Lewis & Clark, and some solitude Part 2

It was beautiful to see the Little Belt Mountains rising up from the Great Plains, not even an hour from Great Falls.  Our main stop for the afternoon, except for getting to our campground, was exploring Sluice Boxes State Park.

Originally, I had been under the assumption the state park got its name from the mining activity that had taken place.  However, I discovered it was actually due to the geology of the canyon in which the park lies.  The Belt River/Creek winds its way down from the top of the Little Belt Mountains and eventually winds up going through a deep limestone canyon.  The canyon consists of natural drops and ripples that resemble a miner's sluice box.

We parked at a trail head and wound our way long the cliff faces before dropping down into the canyon itself.  We spent some time exploring the river bottom and poking around the remains of an old railroad trestle.  The Great Northern Railroad had built a spur line from Great Falls to Monarch, MT.  The line passed right through this canyon in order to help service the ores removed by the miners.

Once we hiked back up to the top of the canyon, and our awaiting car, we set off down a gravel road for 11 miles until we reached the Logging Creek Campground.  It's tucked back into the mountains and Lewis & Clark National Forest.  Logging Creek is a tributary of Belt Creek.  It was about 2 in the afternoon and the campground was only half full.  We took our time surveying the open campground sites and then made our choice.

We enjoyed the afternoon/evening by playing games, reading, and making dinner.  As the sun began setting the sky turned a vibrant pink color and the surrounding landscape was bathed in splendor.

Overall, the Little Belt Mountains were probably in my top favorites for camping in the mountains.  A summer weekend and the campground never came close to filling.  The campers that were there were nice, the atmosphere was peaceful, and it was easy to leave the chaos behind.  Good luck finding that in Western Montana this time of year...