|
Favorite Drives: Maiden Loop Scenic Drive
August 27, 2008
By Sarah Crowley
The Lewistown area offers scenic spaciousness peopled with the ghosts of its frontier mining history. Unlike Western Montana, with its jagged, glaciered peaks, Central Montana’s wide-open, treeless vistas are accented with small mountain ranges erupting like blisters from the brown prairie.
To launch your journey into Central Montana’s gold-mining past, begin in downtown Lewistown at the intersection of Main Street and First Avenue. Head north and turn right at the Highway 191 sign. Proceed past the Central Montana Fairgrounds and into the rolling valley between the Judith Mountains to the east, and the Moccasin Mountains on the west. In spring and early summer this 20-mile-wide valley shimmers bright green; by fall, that verdant shade fades as tan as buckskin. The area’s agricultural heritage is readily seen in the cattle ranches along the road, and the almost complete absence of subdivision housing tracts. A low pass (a mile or two in width) separates the North Moccasins from their southern spur. The Judith Mountains resemble a pine-clad sombrero, though the northern slopes bear evidence of recent forest fires.
Carter’s Pond is four miles down the road. Shaped like ragged kidneys, these twin pools are large enough to allow good fishing from a small boat. Rainbow trout can be hooked in the northern pond; rainbows and large-mouth bass in the southern. Waterfowl waddle along the ponds’ shores, and often ride wind-ruffled waves when a rollicking zephyr blows out of the west.
Six miles farther stands the “Maiden’s Gold” historical marker and the “Warm Spring Canyon Road” sign. Turn east onto a narrow, paved road. South of the road, cottonwoods line Warm Spring Creek, which is relatively dry and not a good bet for fishing.
Cottonwoods give way to pines three miles later as the road wends past cattle grazing in the foothill pastures. Contrary to local tradition, explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark didn’t name the Judith Mountains. One of seven ranges rising from the neighboring prairies, the Judiths derive their title from the Judith River which Capt. Clark christened in 1805 to honor his future wife, Julia Hancock.
Keep an eye out for wildlife. These hills are home to wild turkeys, white-tail and mule deer, and elk. In roughly three miles, you encounter Maiden School and several buildings constructed by the Air Force in the 1950s as part of a military radar project in the Judiths.
The pavement ends at the tiny village of Maiden, built on the site of the original gold mining camp. Maiden burst into rowdy life in 1880 when gold was discovered in nearby Alpine Gulch by “Skookum Joe” Anderson and David Jones. More than $3 million in gold was taken from the local claims. Maiden supported several saloons and gambling houses, and was the scene of grisly murders. With a peak population of 1,500, it almost became the seat of newly-formed Fergus County in 1885. Located just east of its modern counterpart, old Maiden burned down in 1905. A crumbling stone mercantile can still be seen. This edifice is on private property so please stay on the public street when viewing. A small tumbledown shack, on the right side of the highway, is another survivor of Maiden’s glory days.
The road narrows and pavement ends just beyond Maiden. A mile farther is the road to Judith Peak and Camp Maiden. Turn left at the sign and travel four miles to the top. The 40-acre Camp Maiden was dedicated to Fergus County residents in 1942. To reserve camping sites, call (406) 538-3817. Judith Peak (elevation 5,808 feet) offers far-flung views of six surrounding mountain ranges. The Little Rockies jut up from the prairie 70 miles to the northeast; and the Bear’s Paw Mountains, 70 miles northwest. The Highwood Mountains (with Square Butte looming on their northern end) lie 70 miles west. Remaining are the North and South Moccasin Mountains, 20 miles west; the Little Belts, 70 miles southwest; and the Big Snowy Mountains, 30 miles south.
When you’re ready to visit the ghost town of Gilt Edge, go back down to the main road and turn left. A half-mile along are ruins of the 1910 Cumberland Mine to the left. Another half mile, on the right, is the rich Spotted Horse Mine, in operation from 1884 to the 1990s. The richest gold mine in all the Judiths, the Spotted Horse was first discovered by Perry W. McAdow, who made three fortunes by selling the property and buying it back again over several years. The tin-covered buildings and machinery within the fenced-off area mark the mine’s most recent activity.
Venture four miles through Maiden Canyon and squeeze past sheer cliffs of Madison limestone, a sedimentary rock containing marine fossils. At this point, the canyon floor is a mere 250 feet wide. The rocks tower alongside the road, blocking off the sun and making the traveler feel he’s slipping through a cave with an open, blue sky top.
Quaking aspens mix with the pines and receding hills reveal prairie views to the east and south. Pass over a cattle crossing and up a steep hill. Just beyond the hill’s crest, look left to Black Butte – the inner core of an ancient volcano. Round as an egg , the 5,566-foot butte sits all alone and actually looks black from a distance.
The road is graveled from here on. Descend the hill. About a quarter mile north of Gilt Edge, look west at mounds marking the tailings (remnants) of the 1893 cyanide mill, the first operation in the United States employing the cyanide leaching process in gold mining.
Gilt Edge was equally wild as Maiden; the one and only Calamity Jane spent a winter here in the late 1890s. The town reached its zenith in 1905 with some 1,200 residents, but not much remains today. As you approach the town site, the stone ruins of Washburn’s Mercantile rise straight ahead. Farther, on the right, slouches The Palace, a former bordello in such decayed condition it’s dangerous to enter. The dinky Gilt Edge jail is directly across the road.
From The Palace head east on Gilt Edge Road and stay on it past the intersection of Black Butte Road. Your way curves south, through prairie hills dotted with antelope and cattle. In 10 miles you join Highway 200; turn right and it’s 12 miles back to Lewistown. Notice the change in the landscape as you travel west. In about five miles, you’ll cross The Divide -- the pine-covered southern slope of the Judiths separating the eastern sagebrush prairies from the flat, 60-square-mile Judith Basin. The highway at this stretch is generally open, however, logging, livestock and interstate trucks often share the roadway. Also, watch for deer crossing the road, especially in the early morning and late afternoon.
Be aware: The dirt and gravel roads on the Maiden loop tour are subject to extreme weather conditions. Don’t attempt it in snow-clogged winter and spring, or after a rain. Gumbo mud can be a problem in wet weather, as are sheets of ice and snow in the winter. Large RVs and trailers are not recommended.
Planning a picnic along the way? Before leaving Lewistown, have one of the many Lewistown restaurants pack you a lunch. Or, before taking the Maiden turn-off from Highway 191, wheel on five miles farther to the little settlement of Hilger where the Pioneer or Rainbow bars can fix you up with burgers and cold drinks.
|
|
