Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Backpack Hunting Social Distancing with backcountry CLOSED??

GNP and YNP are both currently closed, but evidently with plans to open sometime soon????

The backcountry will be open at some point in Glacier, but all backcountry permits will be issued daily on a first come basis (most years they aside 30% of the permits to walk up- this year 100%)

Maybe this will be the year residents might actually visit the parks (other than winter)

Access restricted to public backcountry? As an American that enjoys pedaling a bicycle on singletrack, all I can say is

I was over fly fishing the bull river in NW MT recently. Didn't see another soul on the river. Ran into a forest ranger, great guy and I gave him a few flies. . Just said I quarantined for 14 days and he just smiled.

Yeah, this has been an incredible spring of fishing. Almost no tourists, plus quite a few locals that are too scared to go out.

But don't tell anyone, grin.

Are the trout wearing masks?

I wish the locals here were like your locals! They are all out here in full force.

Wish our woods were empty too. We are covered up with Washington [bleep]. Not a one been here 14 days

I wouldn't fish the popular waters until your Montana quarantine is ended. My county I think had one case and I gas up and shop before heading over and its about 90 min away. That's rude. Probably Seattle dooshbags!!!!! I go into the remote less popular areas others and typically see no one even the past few years.


Wish I could fish the fish the BF Rez now.

Wow good conversation here guys thanks.

So as has been pointed out the closure has to do with the staff’s ability to clean the facilities and to administer the backcountry permits. Permits were instituted several years ago to keep campsites from over crowding....

Anyway governess declared that starting this weekend the UP and northern LP is less locked down than the rest of the state, bless her heart.

Fortunately this means we may be able to get a shuttle and do the Pictured Rocks Natl Lakeshore from East to west as its meant to be done. Unfortunately the Natl Lakeshore hasn’t hired summer staff to clean the bathrooms in the backcountry area and won’t be open until late June.

So we’ll go. I can’t friggin wait. My 12 yo is really excited and she is such a joy to be on the trail with. We’ll be able to go nice and slow and practice leave no trace so our impact won’t be noticed by anyone else in the future.

I understand where the person was coming from who said that there are those who want to go wherever and do whatever (Stereotypical millennial) And I get it. That’s not my desire; I consider backcountry near sacred and don’t intend to abuse it.

Might get interesting if we run into the “all in this together” gestapo out there as we’re camping out (in violation of the rules) but I’m pretty good at lying low and going unnoticed.

Def will post up pics when we get back!

You have to realize there is no enforcement to these ridiculous rules. They are rules not law. However, you may still be sent before the magistrate at some point for non-compliance, but there isn't a judge in the land that could convict you of any misdeed from this unnecessary disregard of your civil rights.