WOOT WOOT! Nukin' in Missoula

[stuckathuntermtn]

Any good ways to connect skiing and biking around Missoula?
When does the Lolo road open?

[cloud cult]

May 15, but I believe the trails up Lolo are closed this summer because of the fire damage.

Try the road up to the Sheep Mountain trailhead to bike then ski.

[stuckathuntermtn]

Yeah, sucks about Lolo. Hope they have the funds for remediation.
You can ski off Sheep? Is that Wishard Ridge?

[cloud cult]

Technically, yes. Sheep is the high point of Wisherd Ridge. A summer road winds along the northish face of the mountain to a decently high trailhead. Usually about now there is a snowdrift blocking a few miles of dry road, so it's a good one to use a bike for. The actual high point of Sheep is not great skiing, but if you head south a bit into Bowl 4 or so there is great skiing.

[stuckathuntermtn]

Technically, yes. Sheep is the high point of Wisherd Ridge. A summer road winds along the northish face of the mountain to a decently high trailhead. Usually about now there is a snowdrift blocking a few miles of dry road, so it's a good one to use a bike for. The actual high point of Sheep is not great skiing, but if you head south a bit into Bowl 4 or so there is great skiing.

Let's do it!

[yeahman]

I think this is the bowl cloud cult is talking about, with the summit of Sheep on the right or out of the pic to the right. It is fun terrain and there's a lot more of it off Wisherd Ridge.

[stuckathuntermtn]

Ok, but I'm not doing that solo.

[wordbird]

Looks like a classical Alpental groom on May3rd...




Well maybe they can start their paid mountain bike season early now thanks to that groom?(taken yesterday).
I never thought you could get a creek in a runout before... Might be why we are having major flooding on the Clark Fork tonight.

[margotron]

What's up team!!! I just found this thread. Where have you guys been skinning besides the bowl? and what's gonna be a good bet for skinning for the next month? I will be going solo mostly but I'm down to meetup.

Disclaimer: I am a mediocre skinner at best -- my first season skinning.

I'm super curious if i know some of you guys now / seen you around

[cloud cult]

Ok, but I'm not doing that solo.

I just ran up there -- last minute decision or I would have PMd you, stucky. You can drive perfectly fine to 5000 feet then hit plenty of snow. Looked like it went for a while so turned around and biked the gated road that shoots south/west at like 4800 feet. You can bike 2 miles, with one walking patch, before longer snow. This puts you in line to skin up the east face of Sheep to the proper summit. I skinned for a ways up then sorta lost interest; also looked like rain.

[margotron]

whoah. that's the runout? man that storm crushed the snow this last weekend. where does the skin to the top start now? below meadows?

Looks like a classical Alpental groom on May3rd...




Well maybe they can start their paid mountain bike season early now thanks to that groom?(taken yesterday).
I never thought you could get a creek in a runout before... Might be why we are having major flooding on the Clark Fork tonight.

[wordbird]

whoah. that's the runout? man that storm crushed the snow this last weekend. where does the skin to the top start now? below meadows?

Yeah, runout before the hill is completely gone now. Skinned around on paradise return, but there was lots of skinning on dirt yesterday and probably a lot more after another warm day today.

[stuckathuntermtn]

I don't know Wishard Ridge at all, so I'm uncomfortable doing it myself.
Tomorrow or Sunday might be good? Anyone?

[margotron]

I don't know Wishard Ridge at all, so I'm uncomfortable doing it myself.
Tomorrow or Sunday might be good? Anyone?

I could go monday?

[stuckathuntermtn]

pm me.

Got a good look at Snowbowl yesterday from an Overlook ride and the bottom third, if not half, is brown.

[stuckathuntermtn]

View from Sentinel still shows lots of snow higher up in the Rattlesnakes. Stuart Mountain SnoTel almost 90". Let's go surfing now, everyone's learning how.

[cloud cult]

Snow on Sheep has gone up about 400 feet in two weeks; you can start skiing from 5600 feet.

In Cooper Creek you drive direct to skinnable snow at about 5800 feet, but must pass one pretty long and deep stretch of mud and about 100 yards where one side of the car is on dry ground and the other side is halfway up a snowbank.

[stuckathuntermtn]

I still wanna tour a little, you wanna show me around? How'd that baseweld ever hold up?

