Bitterroot National Forest
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 Blodgett Creek in Blodgett Canyon |
 Blodgett Canyon is a glacier-carved canyon in the eastern flanks of the Bitterroot Mountains, just west of Hamilton. Blodgett Canyon Campground is at the mouth of the canyon and the Blodgett Creek trailhead is next to the campground. The route follows Blodgett Creek westward for about 12 miles to Blodgett Lake, located at 6,800' in the bottom of a large glacial cirque with sharp cliffs rising as much as 1,700' on three sides. Between the trailhead and Blodgett Lake, you'll gain about 2,800' in elevation. The first 2 miles of the route, starting from the trailhead, were burned pretty badly in the hot fire season of 2000.
From the photos on this page, you can see this is wild and woolly country. At the western end of the canyon, you'll enter into the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness, so this trail is primarily foot and horseback only. For most of the hike, everything above that canyon rim on both sides is also in the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness. For the first 8 miles or so, the northern wall of the canyon is composed of Printz Ridge and Mill Point. After that is a high saddle and then the ridges dropping east and south from Blodgett Mountain. For the first 4 miles or so, the southern wall of the canyon is composed of Romney Ridge, which then gives way to Canyon Peak and a high hanging valley containing High Lake (of course). Then there are several deep canyons below high ridges until you enter the cirque containing Blodgett Lake. Along the way you'll see plenty of spires, buttresses and sheer rock cliffs. You'll also cross a couple of talus fields that drop right down to the creek. About 10 miles into the canyon is the intersection with a trail that climbs steeply to the north to cross Blodgett Pass and enter Idaho. To get to the trailhead: From Hamilton get on County Road #68 (Blodgett Camp Road) and go west to the end of the road at the Blodgett Canyon Campground. |
 Topo map of the Blodgett Creek Trail |
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For More Information: Bitterroot National Forest 1801 North First Street, Hamilton, MT 59840 406-363-7100 |
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| Photos of the Blodgett Creek Trail courtesy of G. Thomas Topo map courtesy of National Geographic Topo! Text is available for re-use under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 License. |
