D I S T I N C T LY M O N TA N A • S U M M E R 2 0 1 6
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A Northern Saw-Whet Owl
along the Bitterroot River.
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DISTINCTLY MONTANA | DIGITAL
HEART LAKE
e intensity of the 1910 Great Burn scorched the soil such that,
combined with the short growing season at elevation, little but
ground-hugging tundra plants have managed to survive on the
Bitterroot Divide. Elsewhere, drainages that escaped the conflagra-
tion harbors ancient cedars. e combination of landscapes — high
and barren and low and lush — in such close proximity is one
reason conservationists and the Forest Service have supported its
protection as Wilderness for decades. e largest subalpine lake
in this part of the Bitterroot Range, Heart Lake is the centerpiece
of the 250,000-acre Great Burn proposed Wilderness area. Heart
Lake is the most well-known of the northern Bitterroots hikes,
and while it's by no means crowded, it's one of the few places in
the area that hikers can expect to see out-of-state plates in the
summer. A three-mile hike accesses Heart Lake; another mile of
walking deposits hikers at Pearl Lake, set in a granite bench high
on the Bitterroot Divide. Either lake makes for a worthwhile spot
to stretch legs, splash in the lake, or set up a tent for a weekend of
Great Burn exploration.
DRIVING DIRECTIONS: From I-90, take exit 47 (Superior). On
the south side of the freeway, turn left (east) on Diamond Match
Road (County Road 257). Travel 20 miles (paved for the first 6),
past, Trout Creek campground, to the trailhead on the left side of
the road. Parking on the opposite side of the road accommodates
several vehicles.
