By VAIA ERRETT
Across Jefferson County, to explore a trail is to chart the lay of the land. Ridges and rivers define borders and anchor mountains. Hike, bike, or ride trails that carve backcountry while framing the rural landscape.
Dominating the northeast, the Elkhorn Mountains rear their vault above 9,000 feet to match wilderness character with recreation. Primary waterways furrow the island bulge, opening trail access into high country.
From Montana City, McClellan Creek Road funnels toward the Casey Meadows trailhead. Link to alpine panoramas where the landscape reveals the imprint of burn and recovery following the Warm Springs Creek Fire of 1988. Climb Casey Peak, size up Strawberry Butte and its U.S. Forest Service cabin for rent, or delve deeper toward the heart of the Elkhorns along McClellan Creek Trail; its intersection with Willard Creek joins a footpath from a trailhead near Clancy.
In the southern Elkhorns, a bird’s foot of drainage routes converge on Elkhorn and Crow Peaks, the range’s high points.
Along Prickly Pear Creek from Jefferson City, an OHV jaunt up Tizer Lake Road approaches the glacial cirques of Tizer Basin cradling Tizer Lakes, Hidden Lake, and Glenwood Lake.
Up Muskrat Creek northeast of Boulder, hiker’s ascent meets biker’s downhill thrill on forested singletrack that enters a wide drainage with high rims before narrowing toward a climb of Elkhorn Peak.
South of Boulder, Elkhorn Creek leads into the historic mining town of Elkhorn, Montana’s smallest state park. Make a rocky bid for the range’s summits, angle high along a gully to fish Leslie Lake, or meander up the gulches of Turnley Meadows.
Separated from the Elkhorns by I-15 and the Boulder Valley, the Boulder Mountains heave their high points above 8,000 feet to showcase massive granite knuckles of the Boulder Batholith. The Continental Divide, the range’s renown spine, wraps its rugged profile around western and northern county lines to isolate the drainages of the Pacific Ocean from those of the Atlantic.
Access the Continental Divide’s National Scenic Trail from Homestake Pass, west of Whitehall, or from trailheads along Elk Park, Boulder River Road, or Joe Bower Road from Basin. A mild trek from the Thunderbolt trailhead accesses the trail and crosses the mesmerizing downfall of a 1999 microburst before coiling up past Cottonwood Lake to Thunderbolt Peak.
East of Elk Park, a National Recreation Trail up Haystack Mountain, the Boulder Range’s highest summit, exposes wide-range panoramas. The range’s lower, northeastern border offers entry into the extensive South Trails network, accessed from Montana City.
Outside Boulder, rock slabs merge with forest foothills. Gulch hikes find solitude up creek corridors, while rolling backroads also serve non-motorized exploration.
For motorized enthusiasts, enter the Boulder Range through Galena Gulch off I-15 between Boulder and Basin, or from access points along Whitetail Road. West of Whitehall at Pipestone, the Whitetail-Pipestone Motorized Recreation Area boasts about 75 miles of developed trail, some shared with non-motorized users, including access to Delmoe Lake. For an excursion of geological whimsy, ride to Ringing Rocks, a monstrous mound of jumbled boulders that gong and chime when tapped with a hammer.
Defining the southern edge of the county, the Jefferson River Canoe Trail wends its own path of distinction, retracing Lewis and Clark’s historic route by water as it wraps around the northern toehold of the Tobacco Root Mountains.
A dramatic canyon drive shadows the river east of Whitehall toward Lewis and Clark Caverns State Park. Guided cave tours of the upper cliffs flaunt stalactites, bats, and limestone chambers, while outdoor trails overlook surrounding crags. From mountain chickadee to canyon wren, birding opportunities highlight the brusque elevation shifts that make mountain biking a favored leg-burner.
