The other day we rode the CDT south from Targhee Pass and today we rode it north. Our out and back ride was 16 miles with 3239′ of climbing topping out at 9531′. Today we rode to the stateline between Idaho and Montana at the top of a mountain and you’ll see that in a picture.
This is an astounding backcountry ride that had me nervous about bears again. We did see two other riders on the lower section but they turned around after only a couple miles and then we didn’t see anyone else all day. The CDT heading north is steeper and seemed more primitive in that it wasn’t as buff and worn in. The first part follows an old dirt doubletrack and then the singletrack climbs steeply through the trees and across meadows.
Eventually it starts some switchbacks up until we got high up into the rock and shale. The sky was a bit hazy but the views were amazing of all the valleys and surrounding peaks. The climb up wasn’t too bad; we’re used to grinds. However, this is probably a pretty challenging ride for a lot of folks especially when you throw in the altitude so know your skill level. That said, this is an amazing wild experience with forest riding, ridges, big views, meadows…really it has everything I could want.
In the pictures you will notice Bald Peak and on the ride it is quite striking. The orange and red color stands out against all the green in the area. At our turn around point as I climbed off my bike to get a view down into the valley I spooked a bunch of mountain goats. Very cool to see them out here and while this is their terrain, it’s tough for mountain biking!
It was a super sweet descent back down to the start but once again, I was a bit cautious so I wouldn’t sneak up on bears. I would totally ride this again and there is an option to loop it with Targhee Creek also.
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