This is an annual event, similar to the Alaska Wilderness Classic if you're familiar with it. Travel is on foot and/or packrat, the start and finish change each year, you decide on the route on how to get there. The event happens the Saturday before Memorial Day, now in it's 13th year. I've been doing it for the last 10 years. May in the Bob you can expect snow at a minimum in all of the higher passes, high water in the creeks and rivers, lots of blowdown (the trail crews don't start until early to mid June) and hike amongst most of the apex predators 
This year the route would include a bunch of road walking and much of it outside the Wilderness Complex. Soooo.. my buddy Tom and I decided we could do better. We came up with a 100 mile route that started and finished within the Bob Marshall Complex AND no road walking. We went our way also in 2021 when the route ended in Missoula and would require rafting (we're not rafters). We had a great time that year and met a new comer, Elliot, who agreed to go with us again.
We planned a very ambitious route that included a lot of off trail stuff, lots of ascent/descent and would put us through some of the nicest stuff the Bob has to offer (which is a lot!!). We would start near Lincoln and if all went well, end up north of Choteau at the SF of the Teton River.
We camped Friday night at the trailhead and started early Saturday morning.
It was raining lightly, but we had mostly snow free trails, not a lot of blowdown and were making decent time.
Webb Lake cabin (USFS work cabin)
mostly snow free
Turning up Middle Fork of Landers Ck headed for a high pass. We hit deeper snow on and off; every time we thought about donning our snowshoes, it would peter out (only to reappear after we didn't put them on)
The trail started to quickly turn steeper and then disappeared, we just kept climbing.
The higher we got, the sketchier it got.
Not going to lie, a sigh of relief at the pass
We we were welcomed at the pass with 50-60 mph winds, driving #6 shot gropple into our faces- nice. The wind finally died down and we started our long descent into the NF of the Blackfoot River drainage.
The map & gps showed the trail descending and switchbacking off the north side of the ridge. Trail was covered by snow, but we were confident we could hit on of the switchbacks and carry on. This was a $hit show of a descent- steep as a cow's face and snow covered alder and bear grass- I was on my ass at least twenty times! Oh and after a couple of hours (including several time of the gps showing we were on the "trail") we finally just started side hill our way around where eventually found the real trail that went straight down the ridge. The old trail probably hand't been used in 20-30 years and yet shows up on recent Forest Service maps and Nat Geo maps.
We started cruising again once we were on a real trail. Starting raining pretty heavily, but we at least knew we were on the right track. Crazy wood jam on Cooney Ck, not a big creek must have been hell of a flood event to deposit this much wood!
Carmichael cabin where we called it a day.
This year the route would include a bunch of road walking and much of it outside the Wilderness Complex. Soooo.. my buddy Tom and I decided we could do better. We came up with a 100 mile route that started and finished within the Bob Marshall Complex AND no road walking. We went our way also in 2021 when the route ended in Missoula and would require rafting (we're not rafters). We had a great time that year and met a new comer, Elliot, who agreed to go with us again.
We planned a very ambitious route that included a lot of off trail stuff, lots of ascent/descent and would put us through some of the nicest stuff the Bob has to offer (which is a lot!!). We would start near Lincoln and if all went well, end up north of Choteau at the SF of the Teton River.
We camped Friday night at the trailhead and started early Saturday morning.
It was raining lightly, but we had mostly snow free trails, not a lot of blowdown and were making decent time.
Webb Lake cabin (USFS work cabin)
mostly snow free
Turning up Middle Fork of Landers Ck headed for a high pass. We hit deeper snow on and off; every time we thought about donning our snowshoes, it would peter out (only to reappear after we didn't put them on
)
The trail started to quickly turn steeper and then disappeared, we just kept climbing.
The higher we got, the sketchier it got.
Not going to lie, a sigh of relief at the pass
We we were welcomed at the pass with 50-60 mph winds, driving #6 shot gropple into our faces- nice. The wind finally died down and we started our long descent into the NF of the Blackfoot River drainage.
The map & gps showed the trail descending and switchbacking off the north side of the ridge. Trail was covered by snow, but we were confident we could hit on of the switchbacks and carry on. This was a $hit show of a descent- steep as a cow's face and snow covered alder and bear grass- I was on my ass at least twenty times! Oh and after a couple of hours (including several time of the gps showing we were on the "trail") we finally just started side hill our way around where eventually found the real trail that went straight down the ridge. The old trail probably hand't been used in 20-30 years and yet shows up on recent Forest Service maps and Nat Geo maps.
We started cruising again once we were on a real trail. Starting raining pretty heavily, but we at least knew we were on the right track. Crazy wood jam on Cooney Ck, not a big creek must have been hell of a flood event to deposit this much wood!
Carmichael cabin where we called it a day.
