Popular Boy Scout Bridge Closed for Good in Montana

Public access to our Montana lands is important to everyone, so when a road or area closes, it hits hard not only for the local residents relying on commerce and traffic, but also for those of us that want to see the beauty of Big Sky Country.

Recently, a major area near Seeley Lake, Montana has been declared unsafe and off-limits immediately, with no real timeline of when it may return.

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An Important Conduit Keeping Everyone Together

More than likely, if you have travelled across the area of Seeley Lake, you have been on the Boy Scout Road that encircles part of the lake. Maybe it was to visit the larch named "Gus" or to take in one of the many campground areas the road affords to travelers.

Those access points are going to be much more inaccessible now that the Boy Scout Bridge has been close indefinitely by Missoula County for structural concerns.

Access Could Be a Long Time Coming

According to the report from Missoula County, it states:

The complete closure comes on the heels of a 3-ton weight limit Public Works placed on the bridge in August following a routine MDT inspection showing deterioration of the timber piling foundation that could affect the bridge's load capacity.

While access is discontinued immediately after the Montana Department of Transportation report, there is hope that the bridge can be replaced soon, with an estimated cost of $5.7 million dollars. The county hopes that through federal grants and other outside funding sources it can replace the bridge.