107 replies to this topic

[hoyden]

Oh, right on! I've been hesitant to stay at city parks cuz of lack of privacy and potential noise.

Y'all felt fine and it wasn't noisy? That'd be super handy! 

 

I have eyeballed the Flying J showers before but never tried em. That's good to know! 

 

Thanks!

[Foy]

Dawn,

I've been following along as best I could with as many irons as I have in numerous fires at this time.  A handful of quick and fairly easy ideas follow:

 

Eats and drinks:  At the junction of I-90 and US-287 just west of Bozeman, MT is "Wheat, Montana", a production and retail complex which produces, sells, and bakes with a seemingly infinite variety of flours grown right there on a large family farm.  Superb breads and pastries, excellent sammiches, great coffee, and very nice folks.  Around 75 miles southwest of there in the county seat of Beaverhead County, Dillon, is La Fiesta Mexicana, more widely known as the Dillon Taco Bus.  Home-cooked and head and shoulders above any Mexican food I've ever had anywhere, right down to the cane sugar Mexican soft drinks. Along the "Montana Scenic Route", MT-1, which loops from I-90 at Anaconda back to it around 35 miles east of Missoula is Philipsburg.  P'burg is as nice of a town as you'll find and if you like that kind of thing the Philipsburg Brewing Co right on Broadway makes several very good varieties of beer.  Other taverns and cafes serve good meals.

 

Driving routes and hot springs:  MT highways 55 and 41 will take you from I-90 just west of Wheat, Montana (above) down to Dillon and that's a very nice drive.  Along the way you'll pass by Beaverhead Rock, a location of significance to the Lewis & Clark outward trek, which you'll be following from Twin Bridges to Dillon.  If you get on a L&C kick, take I-15 on south of Dillon for around 25 miles to Clark Canyon Reservoir, then MT-324 west to the well-marked turn-off to Lemhi Pass, where L&C first crossed the Divide in August 1805. At the pass, two roads descend to ID-28 just south of Salmon--Agency Creek Road is steep and I've never driven it.  Warm Springs Road follows the Divide a few miles north before descending and passes by Sharkey's Hot Spring near ID-28. Sharkey's is a BLM facility which has been developed by construction of two nice concrete and tile pools, concrete aprons, changing rooms and bathrooms, fencing, and a graveled parking lot.  During the week you may be the only person there.  It's in the full sunlight all day so a hot sunny summer day isn't the best one to visit, but a cloudy or even a rainy summer day would be splendid.  If you were to do this long loop over Lemhi Pass and back to I-90 at Missoula via US-93 from Salmon, your truck is a cinch to handle Lemhi Pass and the Warm Springs Road descent on the ID side. Just be sure to fill up on fuel in Dillon at Rocky Mountain Supply ( conveniently just up the street from the Taco Bus) before heading down I-15, as there is no fuel or services from there to Salmon, ID, and that's around 100 miles distant.I think you saw a discussion including Horse Creek Hot Spring over on the far (western) side of US-93 north of Salmon, ID in my "Montana Trip Planning" thread and I'm still keen on getting over there, though probably not on the September trip. And if you were to just loop through Philipsburg for a day or two while generally westbound on I-90, consider the easy drive through Rock Creek canyon as a route back to I-90.  MT-348 leaves P'burg to the west and connects to Rock Creek Rd (FS 102) at the Bohansen Memorial Bridge on Rock Creek.  From there it's 41 miles north to I-90 and only the last 10 are developed (and paved).  Rock Creek is a "blue ribbon" trout stream with a half-dozen NF campgrounds and a goodly number of designated streamside disbursed sites.  With a leisurely late morning start from P'burg, you could spend 4-5 hours driving down Rock Creek and would reach I-90 about 20 miles east of Missoula in the mid-afternoon.

 

Missoula:  Home to the University of Montana, and due to its relatively low elevation being referred to as the Garden City, Missoula offers a wide range of walking tours of coffee shops, cafes, restaurants, and bars.  There's a large Costco and an Academy Sports for resupply needs, too.  We love Missoula.

 

Enjoy your Wandering!

 

Foy

Edited by Foy, 15 July 2018 - 11:12 AM.

[hoyden]

You had me at "hot springs", Foy! Mapping it now.

 

Here's my latest installment

 

"Small Spaces"

 

My Four Wheel Camper isn't huge. It's rather small inside, actually. Most of the time it works great for me and the dogs - they hang out up on the cab-over bed, and I do my cooking and computering or reading in the main area when inside. When I went on my previous no-destination adventure, I had this camper pretty set up for my daily needs. [ 1,044 more words ]

http://no-destinatio...8/small-spaces/

 

 

 

 

[hoyden]

Foy and all, how's cell reception in those areas? I have Verizon and because of this work thing, I have to be connected.

