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Mountain Biking: Riding the 'Snake'
By DAN OKO
As the snow melts from the high country, fat tire impulses take over. Though responsible riders will want to wait for the ground to firm up -- if you're leaving tire tracks, you're too early, they say -- the Rattlesnake Recreation Area north of Missoula is a great place to spin the wheels on your mountain bike. The Rattlesnake is one of those places that's both known well enough to draw a crowd, and big enough that you can avoid riding as part of one.
It's also home to black bears, mountain lions, deer, elk and other wildlife, so you'll want to keep your eyes open as you blaze through the woods. For a year I lived with the area right out my back door, but even from downtown Missoula, the 'Snake is a mere hop, skip and a jump -- perhaps 20 minutes of solid peddling for the novice -- away.
Once you hit the main trailhead, the choices are pretty obvious: You can follow the road and main stem, which parallels the creek, for several miles, through Ponderosa Pine forest, which will carry you to Franklin Bridge. This is a great lunch spot, and you'll be ready for a break after contending with the flat-yet-rocky trail. Or you can veer to the left at any of several points, and ride up the hill to a couple of loops that should eventually dump you at Sawmill or Curry Gulch.
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