Hiking in Refrigerator Canyon

One thing I really love about Montana is the access we have to the great outdoors. All across the state, there is excellent hiking and outdoor recreation. Jeff and I decided to take advantage of this access with a nice hike last Sunday to celebrate our anniversary weekend. We did about 10 miles on the Refrigerator Canyon Trail near Helena. This post contains a lot of photos, and I hope you'll enjoy looking through them. 

Within about a quarter mile, you find yourself hiking through a slot canyon. This is the actual Refrigerator Canyon and it was easy to understand why it was so-named. The canyon was much cooler than the surrounding environs, and a cool breeze was whipping through as well. I imagine it would feel very refreshing on a hot day. 

Here's a photo looking back toward the slot canyon once we had left it--

The wildflowers were blooming in great abundance along the trail. One of my favorites, Indian Paintbrush is below. There were many other flowers all along the trail as we hiked. And interesting to notice different flowers and plants as we climbed in elevation. 

The trail was a gentle uphill climb, mostly through forrest. Nothing too strenuous, but work nonetheless. 

At about two miles, there's a nice overlook with a rail fence. It would be a great spot for a picnic and a good turnaround spot for a shorter hike. Also nice for photo ops! 

We decided to press on and go a little further. 

After a while, we entered the Gates of the Mountains Wilderness Area, which is different from National Forrest in that no motorized vehicles are allowed in Wilderness Areas in Montana. There are a few more protections to preserve the land as it occurs. 

We kept trucking along and came to another scenic vista. Neat to see how far we had come!

When we planned our hike and left the car, we intended to do between 6 and 8 miles of hiking. We had read about a trail junction that we thought was about three miles in, and decided that would be our decision point. Turns out, the trail sign was actually four miles in, not three. At this point, we thought we were close to cresting the ridgeline and wanted to try to go for that accomplishment, so we went on, still uphill. 

After continuing on switchbacks for a another half hour or so, we started to feel like we would never reach the top of the ridge in a timely manner, and we'd already done more than we had planned. We decided to go back to the trail junction sign and stop for a snack. The downhill effort to get back to the trailhead took about half the time as the uphill climb, not surprisingly, but our legs were completely shot by the time we got there. Thankfully the wildflowers kept our spirits high!

This is a plant that I was told is called "Mountain Sunflower," but I'm not sure what it's official name is. It's cheery and so pretty. 

We encountered very few people on the trail on the way up. We did see one older gentleman with his dog at the trailhead as we headed out and spoke to him a bit. He was planning a multi-day hiking and backcountry camping excursion and was getting his gear organized as we struck out. He said he had hiked the trail "probably fifty times," and knew it very well. We didn't see another person until we had turned around and started heading down. Then, the closer we got to the trailhead, the busier the trail became. We did run into the older gentleman again and he asked how our hike was. We described how we had turned around at a point that we thought was just below the ridgeline and he confirmed that we were close, but also said that once you get to the top, there isn't a good view of anything anyway, and that we had already seen the best views by that point. That made us feel better about turning around a little early. Then he asked us, "Are you going to the York Bar for a burger?" In my mind, I thought, "Yes, Definitely!" even though we hadn't planned on it at all. At that point, a hamburger sounded too good to pass up. The man said they were really good. We thanked him and wished him well on his hike.

We made it back to our car about four hours after we had left, and were pretty tired and hungry from our effort on the trail. Jeff and I deliberated if we should stop and have a hamburger in York, which is a tiny, tiny town that you drive through between the trailhead and Helena/Interstate, or if we wanted to just get gas station snacks and get on the road for home. As we drove back down the canyon and hunger set in strong, we decided we had better stop. Plus, it's probably bad karma to ignore on-trail advice from a seasoned veteran, right? 

Pulling in at the bar, the patio was full of people. A good sign that this was the place to be. Then we walked around to the front and were greeted with this-- absolutely classic small-town Montana, right here. It's not just the York Bar, it's "The Friendly York Bar." We instantly knew we had made the right decision to stop.

 The atmosphere inside was very much a friendly, small-town Montana rustic bar. It was just perfect. The hamburger and onion rings tasted pretty good after our efforts on the trail, too. If you're ever in the area, definitely stop at the York Bar. It's definitely a slice of good old Montana Americana.