[CougarCouple]

Hi

Got this for a post on here.

https://www.whistleo...on-coverage-map

Russ

[Foy]

Foy and all, how's cell reception in those areas? I have Verizon and because of this work thing, I have to be connected.

I'm a long time Verizon user and to the best of my recollection I believe as recently as 3 years ago, in July 2015, Verizon provided connection all the way across Montana on I-90 with the possible exception of some remote areas east of Billings. Connections good from Bozeman all the way west and southwest to Dillon along MT 55 and 41.  West and southwest of Dillon, such as enroute to Lemhi Pass, I think you'll lose it between Clark Canyon Reservoir and the turn-off to the pass.  Leaving I-90 west of Butte at Anaconda on MT-1, Verizon has you to Philipsburg and probably the rest of the way back to I-90, but once you clear a low pass headed to Rock Creek on MT 348, you lose it and there is generally no signal throughout Rock Creek canyon (which is a distinct part of Rock Creek's charm, in fact). Missoula is full-speed connected and I suspect all of US-93 south nearly all the way to Idaho is the same.  Probably sketchy for 10-15 miles each side of Lost Trail Pass (the MT-ID line along US 93), but picking up well again in the Salmon, ID area and probably for the few miles south and up the mountain towards Sharkey's Hot Spring since that's all more or less line of sight from Salmon. I would expect zero cell signal west of US-93 in the Horse Creek Hot Spring area--that's right along the eastern edge of the Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness, which together with the Bitterroot-Selway Wilderness comprise just under 3 million acres of wilderness in Idaho.

 

A bit more about hot springs: There are commercial hot springs at Lost Trail Pass and near Lolo Pass, the former on US-93 and the latter on US-12.  I've never visited either one. Another commercial hot spring is Elkhorn Hot Spring Resort located in the middle of the Pioneer Mountains just west of Dillon, MT.  There the term resort is loosely applied to what is a very rustic but very friendly and enjoyable place with indoor and outdoor soaking, cabins, motel rooms, a fairly flat place to camp, and a restaurant and bar.

 

For what is, to me, the pinnacle of undeveloped hot springs in the Lower 48, look up Gold Bug hot spring, aka Elk Bend hot spring.  In seconds you can click up some YouTube videos taken at GBHS.  It's close to 2 miles from the parking area just off of US 93 about 30 minutes south of Salmon, ID, and the trail gains nearly 2,000' of elevation, much of it in the last third to quarter of a mile.  Once the sun hits the hot pools by late morning, it's hotter than the hinges of Hell, but an early morning departure from the trailhead should provide a cool walk, a comfortable soak, and less of a crowd that will likely be seen by late morning and all afternoon, into the evening.  GBHS is popular and once you see it, you'll know why.  If you can get over there early on a weekday, I'd go for it.

 

Foy

[hoyden]

Well, it's the weekend. I found a campsite yesterday just north of the north entrance of Yellowstone and think I'll stay here maybe for the weekend just to avoid the weekender crowds, which I've found even in the backroads off-grid places.

 

Yesterday was a mess tying to find a spot and I drove way too much. I forgot what zoos National Parks are, and the surrounding areas.

I'd found a nice spot around 2pm, but it was too damn hot still, so I moved on thinking I'd not have trouble finding another spot. Turns out, I was wrong.

 

I'm going to give Elkhorn Hot Spring Resort a call and find out what their campering they have available because it would be really nice to soak in some hot springs.

 

Most of yesterday was without cell signal, which was okay. It happens.

And where I am now has fabulous signal, so I can spend today getting some work done.

Well, job hunting. My last day of work is Sept 17 - got notice of layoff last month, but they give us three months on the clock to job hunt and work with their contracted agency to revamp resumes etc. I just gotta figure out what I wanna do when I grow up....

I've been in IT for ages, and quite liked working at a college. I need to feel like I'm contributing to something bigger. So, we'll see.

Too bad acting didn't pay, I quite liked doing that.

[hoyden]

Thanks for all the ideas, Foy. I think I'm going to try to get to Elkhorn Hot Springs. I called them and they said there's some event nearby this weekend, so the 'tent sites' might fill up quickly. Thinking I might stick it out where I am currently camped, and head over there Sunday.

[CougarCouple]

I’m going to be a professional camper when I grow up. Hear tell it pays well.

[hoyden]

Ha! Somehow I think you got some misinformation!