Wow! The internet didn’t have much info on this trail but we took a chance and it paid off. Yes, this was a really hard climb and I’m betting only a handful of people ride it each year. This out and back was 16.1 miles with 2904′ of climbing up to the highpoint of 8186′
We started the ride from downtown Anaconda in Kennedy Commons Park so that we could pedal through the flat streets of town to the start for a warmup. The first 2.5 miles was nice and easy as we spun through the old historic neighborhoods of this mining town. The second we hit the trailhead the climbing started and it basically didn’t let up till we reached the lake. The climb has an average grade of 8.8% and kicks up to 16.5% in places.
This is a double-track non-motorized ride that starts by climbing across the hillside up into the forest. Aspens and Lodgepole Pine make up the lower treeline and then give way to Whitebark Pine and Larch higher up. It’s beautiful forest and extremely quiet. It’s a long haul to get up here and we didn’t see anyone else. The path is pretty steep higher up and with jumbled rocks everywhere, it takes some technical skills to not have to hike a bike. It’s hard.
Hearst Lake is nestled up against Mt Haggin and while it was foggy and cool the day we rode up here, we were still enchanted with the setting. It’s so nice to have wild places like this. After relaxing a bit by the lake, we put on our warmer jackets for the descent. It’s basically ALL downhill on the way back so it didn’t take long long!
Leave a Reply