River area is relatively easy to get around after the basic landmarks are learned. All drainages run to the Greys River and the Greys River runs to Alpine. For guests wanting to get into the more extreme backcountry (large bowls and basins) in the Greys River, I would recommend going with Troy at L.C.C. We have different limitations on our permits prescribed by the Forest Service and are not able to guide in some of the backcountry areas that Troy is able to. On the Idaho side we are the only legal snowmobile outfitter providing a guide service in the Targhee National Forest. I love the riding on the Idaho side. Although there is plenty of steep country, the drainages are not as steep and rugged as the Wyoming side. Awesome boondocking with very few tracks and even less people.
We also offer Polaris and Ski-Doo Snowmobile rentals. I am happy to deliver to any Alpine hotels or L.C.C. You don't have to stay with us to rent from us. We do give a discount on our cabins for guests who also rent sleds from us. I have been guiding in the Greys River mountains since 1993. I am happy to sit down with any guests that we rent to and go over maps and riding areas with you.
Thanks for reading!!
Call anytime,
Rob 307-654-2288
http://rockinmranchwyoming.com
rockinmranch@silverstar.com

Maybe you should list what you don't have.
Nice write up, and I checked out your web site, very nice. I like how you have the cabin layouts in there. Are the hot tubs for all guest? And what elevation should we clutch for. On an average year how is the riding (snow conditions) during the first and second week of January?
Also, we would be coming from northern MN. On an good day how long would it take to get to your ranch from Bozeman.
I will email you with more ?????. Thanks!

 

[kcj1317]

If you want a place to ride into, 28 miles, that provides 3 meals a day and has gas available, bring your own oil and booze, check out the Box Y. 29 miles in but great place and great food.

Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk

 

[rockinmranch]

Alpine is 5700+ feet. Most of the riding and longer pulls are going to be between 8000-10,000. If I remember right I think Bozeman is about three hours from Idaho Falls. Alpine is 72 miles South East from Idaho Falls (highway 26) very close to the Idaho/Wyoming border, about 1 hour 15 minutes. We have 2 hot tubs split between 7 cabins. It is rare that there isn't space. I hate to guess snow conditions. In general, January can be the best powder month, but can be cold in the mornings when it is clear. We are already building a decent base for being mid November. Hopefully in a few more weeks we will be more confident about early January.

Maybe you should list what you don't have.
Nice write up, and I checked out your web site, very nice. I like how you have the cabin layouts in there. Are the hot tubs for all guest? And what elevation should we clutch for. On an average year how is the riding (snow conditions) during the first and second week of January?
Also, we would be coming from northern MN. On an good day how long would it take to get to your ranch from Bozeman.
I will email you with more ?????. Thanks!

 

[XFIRE800]

Im also VERY interested in making it out to Alpine this year. What is the best snotel to check for the area?

 

[rockinmranch]

Willow Creek is the closest, about 15 to 20 miles to the Southwest (Bedford Area). Blind Bull is 26 miles up the Greys River trail then left (East) up to the top of the mountain. Keep in mind when comparing these to other Wyoming sites, that they sit in the mid 8000's in elevation, where Togwotee and many of the other sites in the Snowy's sit over 9000 feet. Just for fair comparison.