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Thursday evening we’ll gather
for a ice cream social for a chance to get to know each other.
Friday evening will give participants more time to visit with
one another and we’ll also have a speaker. Saturday
evening participants are encouraged to dress in tropical style
while we enjoy paradise in Montana at our Western Luau - which
will include roast pig, baked beans, potato salad, and
coleslaw. Sunday morning we’ll wrap up the event with a
pancake breakfast. A final and more complete agenda will be
provided at registration.
T-shirts and Sweatshirts will also
be available for pre-order only. The shirts will have the
Divide Ride logo pictured at the top on the back. The colors of
the shirts are Navy Blue or Maroon. You need to order shirts
when you send in your registration.
Montana requires vehicles to be
licensed and insured to operate on the roads. We recommend that
trail rigs have a roll bar, full roll cage or a factory hard
top; a functional parking brake or line lock, a tow strap or
rope (recommended 2 times your vehicle’s weight; a family
first aid kit; a jack cable of lifting your vehicle; a spare
tire within 3” of the tires you run on your vehicle; a
fire extinguisher mounted within reach of the driver; seat
belts and/or harnesses for the driver and each passenger
(it’s the law in Montana to buckle up); your battery held
down (not with bungee cords); and if you have an antenna
exceeding 4’6” in length, that you tie it down so
it doesn’t whip the other participants.
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1 All
weather road. Four-wheel drive not needed.
1.5 Graded
road. Four-wheel drive may be needed in poor weather.
2
Unimproved or rarely graded road. Four-wheel drive or extra
clearance needed at times, with no special driving skills
required.
2.5 Road
rarely maintained. Four-wheel drive, good clearance, low gears
often needed, with some extra care and a bit of driving
experience useful.
3. Road
in difficult terrain, rarely maintained. Four-wheel drive, good
clearance, and low gears essential, with some driving skill and
daring required.
3.5 Road
in difficult terrain, probably maintained only by occasional
users. Excellent stock truck or utility vehicle required, with
considerable driving skill and daring needed.
4 Trail
either never bladed or badly eroded. Stock vehicles are in
jeopardy. Modifications for improved off-road performance
and top driving skills needed.
4.5 We
can hardly improve on the original description written a few
years ago by Jack Bickers: “...with driving by World
Class Yahoo Jeepers not much concerned with vehicle durability
or personal safety.” It is common to have as many as 10
percent of the vehicle experience major mechanical failures
(gears, axles, and drive shafts) on these trails.
The descriptions of these trails are
general and are designed to assist the registrant in making
reasonably informed decisions on trail selection. Should it
rain or snow, the trails become more difficult.
Elkhorn City
(Rating - 2)
The trail is 37 miles in length and will
take approximately 6 hours. We will visit the ghost town of
Elkhorn and the original cemetery. We’ll go to Iron Mine
overlooking the Helena Valley. This trail is rated #2 but will
have some rocky portions. Wildlife viewing and scenery are
excellent in the Elkhorns.
Tizer Lake
(Rating - 3)
It is approximately 6 miles from the
forest boundary to Tizer Lake. The first four miles is the most
difficult. This part is the slowest part of the trail both
coming and going. Travel here is like driving up a old mostly
dry stream bed. Rocks every where. Scenery on trail includes
old mining sites and a lake. Lunch will be at the forest
service cabin at noon. The trip will take at least eight hours
and could easily take more if any difficulties arise. It
is a rough slow hot trail, more suited to slightly larger than
stock tires and mild lifts. For the most part, it is wide
enough for full size vehicles.
Skyline Mine (Rating - 3)
This trip will take 6-7 hours and is
rated a #3. We will be able to visit a mountain lake via a
short walk on fairly level ground and reach a high point with
excellent viewing opportunities. We’ll go to Skyline Mine
where we’ll overlook Leslie Lake. On some parts of the
trail you will be driving over many broken rocks which makes
progress slow.
Little Boulder
(Rating - 2)
This is a short trip, maybe four hours.
This is a very easy trail through the hills where we’ll
see an old mine, cabins and have a great chance to view
wildlife.
These trails were rated on mid-summer
weather conditions. Ratings will change depending on rain and
snow in June.
Wednesday, July 23
Registration: 10
a.m. to 7 p.m., in the Barn
Driver’s Meeting & Trail Signup:
7 p.m. in the Barn
Thursday, July 24
Registration Continues
Trail Ride Departure (times on signup sheets)
Ice Cream Social: 7 p.m. in the Barn
Driver’s Meeting & Trail Signup:
8 p.m. in the Barn
Friday, July 25
Trail Ride Departure (times on signup sheets)
Speaker: 7
p.m. in the Barn
Driver’s Meeting & Trail Signup:
8 p.m. in the Barn
Saturday, July 26
Trail Ride Departure (times on signup sheets)
Western Luau: 6
p.m. in the Barn
Prize Drawings to Follow Dinner in the
Barn
Sunday, July 27
Breakfast: 6:
30-9 a.m., in the Barn
Events and times subject to change,
other events may be added
Divide Ride 2003 Registration
Stacey Osborne
500 Lois Place, Laurel, MT 59044
406-628-8974
Spidycats@usadig.com
Morning pastries and coffee will be
available each morning. A emergency contact phone number will
also be provided.
Fresh trail selection sheets with
recommended equipment will be posted daily at the event.
