If you are on a quest to discover the few remaining pockets on the planet considered “the middle of nowhere”, put the Heron area high on your list. “Nowhere” is not a location, but a sensation that in these last remaining special places, nature exists and thrives. If “Nowhere” is exactly where you want to go on your vacation or final destination we invite you explore Heron, Montana.
The Heron area’s ample annual snowfall, rainy springs, and explosive summer thunderstorms are responsible for Montana’s only rainforest. The rainforest conceals two ecosystems, with all the trees and plants of both the Pacific Northwest and the Inland Northwest competing for space and for sunlight. The forest floor and alpine meadows are lush in summer with a profusion of wild- wild berries, grapes, mushrooms and flowers.
Wildlife in Heron is easily visible; from elk grazing in front yards, black bears staring in residents’ windows, moose swimming in area ponds to the multiple species of woodpeckers (including the Pileated) making communities out of trees. The area is a bird watching, fishing, and hunting paradise second to none.
For hikers, Heron area is guarded by the Cabinet Mountains to the North and the Bitterroot Mountains to the South. As this is a sparsely populated area, it is probable that your hike will be in solitary splendor, as will your lunch by a crystal clear alpine lake filled with trout. No permits are required to explore these areas, and the trails are well-documented. In the Heron area, “it’s the water” – plentiful, naturally soft, and ice age pure. And, “it’s the dam water” because the Heron area is believed to be the site of the ice dam which created Glacial Lake Missoula.
The Heron area has few businesses, no bar, no school, no traffic, no smog and “deafening silence”. A visit to Heron is a true journey to no where.
