Description

Starting and finishing in one of Missoula's most affluent neighbourhoods, this is a fabulous trip.

The trail can be done on either foot or bike, and ascends and descends the same way, so be aware of other users on the way up and down. The climb up High, Wide and Handsome (which is named after a slogan often used to describe Montana, and an accompanying book) is long but relatively easy, with no overly steep sections.

There are great views from many points on the ascent, and these provide some wonderful distractions from the effort of climbing. After countless switchbacks the trail begins to flatten, and leads to the wonderful loop around the summit of Mount Dean Stone.

The summit tower itself is on private land (and inaccessible as a result) but the loop around it is only about 3km, easy and wonderfully scenic.

The flowers, trees and vistas would each make the loop worth it on their own - combined they make it irresistible.

When you've completed the loop and are ready to descend, get ready for a treat! The corners aren't really banked in the top half of the descent so you have to take them slowly, but the trail's corners get more berm-ed lower down and you can start to throw the bike into them a bit more. Virtually all of the ride is on smooth singletrack and there aren't really distinct cruxes, so keeping on rolling and keep on grinning! Having ridden up the trail you should be able to just keep riding without having to consult the map much - enjoy the ride!