bob marshall

“planning a 6-8 day hike in "the bob" in late july. would like to do a loop. anyone have a good hike?”

“Yes! I've hiked the Bob Marshall, both loops and out and back. A good loop starts on the west side hear Holland Lake in the Swan Valley. It goes up over a pass to Upper Holland lake into the Wilderness, then down to Big Salmon lake, up the South Fork of the Flathead River and comes out near Condon (Smith creek Pass).

More spectacular, IMO, is the east side along the Rocky Mountain front. You start at Gibson Reservoir, near Augusta, MT and hike into the Chinese Wall which is a huge rampart overthrust. It's about 35 miles in. From the top you look straight down 1,200 feet! We did about 80 miles in 6 days and saw grizzlies, deer, elk....that would be my first choice, though.”

“If you are in the area, why not go to the Sawtooths or the White Clouds? Much better scenery, and still very sparsely traveled.”

“I dunno, Bob, better scenery? Different, but not better. I'd put the Chinese Wall up against just about anything as spectacular! (IMHO)”

“Don't forget your rod and reel. Bob really offers some nice fishing holes. They were hauling 45+ inch bulltrout (catch and release, their endangered) out of Big Salmon Lake when visiting in July.”

“That's true. Big Salmon lake is good for trout as well as the rivers (S. Fork of the Flathead and N. Fork of the Sun).

Having been on both sides of the Continental Divide, which runs right through the Bob like a spine, I'm partial to the east side where you get the sharp steep cliffs and open views. The West side is more heavily timbered. A really cool trip, if you could do the shuttle, would be an East-West transect so you'd see the whole cross section.”