Wilderness snowshoe hikes scheduled

The Montana Wilderness Association will mark its 10th year of offering Winter Wilderness Walks with 55 guided snowshoe hikes in the backcountry across the state.

The trips are free and open to the public, but participants must make reservations by contacting trip leaders. MWA will provide snowshoes. Children are allowed on some hikes with adult guidance, but no dogs are allowed.

The schedule is divided into seven regions represented by different MWA chapters. Several moonlight hikes are offered, and hikes range from a few miles on relatively flat terrain to eight miles on moderate terrain to a 10-mile climb.

Nine hikes are offered in Northwest Montana, including an easy meander on Great Northern Flats on Jan. 12, a winter survival skills trip near Bigfork or Columbia Falls on Feb. 23, a moonlight walk on Lake McDonald on Feb. 25 and a hike to Stanton Lake on March 13.

For those interested in a road trip, snowshoe hikes are offered along the Rocky Front, near Neihart and Monarch, in the Gallatin Range, at Humbug Spires, and to the summit of St. Mary’s Peak in the Bitterroot Range. Some trips are coordinated with winter wildlife monitoring work or include classes on igloo or snow cave construction.

The complete 24-page schedule can be downloaded by visiting online at www.wildmontana.org. For more information, contact wilderness walks program coordinator Laura Parr in Helena at 406-443-7350 ext. 110 or e-mail mwa@wildmontana.org.