Luxury Camping Hardcore Montana Style

How to Camp in a Hardcore, Yet Relaxing Way

Tent camping is great.   Sleeping on the tops of mountains and waking up to astonishing, beautiful views.   Peaceful seclusion from the rest of the world is yours.  But it has its downsides too:  no matter how good your gear is, sleep is never as good, rain can make the whole trip miserable.  Having dogs or kids on your trip can compound the misery and lack of sleep.  If you’re packed in somewhere or don’t have a portable grill, your food options start to sound like bomb shelter food.   Don’t get me wrong, some of my favorite memories involve some of this misery (aka hardcoreness), but I don’t want every trip to be mountain-man boot camp.  I suppose someday when I’m rich and famous I’ll get a fancy camper, but right now it isn’t in the budget.  If only there was a way to be in a secluded beautiful area, but have just a little more comfort than tent camping provides. There is.  

You can rent cabins and even lookouts from the Forest Service.  I had no idea it was an option until last winter.  Having stayed in two now, I can’t believe what I was missing.   Last February three of us skied six miles into a cabin, had a roaring fire, cooked eggs, potatoes and steaks.  We slept on relatively comfortable mattresses and skied out the next day.  This fall my wife and I drove up to a lookout on top of a mountain.  The lookout had a 360 degree view of the Cabinet Mountains, windows on every side and even a catwalk around the building.  We even saw a bull moose and a mountain lion cub while on a mountain bike ride.  Both were spectacular and fun locations, made even better by the fact that we had a dry place to sleep and cook delicious food. 

All the cabins and lookouts are located in relatively secluded, rugged forests and wilderness areas.  Some you can drive to and some you have to hike, ski or snowmobile to.  Most were used or are still used seasonal by the Forest Service so they typically have some basic amenities.  They are not hotels or vacation rentals but there’s always a stove to keep you warm and real mattresses to sleep on.  Many have cooking stoves and modernized outhouses (no splinters on your butt).  But perhaps the best part is the price: typically $35 per night or less.

A few things to consider if you do rent a cabin or lookout:  You definitely want to double check what amenities the cabin has.  I assumed the lookout we rented had a cooking stove and we ended up having to cook our food on the wood stove. This meant a roaring hot fire and open windows for several hours. You have to reserve some of the more popular locations months in advance or be willing to go on weekdays, but you can’t reserve more than 180 days in advance.  Many locations are only open during specific times of the year.  In the winter, some cabins can only be reached by skiing or snowmobiling.  Running water is almost never an option.  www.recreation.gov is the site you have to rent them through.  Once you have selected your basic search criteria, be sure to select “view as map” under search results as this will make it easier to select the location you want.  It isn’t the easiest site to navigate, but it is very informative. 

This option isn’t as hardcore as winter camping or sleeping under the stars in the middle of the Bob Marshall.  But not every trip has to be hardcore and this is the most authentically Montana way to have a relaxing “camping” trip!  It is True Montana!