Once winter comes, the Skalkaho Highway from Hamilton to Georgetown Lake is closed to four-wheeled traffic and becomes a scenic paradise for snow machines. TOM BAUER/Missoulian

Skalkaho has miles of trails for snow machines

By PERRY BACKUS
of the Ravalli Republic

HAMILTON – Dan Thompson has traveled down just about every snowmobile trail within three hours' drive of his home in the Bitterroot Valley.
To his way of thinking, there's no place that can touch Skalkaho Pass for its scenery, ease of access and miles of untouched snow it offers to those willing to explore.

“The scenery up Cripple Creek is just spectacular," Thompson said. “On top of that, it provides access into the Sand Basin area on the Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest where there are plenty of nice big undisturbed meadows to play in.

“The best part of that area is that it's not crowded and it's beautiful there, too," he said.
In the summertime, travelers take the Skalkaho Highway from Hamilton to Georgetown Lake as a scenic alternative to the four lanes of Interstate 90.

In the winter, the barricades go up and the roadway is shut down to four-wheeled traffic. During the coldest of months, the views of a frozen Skalkaho Falls, the craggy peaks and deep canyons are reserved for snowmobilers and a few hardy cross-country skiers.
Snowmobilers can access two different trail systems from the trailhead.

The Skalkaho Pass Area offers 26 miles of groomed trails. From there, open areas and ungroomed trails offer a wide variety of terrain for all skill levels.

The Skalkaho-Sleeping Child-Rye Creek Area has 32 miles of groomed trails, looping through higher elevations, through a burned area and back to the head of Rye Creek. The loop can also be entered from Rye Creek, south of Darby.

On a busy weekend, don't expect to be there alone.

“It's a popular place any more," Thompson said. “In the middle of the season, you might see as many as 200 sleds over the weekend. Many of the old-time snowmobilers won't go there because it's too crowded for them."

Those folks might head up to the Lost Horse or Lost Trail areas, which both offer many miles of ungroomed trails to explore.

For groomed travel, Skalkaho Pass is the place to go.

The Bitterroot Rider Runners Snowmobile Club started grooming the trails in 1987. The very first groomer came in the form of a used workhorse Ski-Doo and a small pull-behind groomer, thanks to Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.

That first groomer created a trail that wasn't much wider than a snowmobile track.

These days, club volunteers maneuver a high-tech, double-track $100,000-plus groomer up and over the nearly 8,000-foot pass in 10-hour shifts to keep the trails smooth.

“With the amount of traffic we see up there, the trails would be filled with huge moguls without the groomer," Thompson said. “We all appreciate the volunteer efforts that make that possible."

The 130 or so members of the Bitterroot Ridge Runners Club own the shed that houses the groomer. They also raised the money to purchase the truck and trailer used to transport the machine to the trailhead.

The state owns the groomer and provides the funding the club needs to operate it each year.

That money to pay for the grooming program comes from gasoline taxes, registration fees and nonresident permits.

The state's snowmobile grooming program dates back to the 1970s, when a handful of clubs struck a deal with FWP to offer their time in exchange for financial backing to pay for groomers and their operation.

Today, nearly 30 snowmobile clubs receive funding from the program around the state. The state owns about 20 full-sized groomers, which are leased to the clubs.

Every year, the clubs groom about 4,000 miles of trail around the state.

Resident snowmobilers spend about $91 million a year, according to a study completed in 2006. Nonresident snowmobilers add $27.5 million more.

For more information about the Skalkaho area, contact:

• Bitterroot National Forest Office, 1801 N. First St., Hamilton, MT 59840, (406) 363-7100.
• Darby Ranger District, Bitterroot National Forest, P.O. Box 388, Darby, MT 59829, (406) 821-3913.
• Bitterroot Chamber of Commerce, 105 E. Main St., Hamilton, MT 59840, (406) 363-2400, www.bitterrootvalleychamber.com.
• Bitterroot Ridge Runners Snowmobile Club, P.O. Box 265, Hamilton, MT 59840, (406) 360-1509, www.ridgerunners.org.

Ravalli Republic editor Perry Backus can be reached at 363-3300 or at editor@
ravallirepublic.com.