The old guide trail to Talbot Canyon

Several decades ago, somebody - and I couldn't tell you who - built a steep-ass trail from just short of Pete's Corner in Lamoille Canyon, near the Glacier Overlook, over the top of the ridge to intersect the Talbot Canyon trail. The trail is four miles long, and was built by and for some awfully tough folks - or, at least, folks riding awfully tough horses. It's a 30% grade for much of its length.

That trail was allowed to fade into the grass over the years, and these days it takes some looking, a GPS, and a good imagination to find it. The hunting guides used to keep it cleaned out, but since they have access from the homeowners at the base of Talbot Canyon these days, it doesn't look as if they've done any trail clearing since the mid-1990's. That said, the trail's there, and some friends of mine are working with me to make it easier to find.

There are some good reasons for re-establishing this trail. First and foremost, for skiers, it allows reasonably ready access to some truly marvelous ski terrain. Getting up there otherwise is an interminable bushwhack, but with the trail in place accessing that ridge becomes more realistic. Painful, but realistic.

Second, with construction moving slowly on the Secret-Lamoille trail project, brushing out this old trail will allow access to Talbot Canyon and Verdi Lake more quickly. It's eight miles from Pete's Corner to Verdi Lake on this trail - doable as a day hike or day ride if you're really fit, very reasonable as an overnight if you're less insane.

And, third, once they DO get the Lamoille to Talbot section of the Secret-Lamoille Trail project done, people will have the option of a really nice loop route. This trail isn't close to suitable for bikes, but for everybody else it'd be a nice, if strenuous, trip.

So far, we have it located and brushed out to about where it says "On Ground" on the map. We still have quite a ways to go, obviously. If we can get the trail brushed to the ridgeline before ski season, I'll be really happy.



It's not very likely that the old trail left the road where it shows on the map. This was a horse trail, and the official GPSed route isn't doable by horses in a few spots. It probably took off down canyon a few hundred feet.

Even though it's steep, the trail is worth doing. Some of the views from up there are amazing. Here are Mt. Gilbert and Terminal Cancer couloir from the trail.





It's clear that this route needs a lot more than brushing. Some of the old rock work is findable, as is some of the benching. A lot of it just needs about four people with pulaskis and mcclouds for a couple of weeks.