Tillinghast twice

Calypso orchids in bloom

A rare chocolate lily on the flank of Monarch Mountain 

Bighorn Mountain (Elevation: 7,874 feet)

Wayne Phillips on one of two Monarch Peak high points

Katie above Tillinghast Creek at flood level

One of the massive Ponderosa pines

The stats on our Monarch Mountain/Tillinghast trek

It had been years since I had hiked in the Tillinghast Creek area of the Little Belt Mountains, so long ago that I forgot much about it.
When Wayne Phillips suggested we hike there this week I jumped at.
Since I last had been in there a new trailhead had been constructed, offering exceptionally easy access.
When I had done this before I figured a way on by following public lands along section lines, and it involved going over a fence.
This time it was a 45 minute drive to the Belt Park Road south of Monarch and to a great trailhead not even a mile to the west.
On Thursday Wayne and I did a long loop that went from the trailhead to the junction with the Thunder Mountain trail and after a short lunch, straight up Monarch Mountain and then along that mountain's ridgeline before dropping back to the trail not far from our starting point.
The drop to the Thunder Mountain junction was just under 800 feet over about 3.1 miles.  We gained 1,000 feet in .7 miles straight up to a saddle on the Monument Mountain ridgeline.
On Saturday, Katie and I went from the trailhead along the trail to a point where we could drop straight down to the creek, where we had lunch and turned around.  We covered 4 miles roundtrip and gained and lost about 1,100 feet.
The scenery is dominated by towering Ponderosa pine trees and juniper bushes.  There's tons of deadfall littering the forest floor.  These are Ponderosas like you'd find in the Lincoln area, very surprising for a forest I'm used to seeing in lodgepole.
Tillinghast Creek is raging, and we did not attempt a crossing.
I'll do that later in the season when the snowmelt is gone and we can hike that Thunder Mountain trail, perhaps climbing Big Horn and Thunder mountains, the big boys in this area.
We had great views of those mountains much of the trip or whenever the trees opened up.
We were treated to some nice open, grassy areas, particularly the the bench not far from the Thunder Mountain Trail.   At the junction the high Belt Creek cliffs, much like those seen in Sluice Boxes State Park, are visible on the flank of Monarch Mountain.
On top, there were terrific views of Big Baldy, Long and Niehart Baldy peaks.  Belt Park was a massive, green oasis.
Tillinghast Creek was far below the trail and we caught only glimpses until we dropped to the bottom.
We were treated to a variety of alpine flowers, particularly Lady Slipper (Calypso) orchids, Shooting Stars, Bluebells, Holly Grape, and Fairy Belles.  On the hike up the side of Monarch Mountain I spied and photographed a chocolate lily, quite a find and visual treat.
Now that access has become so easy I plan to return regularly and might even try it in the winter on backcountry skis!