Montana Wilderness Horseback Adventures
with Snowy Springs Outfitters!

Horseback Riding  • Fly Fishing • Pack Trips • Guided Big Game Hunts

Summer Wilderness Adventures

Wilderness Hunting

What is Wilderness?

The Great Bear Wilderness was set aside by the Federal Government in 1978, linking the Bob Marshall Wilderness and Glacier National Park, to be maintained as closely as possible as an untamed frontier. No motorized or mechanical vehicles, including bicycles and wheels, are allowed. All travel is by foot or horseback, with the exception of a backcountry airstrip at Schafer Meadows Ranger Station. The Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex (including the Bob Marshall, the Scapegoat and the Great Bear Wilderness areas) totals over 1.5 million acres on both sides of the Continental Divide. Snowy Springs operates mostly in the Great Bear Wilderness under permits issued by the USDA Forest Service. The Wilderness Act limits the number of guests we can escort through this unique area.

Base Camp

Just off Highway 2 at between Mile Marker 190 and 191, our Base Camp is nestled between Glacier National Park to the north and the Great Bear Wilderness to the south. We are at the southern end of a small mountain valley that was once the home of McCarthyville, a rough and rowdy frontier railroad town from 1890-1892. At its peak the town was home to 32 saloons and more than 1000 people. Two years later it was gone.

Located on approximately 100 acres, our Base Camp includes our main residence and shop as well as two vacation rental cabins and numerous out buildings. The American West is alive in the large arena, horse corrals and two creeks that run through the property.

Most summer evenings we practice for rodeos or other horse events in the arena. The public is welcome to stop by. During summer months, there is a local rodeo in Columbia Falls at the Blue Moon on Thursdays which our crew enters as often as possible. The rodeo schedule can be found at Brash Rodeo, Kalispell on Facebook.

Our Base Camp is 38 miles east of West Glacier and 18 miles west of East Glacier. Between mile markers 190 & 191 on Highway 2.  The Flathead Valley is accessible by air to Glacier International Airport (current airlines: Horizon/Alaska, Skywest/Delta, United, Allegient), by rail (Amtrak), and by auto (US Highway 93 and US Highway 2).  You may also fly into Great Falls International Airport (Alaska, Allegient, Delta, United). There is also the option of flying directly into the backcountry at Schafer Meadows via bush plane.

In The Press

Big Mountains

Sometime an elk hunt is not just about killing elk, but about hunting them the right way.
The cow elk slowly fed through the thick underbrush, alternatively grazing on green shoots and browsing on salmonberry leaves. Read Full Article