And if you're in the Helena area, the Refrigerator Canyon trail is a good one to consider hiking. We really enjoyed our hike and would definitely plan to do it again and recommend it to others. Gotta love Montana!

More Glacier Fun!

We have been so lucky this winter to have already spent two weekends of fun-filled snowy adventure in the Glacier area! Our first trip, if you recall, was around New Years Eve with my family, which you can re-read HERE. Our second trip was just this past weekend and it was a blast!

Jeff's parents have a timeshare in West Glacier at Glacier Wilderness Resort. This is either the third or fourth winter I have been there, but they've had the timeshare in the family for many, many years, so it has been a family tradition for a long time. Each year, Tom and Carol have decided on different friends and family members to share their cabin with. The past two years, we have even rented an additional unit so more of us could share in the fun and keep the tradition alive. This year, Jeff and I rented another unit at a steal of a price and shared the weekend with our friends Skyler and Deitra. Tom and Carol shared their unit with their friends Lynn and Dan, and Rick and Glenda (who are Skyler's parents). We had a great time skiing, laughing, sharing meals and playing games with the whole group.

Typically, when we drive to the cabin, the whole group of us that are heading over from the HiLine carpool and caravan our way down Highway 2. We stop in Shelby for lunch, then in Cut Bank for groceries. The Grown-Ups, as we call them, typically then stop at a little dive bar called The Snow Slip, about a half-hour from the final destination. Over the years, The Snow Slip has become something of a legend among our little group. For the first time this year, Jeff and I pulled in with the caravan to check it out.

Exterior of the Snow Slip.
No, the Mustang was not part of our caravan!

While we were staying at the cabin this year, we spent the first day skiing at Whitefish Mountain Resort--me, Jeff, Skyler, and Deitra. This was the second time Jeff and I had skied there. The weather was in the upper 20's to right around freezing, depending on where a person was on the mountain, so, pretty warm, and the snow was great. It was sunny in the morning but clouded over a bit around lunch time.

Clockwise from top left: Silhouettes of the four of us riding the lift, view from the Summit House, downhill skis on the rack, Jeff and Deitra, Snowghosts and flags at the Summit, me and Jeff.

We skied as a group the whole morning, then Jeff and I skied together just the two of us for the afternoon. I was completely blown away by how much better he has become at skiing! Now, it is I who has to try to catch up to him! Something just clicked for him and he totally rocked it on the mountain on Saturday! We had so much fun skiing the back side of the mountain and challenging ourselves on increasingly difficult terrain as the afternoon went on.

Here are a few photos Jeff took from the summit:

Some "snowghosts" and pretty awesome skyline in the background!

Looking toward town of Whitefish and Whitefish Lake.

Looking toward Glacier National Park. Beautiful!

The next day, we went with the whole gang to Izaak Walton Inn for some Nordic skiing. I started the morning feeling pretty wary of my cross country ski abilities, as usual. I have a hard time getting past my own mental block that Nordic skiing is drastically different from downhill. It isn't. The balance and fundamentals are pretty similar, really. And you're going slower (or at least I am!) so if and when one does fall, it won't be nearly as painful or embarrassing! I watched Jeff's mom and her friends navigating the ups and downs of the trail, unsteady at times, but laughing all the way and told myself that if they can do it, so can I. I'm half their age, and I'm a badass, so what am I waiting for? I remembered a few pieces of advice I'm sure Jeff and Tom have given me umpteen times in the past, and went for it on the next downhill section... and it was fine! In fact, I did great! By the end of the day, I found myself wanting more downhill sections of course when in prior Nordic ski sessions, I would dread the downhills. Definite progress!

 Sorry for the blurry images in some of the squares above... Bleh.

Essex and Izaak Walton were so wonderful, as always. We have such a great time each and every time we go there. The skiing is great, the restaurant and food is really good, the ambiance of the historic hotel is perfect. Everything about this place is awesome. I love it every time we go there, winter or summer. If you're ever in Montana, it's worth a stop. :)

All in all the weekend was a great mix of super-fun winter outdoor activities, spending time with friends and family, relaxation, and personal and athletic development. Jeff and I both progressed mightily in our respective weaker skiing events, so now we're both pretty near each other's level in each. All in all, a successful and fun weekend playing in the mountains! I never knew how much I loved snow until I moved to the West! :)

Check back tomorrow for Thankful Thursday!