Campfires, motorcycles, ATV’s,
Quads, etc. are not allowed at camp. Dogs are discouraged, but
if brought must be on a leash at all times. Owners are
responsible for clean up of all droppings. Proof of current
vaccinations must be provided.
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Hotels:
Boulder Hot Springs - 406-225-4339
O-Z Motel 406-225-3364
Bed & Breakfasts:
Castoria Inn - 406-225-3165
The Ranch Bed & Breakfast -
406-287-5835
Campground: (plenty
of non-hook up camping at the fairgrounds)
Free Enterprise Health Mine - 406-225-3383
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Boulder resides in
Gold West Country, one of Montana’s six tourism regions.
This area offers wildlife viewing, outdoor recreation, and an
opportunity to “relive the west.” With a population
of about 1500, Boulder has been the county seat of Jefferson
County since 1883 — six years prior to Montana becoming a
state in 1889. Its courthouse, built in 1889, is an impressive
building, listed in the National Historic Register.
Just down the road
from Boulder, is Boulder Hot Springs, known for its refreshing
hot and cold soaking pools. This historic landmark has been in
operation since the late 1800’s. The geo-thermal waters
range from 140-175°, though the pools are mixed with cold
spring water and indoor pools are maintained from 70-104°.
Boulder Hot Springs is situated on 274 acres. The facility
offers a conference facility and a bed and breakfast operation
that is open year-round.
Many visit the once
underground mines in the Boulder-Basin area for health reasons.
Radon gas, found in these mines is believed to have beneficial
qualities for sufferers of arthritis, emphysema, bursitis,
cataracts, and many other ailments. People from all over the
U.S. and Canada return year after year to ease their symptoms.
Tours are offered at these establishments.
All around the towns
of Boulder and Basin, (9 miles south of Boulder on I-15), are
old log and rock buildings from a time when mineral mining was
the wealth of the territory. Many of these buildings are still
in use. Some have been renovated for more modern use and
comfort.
Elkhorn Ghost Town,
eighteen miles from Boulder, off Highway 69, had a mill and
smelter, producing $30,000 worth of ore a month in its prime.
The first mineral discovery was made in 1870’s. Through
the years of mining development, the town of Elkhorn also
developed. By 1893 most of the buildings lined the wide Main
Street, including hotels, the 1884 post office, a two lane
bowling alley, confectionery, barbershop, livery, blacksmith,
general stores, ice house, butcher’s shop, jewelry store
and numerous saloons. There were also boarding houses, lodging
houses, cabins and homes for the residences. Elkhorn reached a
population of 2500 in the 1880’s. In 1893 the two-story
Fraternity Hall was built, this building is one of the most
photographed buildings in the state. The Fraternity Hall is
also Montana’s smallest State Park - 1 acre. The cemetery
shows a clear picture of the hard times and disease the
residents struggled with. There are many graves of children
that died in 1888 and 1889 when a diphtheria epidemic raged
through the town. The land and
buildings in Elkhorn are still in private ownership and on the
tax rolls. There are people who live in Elkhorn year round, so
please respect this private property and don’t disturb
the residents.
Also within driving
distance is Montana’s capital city - Helena. Around the
turn of the century, Helena had more millionaires per capita
than any town in the United States. Today, Montana’s
state capital is one of the state's most diverse towns with
lots of cultural events, interesting architecture and excellent
historic sites including Last Chance Gulch - one of the most
significant gold strikes in Montana. The area around Helena is
also blessed with plenty of wildlife and recreation
opportunities on Holter, Hauser and Canyon Ferry Lakes, which
were all created by dams on the Missouri River. The spectacular
canyon of the Missouri River north of Helena was dubbed the
"Gates of the Mountains" by Meriwether Lewis —
the illusion the steep limestone cliffs to open before you as
you travel the river.
South of Boulder, on
I-15, is the mining city of Butte, often called the
“richest hill on earth.” For over 120 years, Butte
built its fortune on copper mining. Gold and silver were also
mined in Butte, and was a booming metropolis in the early days.
Some sites to see while in Butte are the Berkley Pit, Copper
King Mansion, and the World Museum of Mining. The Our Ladies of
the Rockies statue stands 90 feet tall at 8,510 feet and looks
down on Butte from the Continental Divide.
South of Boulder,
where Highway 69 meets I-90, is Cardwell. Just east of Cardwell
on Highway 2 is Lewis & Clark Caverns State Park. This is
Montana's first and best-known state park featuring one of the
largest known limestone caverns in the Northwest. These
spectacular caves, lined with stalactites, stalagmites,
columns, and helictites, are electrically lighted and safe to
visit. Guided tours are conducted daily between May 1 and Sept.
30.
Interested in
geology? Approximately 77 million years ago, southwest Montana
was the home of an active volcanic complex. The Elkhorn
Mountains Volcanics, as they are now known, once contained one
of the largest ash-flow volcanic fields on earth. This volcanic
material once covered an estimated 10,400 square miles, to a
depth of approximately 2.5 miles. By comparison, the
Yellowstone National Park volcanics are estimated to cover only
4,000 square miles to a depth of 500 feet. The area volcanics
are Cretaceous in age and are genetically related to Butte
mining fame. The current study area is just north of the Golden
Sunlight Mine near Whitehall, Montana, where they extract gold
from a breccia pipe associated with Elkhorn Mountains
volcanism.
As you may have noted,
there are many places to visit in the Boulder area if you
choose to spend more time in the area.
