Ennis, Montana, United States
Although I’ve been getting out of the house over the last few
weeks, I haven’t been getting very far, even though effectively speaking “stay
at home” didn’t preclude outdoor activities some distance from home. I realized
I had not been more than about 12 miles from home since returning from Canada
in mid-March. With a beautiful sunny day,
I decided to set out for an afternoon hike in Bear Trap Canyon, a low-lying
hike along the Madison River about 30 miles west of Bozeman that was one of the
first hikes I did last spring. When I
arrived, though, I discovered that rumors about the BLM having closed the
trailhead were in fact true. Why is the government afraid of solitary hiking
and fishing activities when we’re told to do “social distancing.” Some things just don’t make any sense.
With that my planned active day became more of a drive. I continued onward a few miles west to
Revenue Flats, also BLM land on an elevated plateau at the base of the Tobacco Root
Mountains I had recently heard of as a good spot for primitive car camping with
some rock formations.
I didn’t find much in the way of obvious trailheads for
hiking, though.
The rest of my unplanned meandering route took me through
the area at the base of the Tobacco Roots, through the Madison Valley, around
Lake Ennis, and into Upper Beartrap Canyon. The Madison River is dammed just below
the entrance to the canyon to form Ennis Lake. However, it’s not possible to
walk through from one end of the canyon to the other, the trail being blocked
at the power house.
Nowadays, Ennis is the biggest town in Madison County, the
large county west of Gallatin with a population density of about two per square
mile. The county seat, though, is at historic Virginia City in the hills. Ennis
impresses me as a perfect western ranch town situated along a river in a broad
valley with downtown Main Street lined with wood-fronted buildings and some
attractive Victorian houses along the streets behind. I have fond memories of it from my first trip
to the west in 1988 with my mom, since we spent a night in Ennis after leaving
Yellowstone National Park. Back then the West was completely new to me and the
landscape absolutely stunning. On this
day in late April, though, things were very quiet downtown because of
stay-at-home or “quarantine” as some people call it. Most businesses were
closed and a few restaurants open only for takeout. Ennis is known for having a
very authentic western Fourth of July parade and rodeo which I missed last year
but tentatively planned to attend this year. Like most events I suspect it will
be cancelled if such a decision has not yet been made.
2025-05-22