Pack Trip

One of more popular mid-summer trips.  This trip goes into our Gates Park camp on the North Fork Sun River.  We stay 4 nights at this location, with a wide range of activities available each day.  This is a great fly fishing trip as it hits the peak hot time of year in the mountians and the fish are particularly active.  For the non fishermen, we have quite a few day rides and hikes near by including Bear Top fire lookout, Sock Lake (under the Chinese Wall), Biggs Creek Meadows, and the lower Sun River valley.

Day 1:  Pack up at the South Fork Teton trailhead.  The ride over Headquarters Pass (elevation 7,700 ft) is truly a highlight of the trip - and it's only the first 2 hours in!!  The trail from the basin below the pass begins a gradual descent along Headquarters Creek to the North Fork Sun River valley.  Along the way we have wide open vistas.  We often see wildlife along this ride as is a natural corridor for traveling elk, black bear, deer, and other critters.  Camp this evening is our semi-permanent camp ont he Sun River at Gates Park.  Riding distance 14 miles.

Day 2: No travel this day but plenty to do.  If you're up for a day ride, we often go to Biggs Creek Meadows to explore and see some incredible views of the continental divide to the west and the Sun River valley in all other directions.  Riding distance is 5 miles.  For the fishermen, you'll want to get on the water right after breakfast and start dueling with the river trout.  They get hungry around 10am and be ready for some amazing dry fly action and a LOT of fish.  Our fishermen come back telling us they catch upwards of 60 fish a day.

Day 3: No travel this day.  For day riders, we often go to Bear Top fire lookout which is the only remaining fire look out in the valley.  The view up there are incredible.  It's a good trail and we ride most of the way and hike the last 45 minutes.  We eat lunch and chat with the fire watch person, and just soak in amazing 360 views.  Total riding distance 10 miles.  The fishermen will get going again in the morning.  Often we can mix it up by taking fishermen downstream or upstream by horseback on an hour ride to get some different views of the river. It's pretty remarkable fishing no matter where you go on this river.

Day 4: No travel this day.  Our last day to explore and fish.  The ambitious horseback riders may want to go to Sock Lake today.  It's about a 14 mile round trip ride, but it's so worth it.  Sock Lake sits up in a little bowl under the Chinese Wall and is a stunning place to visit.  For the fishermen, we give them some aspirin for their aching elbows (from all the fish pulling on the rods all day) and get them to the river for the final day of fishing.  We try to hit a stretch of water they haven't seen yet just to mix things up.

Day 5: We pack up early and head out the Headquarters trail.  We get an early start to beat the heat and the dust, and are eating lunch in the basin below Headquarters Pass.  We often see mountain goats and bighorn sheep in the basins on either side of the pass.  Our day ends at the South Fork Teton trailhead.  We typically arrive in there in early afternoon.  Riding distance 14 miles.

This is a beautiful week in the back country.  We don't see many people this time of year, but we do see lots of wildlife and lots of wild flowers.  Due to the nature of higher mountain valleys, spring comes a later than most anywhere else.  We usually cross hardened snow drifts on the mountain passes, and often snow will linger in the shady areas quite a ways down the valleys.  In the river valley fllors, where this trip primarily travels, the snow is melted off, and the grass and trees are bursting with spring foliage.  By far this is the most colorful trip of the year as all the mountain wildflowers are out in splendor.  Additionally, the wildlife is more common at the end of June as they are moving from winter range to summer range, chasing the green grass as they go higher in elevation.  The rivers and streams will be full with winter run off.  There isn't much for fishing this time of year due to he murky nature of the streams. 

Day 1: Our first day we depart the trailhead at Swift Dam and ride around the west side of Swift Reservoir.  This is a particularly scenic day as we have contrasts of bright green grass, stunning wildflowers, the deep blue reservoir, and the mountain peaks capped in snow.  We end our day up the North Fork of Birch Creek where we overnight.  Ride approx 9 miles. 

Day 2: Pack up and travel west over spectacular Badger Pass.  This is another incredibly scenic day.  From the top you will see deep into the Bob Marshall and Middle Fork Flathead country.  We often see mountain goats and big horn sheep in this area.  Our stop tonight is at Strawberry Creek, where we camp overnight.  Ride appox 8 miles.

