Trails and Maps
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Crazy Creek Campground
Beaver - Keystone Animal
Songbirds and frogs are plentiful
Combine a drive through a recent fire with a picnic and easy walk past a superb beaver-created wetland.
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Field Notes
A dipper flies low under the footbridge. A beaver dam next to the trail reveals fresh-cut willows and the industrious work of nature's engineers. Flycatchers snatch insects from the air. Note woodpecker holes in large ponderosas and Douglas fir. Watch for signs of moose by Crazy Creek. The wetlands are also home to long-toed salamanders and Columbia spotted frogs.
Back to TopHabitat Link
Biologists call beaver a "keystone" species because of the pivotal role they play as nature's engineers of streams. Their dams create pools that serve as nurseries for trout. The dams slow floodwaters and create wetlands that support lush shrubs and trees - habitat for many warblers and other songbirds.
Back to TopViewing Tip
On the drive to Crazy Creek Campground, you'll pass through one of the fires of 2000. Watch for flycatchers, bluebirds and woodpeckers (but note there are no safe pulloffs on this stretch). Once at the campground, walk across the footbridge, and walk along the trail below the talus cliffs. Stop often to scan the willows for birds, moose or beaver.
Back to TopHelpful Hint
The lower portion of the campground is designated for horse users. Park in the day-use trailhead for birding, wildlife viewing, and hiking.
Back to TopGetting There
Look for Spring Gulch Campground along Highway 93 (about 3 miles north of Sula). Turn west on Medicine Springs Road. At 1.5 miles, the pavement ends and becomes FS Road 370. Continue approximately another 2.5 miles to the campground.
Back to TopContact
Bitterroot National Forest, Sula Ranger District, Sula, MT 59871 (406)821-3201
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