Wallace Idaho

July 24, 2011 -Atv trails, Trail of the Coeur d’ Alene and Route of the Hiawatha bike trail

  Wallace has renowned ATV Jamborees thru out the year, with guided trail rides.  We missed it, but decided to venture out on our own. We camped north of town at Wallace Rv Park, and rode north on to trails.  We found, Dobson Pass trail- 24miles. We stopped for lunch and picked huckleberries for dessert.  Some trails are well used and others are fun to explore.  Some trails are the ATV kind and other will be old logging roads or gravel roads.  The terrain can be steep with wonderful views.  In the woods we found, snow, granite gulches, steep drop offs, vistas, dense forest, creeks, elk and bear tracks.
  You can even ride your atv downtown, or go thru town to other trail heads.  There are several Wallace, Idaho Atv web site on line.

	Bear Grass flower

A bear was eating this flower , hence it is what Lewis and Clark named it “Bear Grass” We also rode our bicycles on the Trail of the Coeur d’ Alene. 72 miles of paved paths.

   But the best ride was the Route of the Hiawatha is operated by Lookout Pass Ski Area under a special-use permit of the U.S. Forest Service. Trail users must obtain and display trail passes, which cost $10 for adults and $6 for children aged 6-13 years. You must wear a helmet and have a light for the Taft Tunnel, which is a dark  1.6 miles long.  There are several trestles to ride across.  The grade is an easy 1.7%. If you don't want to ride up hill,  a shuttle bus provides transportation for riders and their bicycles.

                                                                   Looking down from the trestle, to a creek below!

 

Lolo Pass, Montana

JULY 18, 2011
Lolo Hot Springs Campground, Montana, is a historic area, with natural hot springs. Near by attractions are Lewis and Clark State Park, Bernard DeVoto memorial consisting of 500 yr old red cedar trees.
We went to the National Forest Office down the road, and the female at the desk, told us “there are no Atv trails”.  Later on we went back in to look for maps and the male at the desk informed us “That there are no Atv trails,  you can ride Atvs on the back woods roads for several miles”. So be careful who you talk to. We also rode our atvs in this area but found most of the trails were gravel logging road riding. Most went up the forested mountain to old logging roads, which crisscrossed on top. It was still an interesting place to see.
LOCATION:   Nearest city-Lolo   Directions: South of Missoula to Lolo, west on Hwy 12, 28mi
AREA;  Type of Land: mountain, forest  /  Owner:  Nat Forest
QUALITY;  Pro, Con, Length of stay-2-3/ rating-stars-2
TERRAIN;  hills/mountains/forest/, mud, dust, water crossings,elevation  
KEY SERVICES;Camping /, Gasoline / Diesel / First Aid / Water/ Dump / Food= Lolo Hot Spr.

Forest as far as the eye can see

ENNIS, MONTANA

SUMMER 2011
July 6th we drove from Ennis, north to McAllister, to the west, into the Beaverhead National Forest. This area is 40 miles from where Yellowstone Nat. Park. The park service transplants their trouble bears in this area, so we bought Bear Spray in town. It's a wonderful weapon of pepper spray to have; it can work on bears, coyotes, cows, dogs and humans. The terrain was forest, trails and old logging roads. We did come across fresh bear and cub tracks, even though they were black bear tracks, we turned around.
  Then we went 3 miles, up to Spring Meadow Creek Lake.  Even in July there was snow toward the higher elevations, and cold, clear, mountain streams running.  Along the way you will find an abandoned gold mine. We walked the last 50 ft of the trail, because of the snow. The lake is in a crater, which still had some ice on it, and there were 15ft snowdrifts on the slope. Even though we were out in the "boonies", we met a group of North Carolina folks, fishing for trout. You could even see the trout at the outlet. On the way down, we found bear tracks and scat, and on the tree there were claw marks
that were 6ft high.  We rode on Gravely Mt. Range, 9200ft, oh what views from here! The Gravely Mt. Range is south of Ennis. Most of the riding was gravels roads, with a few trails cutting thru the aspen or spruce forest. You will find cattle roaming on the flat top pastures, range line cabin, mt. snow. We couldn’t see the deer's  body, just the velvet antlers sticking above sagebrush which was 2-3ft tall. We came across a cowboy living in a line shack, heading out on his horse to check the cattle.

LOCATION:   Nearest city-Ennis, Mt        Directions-Beaverhead Nat. For
Gravely Range-
AREA;  Type of Land:- forest, mountain,  Owner:   Nat Forest
TERRAIN;  Sq miles, Miles of trails, ?hills/forest/, mud,  water crossings,elevation-9,200ft Trail maintence-yes 
KEY SERVICES;Camping / Gasoline / Diesel / First Aid, / Water/  Dump / Food - Ennis
CONTACTS; Nationa Forest Service Office Ennis

Royal Blue, Pioneer, Tennessee

November 2010

We visited Ride Royal Blue, an ATV resort and campground, in the beautiful Cumberland Mountains in Campbell County, eastern Tennessee,along the Kentucky state line. Mountain elevations vary from 820 feet to 3,350 feet above sea level. The terrain includes gracefully rolling hills with a gorgeous green valley bordered by a clear creek called Stinking Creek Ride Royal Blue ATV Guest Ranch connects to the Tennessee Wildlife Management Area called Royal Blue and Sundquist. It offers over 600 miles of trails covering 200,000 acres. Open for riders of ATV, mountain bikes. 

   We stayed in the campground; there are utilities for your rig and long sites.  We had a map from the office and went out exploring. The next day we met a local man, who is a trail guide, so off we went!  The guide knew the area like the back of his hand; he would stop on the trail, take us off a few feet and found interesting places. The trail is thru the hardwood forest. Half the leaves were on the trees, and the other half were on the ground, dancing behind the atvs as we traveled along. There are hills to climb, and vistas at the top of sandstone cliffs.  Our rule: "If you can't see, don't go", fits this area well.  There were many 1.000 ft drop off cliffs. We drove through and around hard bottom creeks.  We also saw the most beautiful waterfall, it was only 12 ft tall, but there were 3 inch steps, all the way down, which made a white cascade!

  It was also hunting season, and there are requirements for wearing orange hats and vests.

Royal Blue.com- Picturesque cabins combine rustic beauty with the comforts of home /Spacious and well-equipped RV sites are great for getaways and long-term stays /Trail system open 24/7 and night riding allowed. /Bask in the warmth of our Tennessee stone fireplace and find a cozy place to rest in our mountain lodge /Bring your rod and reel for our great fishing spots /Experience hearty Southern breakfasts that are as unique as they are delicious