Day 3: Pack up and travel down Strawberry Creek then up through Gateway Gorge to Big River Meadows.  This is a leisurely ride with more amazing panorama as we ride through the 1,000 ft cliffs of Gateway Gorge.  We camp this night at Big River Meadows, which is a large and beautiful meadow at the very headwaters of Gateway Creek and directly under the continental divide.  Ride distance 10 miles.

Day 4: Non travel day.  There is tons of hiking and exploring options in Big River Meadows.  The wildflowers are abundant, and we often will see elk and moose in the valley.  A great day to explore.

Day 5: Pack up and ride over the divide then down the South Fork Birch Creek.  This is a broad, open valley with extensive vistas throughout.  Our day ends at the Swift Dam trailhead, where we started.  Riding distance approx 14 miles.

This is an amazing early summer trip into the back country.  We don't see many people this time of year, but we do see lots of wildlife and lots of wild flowers.  Due to the nature of higher mountain valleys, spring comes a later than most anywhere else.  Birch Creek has a lower elevation, so we won't have to cross any snowfields or passes.  It's pleasant horseback riding in the valley, which is a lower elevation than the immediate surrounding peaks and ridges.   In the South Fork valley snow is melted off, and the grass and trees are bursting with spring foliage.  All manner of wildflowers are just getting started and you have a great opportunity to see the first part of summer  all the mountain wildflowers are out in splendor.  Additionally, the wildlife is commonly seen as they are moving from winter range to summer range, chasing the green grass as they go higher in elevation.  The rivers and streams will be full with winter run off.  There isn't much for fishing this time of year due to he murky nature of the streams.

Day 1:  Pack up early at our Birch Creek trailhead.  We ride along the south side of Swift Reservoir, which is an irrigation dam impounding Birch Creek.  It takes about 2 hours to ride around the lake, and it is an stunningly scenic ride with vistas at each little ridge.  Along the lake trail we ride past Hell Roaring Spring, which burbles out 200 gallons per minute of ice cold water on a near vertical drop to the lake.  After getting to the head of the lake we ride another 2 hours to our campside on the South Fork of Birch Creek.  The South Fork valley is a beautiful valley with a continuous photo opportunities. Riding distance is 12 miles.

Day 2:  No travel day.  Our options to explore the South Fork valley include riding up to Bloody Ridge, the site of a pre-settlement battle between the Blackfeet and Flathead Indians.  If the snow has left the upper basins we can ride up to Gateway Pass and explore the area under the continental divide.  This time of year there are a lot of wildlife in the area and we are sure to see elk, black bear, bighorn sheep, and muledeer.  Riding distance is usually about 8 miles.

Day 3: No travel day. Our options this day include a hike up to a hidden lake on Lake Fork of Birch Creek.  For riders, we can ride up Phone Creek and explore this hidden valley and some great views of the Rocky Mountain Front Range from ridges above Phone Creek.  Riding distance is 8 miles.

Day 4: Pack up early and ride out the South Fork trail.  We keep a sharp eye out for wildlife as this time of year they often travel in the mornings as they move from the Rocky Mountain Front to the upper mountain meadows.  The scenery along the South Fork is just as impressive on the return trip wish many more photo opportunities.  We arrive at our Birch Creek trailhead in mid-afternoon. Riding distance is 12 miles.

One of more popular mid-summer trips.  This trip goes into our Gates Park camp on the North Fork Sun River.  We stay 4 nights at this location, with a wide range of activities available each day.  This is a great fly fishing trip as it hits the peak hot time of year in the mountians and the fish are particularly active.  For the non fishermen, we have quite a few day rides and hikes near by including Bear Top fire lookout, Sock Lake (under the Chinese Wall), Biggs Creek Meadows, and the lower Sun River valley.

Day 1:  Pack up at the South Fork Teton trailhead.  The ride over Headquarters Pass (elevation 7,700 ft) is truly a highlight of the trip - and it's only the first 2 hours in!!  The trail from the basin below the pass begins a gradual descent along Headquarters Creek to the North Fork Sun River valley.  Along the way we have wide open vistas.  We often see wildlife along this ride as is a natural corridor for traveling elk, black bear, deer, and other critters.  Camp this evening is our semi-permanent camp ont he Sun River at Gates Park.  Riding distance 14 miles.

