In August I went up to Flathead Lake with some friends who I sometimes sail with down in Guatemala. We sailed Kokapeli out to Wild Horse Island where we had some enjoyable hiking.
You are not allowed to camp anywhere on the island, so if you're going to spend the night you have to have a boat or something similar to sleep on. The island is mostly a state park, and is a refuge for small populations of all sorts of native critters such as bighorn sheep, mule deer, bald eagles, osprey, and coyotes. Its original herd of "wild horses" has long since died off, but are occasionally replenished by the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks by transplanting mustangs from the BLM's Adopt a Horse program. Pets are also not allowed, nor are fires, fireworks, or smoking of any kind. Use of weapons is prohibited, and antlers or horns may not be removed.
Ecologically, the island is a remnant of one of Montana's native grasslands, the Palouse Prairie.
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| Typical Wild Horse Island Palouse Prairie Terrain |
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| Homestead Buildings |
On one of our hikes we came across a few of the bighorn sheep on the island.
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| Bighorn Sheep |
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...and some nice Mule Deer.
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| Mule Deer | |
The island is a kick in the pants; a real treat to wander around. It feels wild and remote, especially considering its small size. It's setting surrounded by snow-capped mountains in the middle of the largest freshwater lake west of the Mississippi River is hard to beat.
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We spent the night aboard Kokapeli in Skeeko Bay, a wonderful little bay on the island's western shore.
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| Skeeko Bay |
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| Day Visitor | |
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| Kokapeli (on right) |
Tom took his rod and tried to catch us some dinner, but came up empty handed.
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| Tom Checking out the Bay | |
After a pleasant night gently rocking in the bay, we sailed back the next afternoon.
This page last updated on 2015-10-20.
