The Crazy Mountains
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The Crazy Mountains are one of the more impressive mountain
ranges in Montana. Lying at the western edge of the vast Montana prairie,
these mountains rise sharply and steeply, towering more than 6000 vertical
feet above the prairie below. More than 20 mountains rise to more than
10,000 feet in elevation. While the Crazy Mountains resemble more of
a island in the vast Montana prairie, these mountains extend more than
50 miles from north to south and are about fifteen miles in width. The
southern half of the Crazy Mountains has the most dominating peaks and
is essentially roadless. The northern half of the Crazy Mountains are
much lower, rounder and have some roads that cut through them.
The Crazy Mountains are very rugged and rocky. Owing to their eastern
location on the edge of the prairie, they are also more arid than other
mountains in Montana. Due to the more arid conditions and their steep,
rugged nature, the Crazy Mountains - despite being more than 150,000
acres in size - only have a couple dozen of alpine lakes.
Yet, these lakes have excellent fishing. Golden trout, brook trout,
cutthroat trout and rainbow trout can all be found in these lakes. Rock
Lake, which lies at the southern base of Conical Peak, is a popular place
for both fishing and camping. It is also one of the easier hikes in the
Crazy Mountains as it has a well-maintained trail that leads to it.
The Crazy Mountains do not have an extensive trail network.
Only one trail runs the length of the Crazy Mountains, with a small number
of trails leading off it to a handful of trailheads down in the prairie
below. The lack of trails keeps the Crazy Mountains very wild - virtually
all of the lakes in the Crazy Mountains require off-trail hiking across
rocky, open and steep terrain.
Access to the Crazy Mountains is somewhat difficult, particularly the
southern half of the mountain range, as the Crazies are virtually surrounded
by private property. Only a handful of access roads lead into the mountains.
Due to the difficult access, camping is limited along the handful of
access roads and a couple of designated campgrounds that exist near the
trailheads into the mountains.
The Crazy Mountains are part of the Gallatin National Forest (south
half) and Lewis and Clark National Forest (north half).
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