Day 2: No travel this day but plenty to do.  If you're up for a day ride, we often go to Biggs Creek Meadows to explore and see some incredible views of the continental divide to the west and the Sun River valley in all other directions.  Riding distance is 5 miles.  For the fishermen, you'll want to get on the water right after breakfast and start dueling with the river trout.  They get hungry around 10am and be ready for some amazing dry fly action and a LOT of fish.  Our fishermen come back telling us they catch upwards of 60 fish a day.

Day 3: No travel this day.  For day riders, we often go to Bear Top fire lookout which is the only remaining fire look out in the valley.  The view up there are incredible.  It's a good trail and we ride most of the way and hike the last 45 minutes.  We eat lunch and chat with the fire watch person, and just soak in amazing 360 views.  Total riding distance 10 miles.  The fishermen will get going again in the morning.  Often we can mix it up by taking fishermen downstream or upstream by horseback on an hour ride to get some different views of the river. It's pretty remarkable fishing no matter where you go on this river.

Day 4: No travel this day.  Our last day to explore and fish.  The ambitious horseback riders may want to go to Sock Lake today.  It's about a 14 mile round trip ride, but it's so worth it.  Sock Lake sits up in a little bowl under the Chinese Wall and is a stunning place to visit.  For the fishermen, we give them some aspirin for their aching elbows (from all the fish pulling on the rods all day) and get them to the river for the final day of fishing.  We try to hit a stretch of water they haven't seen yet just to mix things up.

Day 5: We pack up early and head out the Headquarters trail.  We get an early start to beat the heat and the dust, and are eating lunch in the basin below Headquarters Pass.  We often see mountain goats and bighorn sheep in the basins on either side of the pass.  Our day ends at the South Fork Teton trailhead.  We typically arrive in there in early afternoon.  Riding distance 14 miles.

Pretty Prairie is a rare gem in the Bob Marshall; an area known world wide for exceptional beauty.  The Pretty Prairie meadow is over a mile long on the banks of the South Fork at the bottom of a picturesque mountain valley.  There are many activities to do from this camp, and certaily the fly fishing is at the top of the list.  The dry fly action on this river at this time of year is unmatched in North America.  Additionally, there are outstanding points of interest nearby for day rides and hikes.  These include the West Fork natural salt licks, the West Fork meadows, Prairie Creek, Sun Butte, and Bear Lake.

This is an amazing trip in the early summer visiting the south and north forks of the Sun River.  We start at Benchmark trailhead and travel upriver to our base camp at Gates Park before coming out over the snow and spectacular scenery of Headquarters Pass.  The travel days on this trip are modest - average about 10 miles when we travel.

Day 1:  Early morning start as we head into the mountains from Benchmark trailhead west of Augusta.  Our destination this day is Pretty Prairie - aptly named for sure!  The ride down the South Fork of the Sun is a gradual grade with open country most of the way due to a 2004 fire.  We will camp at Pretty Prairie, which is a mile long meadow sitting beside the beautiful south fork.  Riding distance is 7 miles.

Day 2:  We do not travel this day.  Exploration options include superb hiking, fishing, and day riding options. 

Day 3: We pack up and move downriver before climbing out the south fork and descending gradually to the north fork.  Our destination tonight is Glenn Creek on the North Fork Sun River.  This day is filled with constantly changing vistas of the Sun valley and surrounding mountains, which will be snow packed still.  Riding distance is 10 miles.

Day 4: We do not travel this day.  Exploration options include superb hiking, fishing, and day riding options.

Day 5:  We pack up and move upriver.  The route is winding through open meadows and ridges.  The scenery is sublime and we often see elk along this stretch.  A truly unforgettable day.  Our destination tonight is our base camp at Gates Park on the North Fork.  Riding distance is 11 miles.

Day 6:  We do not travel this day.  Exploration options include superb hiking, fishing, and day riding options.

Day 7:  We pack up and head up Headquarters Creek east towards the mountain front.  But first we must gradually climb all the way to the Headquarters basin, where we often see herds of goats and bighorn sheep.  After lunch we climb the final ascent over Headquarters Pass to 8,000 ft, then descend down towards the South Fork Teton River and our trailhead there.  The views along this ride, particularly at the pass, are fantastic.  Riding distance is 14 miles.