Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument
 |  |  |
|---|---|---|
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |
The Little Missouri River in Montana has repeatedly come to my attention when researching outdoor locations. This river was a prominent channel for the Lewis & Clark Expedition.
The Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument contains a spectacular array of biological, geological, and historical objects of interest. From Fort Benton to the Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge, the monument spans 149 miles of the Upper Missouri River, the adjacent Breaks country, and portions of Arrow Creek, Antelope Creek, and the Judith River. The monument includes six wilderness study areas, the Cow Creek Area of Critical Environmental Concern, segments of the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail and the Nez Perce National Historic Trail, the Fort Benton National Historic Landmark, a watchable wildlife area and the Missouri Breaks Back Country Byway. In 1976, Congress designated the Missouri River segment and corridor in this area a National Wild and Scenic River. The area has remained largely unchanged in over 200 years since Meriwether Lewis and William Clark traveled through it on their epic journey. Within the monument you can float the river, fish, hike, hunt, drive for pleasure, find a little solitude, enjoy a sense of exploration in a remote setting or simply marvel at the variety of natural beauty. https://www.blm.gov/programs/national-conservation-lands/montana-dakotas/upper-missouri-river-breaks
We drove a day and a half from Chicago, and on Wednesday we arrived in Fort Benton, MT. After gathering a few supplies from the local grocery store, we set the boats out from Coal Banks landing around 5 pm. Given the northern latitude, the sun would not set until around 10 pm. After an hour, we decided to camp on an island containing a cottonwood stand at mile 45. Even though the mosquitoes were pretty thick, the fishing offshore was not very good. Even on the first night, we were marveling at the vast expanse of the landscape and its solitude. Hearing about the propensity of raccoons at the Eagle Creek Boat Camp, we determined to camp before or after this formal camp. We started the day with a short stop at Lone Tree Boat Camp. Here a couple of the guys stopped to fish, and caught a few (we later determined) Gold Eyes. In these earlier sections, we saw many sections of BLM leased grazing land containing cattle. Soon after, we entered the region known as the "White Cliffs". Throughout this region, we were mesmerized by the beautiful bright white sandstone emerging from the ground. However, in addition to the beautiful scenery we were slapped around by strong headwinds that kept pushing us to the right. Even with both of us rowing on the right side, we still couldn't keep the boat to the left. Around mid-day we saw Burnt Butte (at mile 55) and Grand Natural Wall (at mile 57). This wall consists of stacked basalt from earlier volcanic eruptions. The gray basalt color dramatically contrasts to the bright white color or the sandstone, and green of the surface shrubbery. At this point, we got a little carried away in our orienteering, and passed our intended stop. We then passed Eagle Rock (mile 59) and Citadel Rock (mile 62). Between these two, we encountered a strong, strong wind that resulted in breaking white caps in our face. This experience reminded many of us of crossing the large Minnesota lakes in the Boundary Waters. We were very surprised to experience these conditions on the Little Missouri River. After Citadel Rock, we landed a Hole-in-the-Wall Boat Camp at mile 63. Having a sheltered cooking area was a great help with the strong winds that continued to blow. The sunsets across the valley to the cliffs were outstanding.
On Friday morning with 3-1/2 days remaining to cover 25.5 miles, we took a more leisurely pattern. Still at Hole-in-the-Wall camp, we had a patient and lazy breakfast. After slowly breaking camp, we left between 10-11 am MST. The winds were a lot better today, and if we encountered wind it was at our back. Without rowing, we were moving down the river at 3.5-4.0 mph. On Friday, we encountered the sandstone formation "Seven Sisters" contained within a section the BLM refers to as Valley of the Walls. The guys were fishing from the boat, while we drifted but didn't catch anything. Early afternoon, we arrived at Dark Butte Boat Camp (mile 69). A group moving out from lunch informed us about a "fat raccoon" they observed in the lower camp. As a result, we moved to the higher camp. The three guys spent the afternoon fishing off the knob near the lower camp. While avoiding two rattlesnakes, they were successful catching a few fish. With that haul, I made a fish casserole. Baking that dish in camp with a high evening wind became a challenge. Setting the stove up behind a large log was the key that allowed us to be successful. Shortly after dinner, a heavy rain dropped on the camp. As it was only 8:30 pm, I was reluctant to go into the tent. I stayed outside the tent in my rain gear under a tree listening to the only radio station that was available AM 560, (old) country. Saturday morning was another short day. Again, we took our time having breakfast and breaking camp. Once on the water again we passed the Pablo Rapids, a mile fluctuation in the river. After a few hours, we reach the Slaughter River Boat Camp (mile 76.5). This is a large boat camp with 14 tent sites and many fire rings. There was a very short rain in the afternoon, and then the sun quickly reappeared. The guys spent a lot of the afternoon fishing. A lot of fish were caught, but apart from the catfish nothing extremely favorable to cook. There was one epic 45 minute battle with a "monster" carp that was very entertaining. We had pepperoni pizza that night and finished the night with a campfire. A very nice ending to the evening.
Sunday was another short float of 5-7 miles. The past three days we barely paddled; we barely steered. With the river current of at least 3.5 mph, just floating on the river will get you 7 miles in two hours. The temperatures were picking backup, and we arrived at a shaded campsite at The Wall Boat Camp (mile 81.5). Later in the afternoon the shade was gone,and we were struggling to move to shade. Although the guys fishing at the shore were exposed throughout the afternoon, back in the cottonwood trees, it was significantly cooler. We had another campfire in the fire ring that night, a great serene final night to our trip. Monday we actually had to paddle a bit. It was about 7.5 miles to the takeout, and it was strange to see reminders of civilization, i.e. power lines, road, bridge, etc. About 11 am MST, we arrived at the takeout of Judith Landing (mile 88.5) at Hwy 236. About an hour later, the outfitter arrived to take us back to Coal Banks to retrieve our vehicles.