[cloud cult]

I still wanna tour a little, you wanna show me around? How'd that baseweld ever hold up?

Ha thanks man that base weld outlived the skis.

My schedule has a short horizon these days so it's hard to know very much in advance if I'm going to go. Can you DM me your number again?

[wordbird]

Let's give this thread a quick bump before summer skiing season begins(only patch skiing within a two hour drive of us, it's time to drive to Volcanoes if you want it to be worth it )
Heart lake/Hoodoo pass. A couple non-ski released pics first: record river flooding on the Clark Fork and deer chase video. Not much skiing done on this day, only one 2k' climb because I forgot my snowboard boots and had to try on telemark boots for the first time...

Almost on the road.

New friend..

Looking towards heart lake...


St. Mary's - most successful day of this spring, two great bowl laps skied east of the peak, one from the peak and another one lower down the ridge on the way out(no pictures).

Objective in sight...
The Lookout, where everybody can sign in during the summer.
View from the top towards the Bitterroot Valley.
Some stuff released on the way down, and clouds moved in to obscure the tracks
And finally the trip to trapper i took yesterday after the much anticipated June dump, which ended up being only a couple inches of dry fresh snow(the snow was being transported even at 11 am in blazing sunshine the next day though).

View of the complicated ramps & objective

Someday I plan to ride down this, but didn't really think we had the right conditions for it yesterday.

Pattern finding lots of sticky snow on his skins when skinning across the sun exposed slopes on the way up.

I finally got to set my own point release on this lap around noon too, and this slope is facing almost directly to the north as well(it felt very cool when you were moving, but June sound does it's thing).

[S_jenks]

Adding to wordbird's TR on Trapper, the Barker Lake Basin was a solid Sunday adventure. Managed a couple photos too.

The hike to the lake was easy-enough on foot, and the snow flurries combined with cold winds made it feel like a late-fall ski.

The views were agreeable enough throughout the ascent.

There were plans to ski that big couloir in wordbird's pic, but the combination of new snow, rapidly warming temps from the sun, and the possible presence of a huge cornice breaking above we had to bail for safer skiing. That point release only helped reinforce that concern.

But, the turns we managed before the sun's final desecration of the new snow were oh-so divine. Some of the best June turns I've ever had.

Getting down to the lake required a little fiddling and route-finding, but we managed it back down through sun-cupped turns and hops. Lunch was very rewarding to have post-ski; Fucking delicious sandwich.

And then finally back at the trail-head.

A trip to the Beartooths may still be in the cards, but I'd be happy if this book-ends the summer turns. The rivers and dirt trails are calling..

[yeahman]

Way to get after it you guys, nice pics.

[Leshphilling77]

looking for a little biking and camping advice around the msla, going to be there for a few days this summer. I used to live in the area and have rode bikes in the rattlesnake a few times but i wasn't super into mtb then and it seems like there has been some more trails put in since i was last there. wondering if there is something I shouldn't miss. as for camping i know of some spots but its just been a while and am looking for a cool spot not too far from town, will probably stay in town one night to re-live old times and catch up with the few people i still know there. thanks.

[stuckathuntermtn]

All the mtb is on MTB Project or Trailforks. Fenceline/whatever rebuild is a nice addition to the Rattlesnake (at least I think a lot of it is new). Camping I'm not sure about. There's always Rock Creek? Bass Creek down the root is not far either, but might be mostly day use. There's Fort Fizzle and anywhere up somewhere like Elk Meadows road in the Lolo direction. Shit, I've even heard of people sleeping in their car or truck up Blue Mountain. I assume they meant on the main road, since it goes up pretty high and there are a ton of pullouts. That's probably the only place close to town you could get away with camping.

When are you going to be here? July 4th is gonna mean crowded camping spots, but any other weekday, or even weekend shouldn't be too bad.
If you're looking for other than car camping, if you bike or hike far enough up the Rattlesnake, you're out of the day use area, I think.


Nice to summer skiing missions, guys! Missed it the first time around. Wish Lolo was open :/

[Leshphilling77]

word thanks dude. ill be there mid to late july during the week. Rock Creek was probably going to be my go to/ back up to camp at, had wondered about maybe going up blue one night and just sleeping in the back of the car. if I do that is anything like deadmans out there worth the ride?