View of Peters Ridge, Echo Lake and Flathead Lake from the Swan Crest! (Keith Hammer photos unless otherwise noted).
Thirteen Swan Rangers hiked the Peters Ridge Trail and cleared it of deadfall on Saturday, July 4, and five continued on to Lamoose Lake!
What better way to celebrate Independence Day than a hike in our treasured public lands?
Click here for a map of the Peters Ridge Trail.
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The Rangers toast 500 fun outings in the Swan Range! (Keith Hammer photos)
Twenty-three Swan Rangers celebrated the group's 500th Saturday outing at Elk Springs on June 27, 2015!
The first outing was to Elk Springs in November of 2005, but it didn't include champagne laced with homemade huckleberry wine!
The average group size has grown from 4 to 14 over the years and, with 474 different folks coming and going, averages nearly one new person each Saturday!
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A mountain goat along the skyline of Mount Aeneas (Keith Hammer photos unless otherwise noted)
Nineteen Swan Rangers broke into several ragtag groups, hiking Mount Aeneas and other parts of Jewel Basin on Saturday, June 20, 2015!
A lone Ranger hiked past Twin Lakes, stopping short of descending snowy slopes to Wildcat Lake, and has kindly shared his photos here!
This was the 499th outing for the Swan Rangers, dating back to November of 2005. Stay tuned for champagne and treats on #500, June 27!
Click here for a map of the Jewel Basin Hiking Area.
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Rangers at Upper Holland Lake! (Susan Brueggeman photo)
Sixteen Swan Rangers broke into two groups and hiked to Upper Holland Lake and Strawberry Lake on Saturday, June 13, 2015!
The Swan Range is the eastern border of the Flathead and Swan Valleys - and all three have so many gorgeous lakes!
This was the 498th outing for the Swan Rangers, dating back to November of 2005. Stay tuned for champagne and treats on #500, June 27!
Click here for a map of the Strawberry Lake Trail and click here for a map showing Trails #415 and #35 to Upper Holland Lake starting on the north side of (Lower) Holland Lake (better hiking, less horse poop).
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Sun, sky and a smattering of Swan Rangers! (Keith Hammer photos except Mt. Aeneas view)
Nineteen Swan Rangers hiked the Switchback Trail up to Alpine Trail #7 on a sunny Saturday, June 6, 2015!
Two continued up from Malfunction Junction to the top of Mt. Aeneas!
Click here for a map of the Switchback Trail and click here for a map of Jewel Basin.
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The Swan River and Swan Mountains in nifty shades of gray. (Keith Hammer photos)
Eight Swan Rangers spent a wonderfully rainy Saturday, May 30, hiking along the Swan River just upstream from Bigfork, MT!
It was the first truly rainy day in many weeks, though likely not enough to keep the paltry 0.11 inches of precipitation this May from breaking the record low of 0.23 in 2001!
Texas should feel free to send us some more of its excess!
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Where the land meets the sky and the rock meets the snow! (Roger Benson photo)
Fifteen Swan Rangers hiked the Sixmile Lookout Trail to its junction with Alpine Trail #7 on a sunny Saturday, May 23, 2015!
There is considerable snow pack from there on, so they called it a day and will return later in summer!
Click here for a map of the Sixmile Lookout Trail.
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Flathead Lake framed by the boulder field above Elk Springs! (Keith Hammer photos)
Fifteen Swan Rangers hiked to Elk Springs on Saturday, May 16, and got out before the rain showers could get serious!
This is just one of many great destinations on Broken Leg Mountain!
The trail up the ridge from the old Bear Creek Road to the Echo - Broken Leg Trail #544 is not shown on the Swan Lake District map, but is shown as part of an alternate route in the lower left of this Jewel Basin map, which doesn't show the old Bear Creek Road.
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A grand view of Echo and Flathead Lakes! (Keith Hammer photos)
Fourteen Swan Rangers hiked to the top of the switchbacks on the Strawberry Lake Trail on Saturday, May 9, but turned around when they encountered hard-packed snow on the steep sidehill traverse to the lake!
A few bushwhacked up to a cliffy opening to get a little better view and a sunny snack spot!
Click here for a map of the Strawberry Lake Trail.
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Bedrock where the canyon narrows to form Bond Falls. (Keith Hammer photos except of group)
Twelve Swan Rangers hiked and cleared the trail to Bond Falls on a sunny Saturday, May 2, 2015!
Fortunately, wildflowers were more abundant than downed logs across the trail!
Click here for a map of the Bond Creek Trail.
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