bitterroot range, montana

[goofball]

MUCH nicer weather than the mission range ! this was just an overnighter up chaffin creek outside darby, mt.

http://outdoors.webshots.com/album/578201104XUoLsa

broken ridge all the way up to the lakes
http://inlinethumb53.webshots.com/46068/2720258010044057460S600x600Q85.jpg (http://outdoors.webshots.com/photo/2720258010044057460rvragY)


hart lake
http://inlinethumb44.webshots.com/20971/2378563940044057460S600x600Q85.jpg (http://outdoors.webshots.com/photo/2378563940044057460JPcOoY)


looking down on chaffin creek drainage, hart lake, part of tamarack lake visible to the right. sugarloaf peak above and i think the anaconda-pintler range waaaaay out there in the distance.
http://inlinethumb64.webshots.com/44223/2049599750044057460S600x600Q85.jpg (http://outdoors.webshots.com/photo/2049599750044057460dyTXuB)


tamarack lake left and chaffin lake right, below the high peaks of the selway/bitterroot wilderness
http://inlinethumb35.webshots.com/44642/2266487820044057460S600x600Q85.jpg (http://outdoors.webshots.com/photo/2266487820044057460nAaAWK)


unnamde lake above chaffin lake
http://inlinethumb42.webshots.com/47785/2099901650044057460S600x600Q85.jpg (http://outdoors.webshots.com/photo/2099901650044057460RKXOLd)

[ibenick]

Nice:2thumbs: You really have been getting around!

[Brian in SLC]

Nice. I'm born and raised in Missoula so spent a bunch of time in the Missions and Bitterroots. Great shots!

[Cirrus2000]

Really getting around, indeed! 3 TRs, bam, bam, bam. :2thumbs: Yet another beautiful spot.

[goofball]

Nice. I'm born and raised in Missoula so spent a bunch of time in the Missions and Bitterroots. Great shots!

i was talking to a resident in darby who said that the stablest weather for the mountains up there is end of july, beginning of august. any other time can be a crap shoot as to how pleasant it will be. if i ever go back i guess it will be that tiem frame.

have you been in the post creek drainage ? i reeeeeeeally wanted to get in there and climb mcdonald.

[tmartenst]

We were in the Anaconda-Pintler Wilderness (http://www.bogley.com/forum/showthread.php?35987-TR-Anaconda-Pintler-Wilderness-Montana&highlight=anaconda) last year for July 4 and we got hailed on 3 times at the higher elevations on one day. The other days were beautiful. Sounds like that is kind of what you had for weather!

[Brian in SLC]

i was talking to a resident in darby who said that the stablest weather for the mountains up there is end of july, beginning of august. any other time can be a crap shoot as to how pleasant it will be. if i ever go back i guess it will be that tiem frame.

have you been in the post creek drainage ? i reeeeeeeally wanted to get in there and climb mcdonald.

That stable weather thing tends to float around from year to year. Does seem to be around two weeks though. Hit or miss, to be sure.

Only time I've been on McDonald was from the east. Long time ago...maybe '78 or so. Dropped into Cliff Lake from Island Lake.

Regulations for that area are fierce, now, it seems. Grizz country. Coming in the from the east, and, being under 18, we never used to bother with a tribal permit either.

Whole area is off limits from 15 July to 30 September? Yikes. The place is bear country, to be sure.

Coming down from McDonald, still fairly early in the day, I fell asleep on the lush, grassy slopes above Cliff Lake. Next thing I knew, was darn near dark (must have slept 6 hours!). Still recall how restful that sleep was.

Great place.

-Brian in SLC