Vagaries Abound: Lolo Motorway

By Jen.

We were headed to a wedding in a few weeks, but before we made the long trek to Tulsa, we thought we would try to enjoy the area, while trying to avoid the smoke. Unfortunately, it kept following us, but we did get a few breaks from it. The border was surprisingly quiet and we slipped easily back into the USA. Having a few days to spend before we were to meet up with our friends at Van Compass for a refurb on our front Fox-shock kit, I decided to have us check out Missoula as a potential future home. It was an interesting stop and put in prime position to spend a few days on the Lolo Motorway before we had to be back in Post Falls. We were a little concerned, since the NFS recommended bringing a chain saw for fallen logs, but recent comments and weather let us think it would be ok.

We made our way to what Google showed as the east entrance, only to find the gate closed. At least we saw a grouse on the way up.

And the flowers and butterflies were abundant.

Upon looking at the map and a blog post from another adventurer, Jonathan realized that this was not the place he had been told to enter at, so he put in the correct coordinates, and we were off again.

This time we entered via Powell Junction…

…and we were successful on getting on the road.

This trail “Motor Way” was a trail that was built in the 1930s to provide jobs during the Depression. However, the path is actually a lot older than that. The Nez Perce tribe and other Native Americans used to use it to traverse over the range. Lewis and Clark’s expedition also crossed along here. The road was actually a lot nicer than we had been led to believe, but just when you start feeling confident, a rock pokes a hole in a tire… Fortunately it wasn’t us this time and it didn’t take us long to help the strangers in front of us.

I do love that in most areas of a national forest, you can pull off the road in an old campsite and park overnight without worry about breaking a law.