Directions:From Clearwater Junction, travel north on Highway 83 10.1 miles to Placid Lake Road. Turn left on Placid Lake Road and go 3 miles to the state park. Park in the boat launch parking.
Type of ride: Dirt road. A topographic profile of the road up to the lake is shown below.
Distance of ride: 12 1/2 miles round trip as described below. However, the road is drivable all the way to the gate about 1.25 miles from the lake, so the ride distance can be adjusted as desired. Low clearance vehicles are NOT recommended on the last 1.25 miles of travel on the jeep trail.
Description: This out-and-back ride starts at the Placid Lake State Park boat launch parking area. Turn right out of the park and back onto Placid Lake Road. Follow the road south back towards highway 83 about one-quarter mile to the junction with road 4337. Turn right and follow road 4337 just over five miles, climbing steadily as you pedal southwest. The views of the Swan Range grow more magnificent as you climb higher, and eventually you can see Placid Lake in its basin to the north.
The road is blocked just beyond the final turnoff for Spook Lake. Turn left on the unmarked road just before the gate and continue climbing on a jeep trail. Another split appears about .6 miles after the turnoff. Stay to the right (the uphill fork). The final .6 miles is fairly rolling, and the final descent to the lake is steep.
There are a couple of primitive campsites at the lake.
The profile was created in TOPO, www.nationalgeographic.com/topo
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