The Scapegoat Wilderness

Pat has returned from his first of several planned trips into the backcountry. This trip took him and three other men as well as 14 horses into the wilderness area known as The Scapegoat Wilderness, part of the Bob Marshall/Scapegoat Wilderness Complex. It was created and preserved with the "wilderness" designation in 1972. The Scapegoat area alone covers 239,936 acres and straddles the Continental Divide.


Located in western Montana south and adjacent to the Bob Marshall Wilderness, The Bob (as it is locally known) is noted for its hunting, fishing, scenery, and geology. Massive limestone cliffs that dominate the Scapegoat are an extension of The Bob's Chinese Wall. This wilderness complex is the only place outside of national parks in the lower 48 states that supports a grizzly population.

Access to the complex is restricted to hikers and backcountry horseman. There are no roads, and no motorized vehicles allowed. This restriction includes emergency and park service vehicles making it truly wilderness as well as one of the Last Best Places.

And so it is!