Way up in the Bitterroot Mountains – Slate Creek

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Campground Full

After I left the Crooked Tree Ranch I headed south to Darby, MT.  I wanted to stop and call my sister.  I try to keep in contact as much as I can to see how my Mom is doing as well.  Everyone is OK.

Painted Rocks State Park

I looked on my atlas and thought that Lake Como just north of Darby might be a nice spot.  It was about 6 miles off of 93 and not too far to drive.  It was a beautiful setting, however the campground was completely full.  Lots of campers pulling boats for fishing.

So back to the 93 and headed south again.  I saw signs for the Painted Rocks State Park that was 23 miles into the Bitterroot Mountains.  I have not stayed at any of the Montana State Parks thus far so thought I would check it out.

About a mile before the park you turn a corner and this is what you see.

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A beautiful mountain lake.  I drove another mile to the state park.  The cost for camping for non-resident campers was $20 per night with an additional $5 entrance fee per day, plus there were no hookups.

Slate Creek Campground

Just about where I took the pic above I saw a sign for Slate Creek Campground so I decided to go back and check it out.  It was a small campground made up of about 6 sites and right on the Slate Creek.  But the best part was that there was NO FEE as in FREE.  What a deal!  I found a nice site and made myself at home.

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Chica and I took a walk down to the creek.  This creek flows into the large lake seen in the first pic.

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The forest was very dense up here although we did have access to the creek.

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Chica was looking out the door in the evening and saw a large deer pass by our camp about 25 feet away.  I wasn’t fast enough with my camera to get a pic.  However the next morning I got this pic of a doe and her fawn.

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The next morning before departing, I took a ride over to the lake to get some pics.

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I went down to the State Park where they had a boat landing and a dock and got this pic from the end of the dock.

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I stayed at a beautiful campsite and the best part was that I was able to save $25 by not staying at the State Park.  Not too shabby!

4 thoughts on “Way up in the Bitterroot Mountains – Slate Creek”

  3. Even if you wanted to spend time at the lake….. Camp for free, then spend the $5 for day use on the day you want to play at the lake. PERFECT!!

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  4. Yeah, $25 seems a bit steep for no hook-ups. I would personally rather be on a creek anyway and free is always good. Seems like you found a great spot – very pretty.

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