access to water for someone linking areas by bike

Hi all,

This summer, I'll be biking from the Winds to Glacier (and then N thru Canada) and climbing along the way (in the Winds, the Tetons, the Sawtooths in ID, etc...). My home range is in the Sierra, and I've actually never been to this area! Lots of stoke to be had. Also lots of logistical questions. Anyone have the inside scoop on the following?

- How regularly can I expect to pass creeks to re-fill and filter water? Specifically on the approach to the Pingora area of the Winds, or the Ellingwood Peak zone.
-How long does snow last in that area? I'm planning to hit the Winds the last couple weeks of June, and the Tetons in mid-July. Will snow mess me up then, given the high snow year? (I'm used to hiking in snow, I just don't want to bike in it! And we won't be hauling crampons or technical snow gear...)
-Are the approach roads compact dirt, loose gravel, horrible 4x4 roads, or other? Or: are they generally bikeable by a bike equipped for a graded dirt road?
-Anyone have a favorite paper or PDF map showing the roads, either in the Winds, the Teton-Yellowstone zone, or any part of Western MT?

If anyone has any recommendations for must-sees or -dos anywhere between Rock Springs, WY and Whitefish, MT (via Stanley-Missoula, probably), obviously I'd be grateful to hear it -- but I also would never dish out "locals beta" for my home range on a MP forum so I'm not really expecting any of that :p

Thanks so much in advance for your time + help!

The Sawtooths are all you listed in Idaho, and a long way from Wyoming/Montana. Do you have set start and end points? That might help people give suggestions!

Have a blast! I'm sure people will share plenty with you, when it's a little more clear than a huge swath of the west!

Best, Helen

First off, the Wind River Range is Wilderness, therefore no bike access IN the Winds itself. But there's tons of water between Green River Lakes and the Tetons. If you go up and over Union Pass, you're following a series of creeks and lakes basically the entire way. Once you drop over to the Dubois side and make your way towards the Tetons/Yellowstone, again, tons of water in rivers and lakes. Between Rocks Springs and Pinedale is a different story. You'll want to carry enough water for a couple of days, as the only water in the Red Desert is from Big Sandy Reservoir or a spigot in Atlantic City.

As for maps... Beartooth Publishing does a great full-range map for the Winds.

This year you WILL run into snow in June. Depending on the which part of the range you're in, we're sitting at 100-120% of average in terms of snowpack. www.snotel.com is a great resource for monitoring the different plots they take snow measurements of. It will give you an idea of what to expect, as they update the information constantly until the snow completely melts.

Lots of cool bike touring to be had in our area; lots of national forest, BLM, state land, etc. Just be aware that the Forest Service is not lenient with bikes in the Wilderness. I can't speak to the other areas you mentioned (Montana, Idaho) but if you have any more questions about Pinedale area, feel free to PM me.

If you are concerned about water access, having a high quality micron-rated water filter can greatly increase your access, allowing you to carry less water.

When I was really into backpacking, I'd carry one of these, two of these, and a 1 liter SmartWater bottle (despite being disposable, these actually strike a good balance between being ultralight and durable). At each stream I would filter water into the SmartWater bottle, drink as much as I could, then check the map for upcoming water sources. If there were two water sources in the next ten miles, I'd leave the platypus bottles empty and collapsed in my pack. The water filter is heavier than most ultralight backpackers would carry, but 90% of the time I was carrying a liter of water or less, which saved me much more weight than the weight of the water filter. Of course occasionally there would be gaps between water sources and I'd fill up one or both of the platypuses just in case. And occasionally I'd come to a water source on the map and it would be dry. But I through-hiked the Quehanna Trail, section-hiked the AT from southern Maryland to northern CT, and did a few Adirondack trails this way and I don't think I ever ran out of water.

CAVEAT: I've done some day hikes out west, mostly in deserts, and even for these shorter hikes, carrying as little water there as I do in the Northeast would be a Bad Idea (note the capitalization). I'm not familiar with the areas where you're going to be, so I can't say how frequently you'll come across water sources. I'm just describing the approach I've taken to avoid having to carry massive amounts of water, in the hope that you can adapt it to fit your needs.

You'll note that the water filter I used is both heavy and expensive. The upside to this is that the filters last for years, and the pump should be able to be passed to my grandkids. There are cheaper, lighter filters, they just don't last as long.

Lots of rock between Stanley and Missoula. Check out the Bighorn crags in the Salmon River Mountains (pretty far back on dirt roads), Trapper Peak, Lost Horse, Blodgett and Mill Creek Canyons in the Bitterroots (Lost Horse and Blodgett have good camping).

Check out https://www.adventurecycling.org out of Missoula for bike touring maps that may cover part of your route. Most of the local national forests also publish good paper maps you'll be able to buy at ranger stations along the way or here nationalforestmapstore.com/…

Hey thanks y'all!

Yeah so my route is roughly Winds -> Tetons -> Yellowstone -> Sawtooths -> Missoula area -> Glacier.

I do Wilderness work for a living so I'm well aware of the no bikes in wilderness situation -- I'll just bike to trailhead parkings and leave the bike there :) And hopefully no one will snatch my bike while I'm out for 2-3 days and it's tied to a trailhead sign, haha.

Thanks all for the tips!