We continued our journey across Montana today. Not much to note about the drive, though we did stop for frozen custard along the way. The day ended, however, with the worst camping experience of our trip.
Our original destination was the Trout Creek Campground in the Lolo National Forest. When we arrived, however, the site was deserted and there were signs posted that the water had been turned off due to high bacteria counts. In retrospect, we wish we had simply camped there… it was remote, quiet, and beautiful, and we could have purchased a few gallons of water in town. At the time, however, it felt a bit creepy being completely deserted. The creek, too, was running high and fast, with no safe swimming spots, so it seemed unnecessarily risky for the kids. The Lolo forest is large, so we figured other campgrounds would be similarly lovely with safe drinking water.
We proceeded to the Slowey Campground, described on the forest service website as “a great place to rest after floating the Clark Fork River or just sit and enjoy the river go by… There’s much to like about this campground near the river’s edge with open areas beneath the big pines.” We knew it would be close to the highway, not nearly as remote as Trout Creek, but after our lovely experience along Hyalite Creek at Langohr, we figured the Clark Fork River might create pleasant white noise. Wrong! Not only was the river silent, but there were freight train tracks on the other bank. These rails were heavily used all night, and the acoustics of the area made it feel like the trains were barrelling right through our tents. Because of an at-grade crossing, too, each train was preceded by the bells warning of the gate closures and nearly constant air horn blasts from the locomotive. Trains came just about every hour, so it was a night of very little sleep for the parents.
Griffin’s question suggests just how often the trains came through: “Is it just going around and around in a circle?”
At sunrise we introduced the children to an authentic ethical dilemma: we left camp without paying.
Were you near Missoula? My son and family live there, on their organic farm, and they would have loved to host you on the property! I have rafted on the Clark Fork, and swum in its ice cold water in the heat of summer – it was flowing way too fast then for comfort. So sorry about damn trains – yuck! I’ve never seen Lolo without snow – it must be pretty, but not when camp ground eerily empty. Kids will remember this trip, always.
Patti, we passed through Missoula on our way. Maybe on a future trip we can swing by the organic farm—we’d love to check it out and meet more of your wonderful family. I suspect the water in the Clark Fork was travelling faster than it seemed. The channel was broad and deep, without rocks, so it just slipped by without making a sound. On a hot day, I could see it being really fun to spend time on the water. Even the trains going by would be fun during the day (especially for the kids). I had no idea how much freight travels by rail at night!
If you ever do go through Missoula again, let me know in advance if you can. I would love to have Josh, my son, and Kim, his wife, meet your wonderful family. And they put people up, on their land and in their home, all of the time. And they love children – they’re sad that theirs are off to college and and great adventures already. Clark Fork has a very strong current, so be careful should you jump in. The Rattlesnake River is also swift and very cold, and runs by the organic farm Josh runs with his graduate students in the rattlesnake valley, 20 minutes from Missoula, and is very, very kid friendly. Next time……….