St. Anthony Sand Dunes Ride with Patrick Saunders

Story and Photos by: Patrick Saunders

Spring has sprung and we are dusting off the atv’s for the summer season here in South West Montana. Our first ride of the year is to be at the St. Anthony Sand Dunes in Idaho.

We packed up our atv’s and headed south bound out of Butte MT on highway 15, heading south into Idaho, and then cut across from Rexburg along a highway that was surrounded by sage brush covered plateaus. As we neared St. Anthony our thoughts were about the sand dunes, and how they managed to be here in the middle of all this farm land and sage brush. Surely this was country for antelope and range cows, not sand dunes and people!

As we got nearer to the Sand Hills Resort we were treated to the site of sand, miles and miles of sand, with hills that seemed to stretch all the way to the clouds. Check in was our first job to do when we arrived, but it was hard to get the trailers parked, and prepped for our stay at St. Anthony.

It seemed like hours to get everything ready, install the dune flags on the atv’s, gas, and gather up our gear for the ride, but we jumped into this task with both feet. Sand Hills Resort has an on-site store that can supply you with anything from snacks to race gas for your buggy. From what I saw for their race gas prices, it looks like they are priced better then the local shop prices.

We planned on being here for the entire weekend, so we would not try to cover the whole dunes area the first day. Little did we know how much area 10,000 acres covers. We were on the search for area land marks such as Elgin lake, Thunder Mountain & Choke Cherry Hill.

We were told that there are Elk, Moose and other 4 legged critters that winter in this area, but we never saw any sign of them during our stay. I can just imagine things are much different here during the winter months.

Here is an area map of St. Anthony.

Our first ride found us exploring the northern fringe of the dunes, as we followed what appeared to be a goat path, strewn with everything from steep sand approach’s to volcanic rock out cropping s. We had purposely lowered our air pressure in our tires so we could navigate these areas much better. Doing this gives your tires a better foot print allows you to gain the advantage in superior traction while trans-versing the sand.

Our group had an eclectic assortment of atv’s, from Arctic Cat, Can-Am, to Yamaha, making up our trusty mechanical steeds. All of us attached the dune trails with vigor and we made it to the center of the dunes area that evening. Not to be left out riding too late we headed back to camp after testing ourselves in this incredible land scape.

Going back to the sand Hills resort was an adventure in itself. We seemed to find every hill, bowl, and wash out along the way.

Back at camp, our machines parked, and gassed for the next’s days run, we sit around and began to spin some very tall tales about our adventures past. What could be better for the first day of riding, but to spend that with a great group of guys, and to be able to climb sand dunes that rise well above the 300′ mark. During our tall tales I was reminded that we are at 5000′ altitude here, but it sure didn’t feel like it. It was interesting to find out that these sand dunes are on a constant move of over 2 feet per year. That is what makes the dunes so much fun to ride is the constant daily change. Each day is so much different then the day before.

After a great nights sleep, a hearty breakfast, and coffee, it was time to explore. The sand dunes stretch over 22 miles to the westward from where we were staying, so an early start was in order, for us to navigate our way to the end of the dunes. The sands were perfect on Saturdays ride, and as we made our way westward I was amazed at how many hills we had to climb, and how steep they were. I had to dig down deep to make myself climb some of those hills. The terrain is most definitely not flat here. In order to climb hills we had to first make it around areas that were bowled out and with steep sides to side hill across. It almost sounds like we were sledding and not atving.

We found the bowls to be so much fun to dive down in and race around until you loomed very close to the brim, with our shooting out over the top. This was similar to what a motorcycle person must feel like when riding in a circular cage. The trill is awesome and we found ourselves searching for bowls, and ridge lines to carve in all throughout our trip.

I felt a source of pride when we made it to the tops of some of the tallest hills, that had to be at least 400′ tall. Although we didn’t concur all the hills, we did our level best to enjoy as much of the terrain as we could while we were here. It was very amazing to see all the different vehicles that were climbing the hills here. I saw everything from a 3 wheel atv, up to sand rails that were worth well over 100,000 dollars.

It took us the better part of the morning to make it the 22 miles to the end of the dunes. From there we set out across a goat trail through the sage brush, that finally led us to one of the further most sand fingers that makes up the northern area of the dunes. from there we slowly worked our way back along the northern ridge, checking out the many sand fingers along the route. One sand finger offered an excellent vantage point that gave you a birds eye view of the lower sand dune areas that had the most wicked hills in them.

We were so far out that we packed a lunch, and enjoyed some great sandwiches mixed with some more tall tales of our sand adventures. off we went and we must of looked like little ants scurrying along through the sand, mixed with the others that were busy exploring what St. Anthony’s had to offer. While the guys took the southern route back that took them by Elgin lake, I found another goat path that took me by sand hills that made my heart thump, just looking at how steep they were. Of course the sand rails climbed and carved on these hills with what seemed like no work at all. I am sure that all of us had thoughts of building our own sand rail, but don’t burst my bubble just yet.

During my solo ride back I had plenty of time to take in the enormity of this beautiful area, and enjoy I did. After many hours of traversing hills, gullies, and monster bowls, I made it back and was joined again by my fellow riders. I put my trusty Can-Am Outlander 800Xxc away for the night and prepared to set around and go over our days adventures with the guys. It was sad to think that tomorrow we would be leaving to head back to our lives in Butte MT. Another hearty supper, and good times telling tall tales again, and I was ready for my night at what the guys called my spot, the TashMahal, my room at the resort. My many thanks go out to sand hills resort and their people for making us feel like family, and for such a great stay. I will make Sand Hills Resort my home base of operations for all my stays at St. Anthony’s.

Sunday brought rain showers, and I didn’t quite feel so bad that we were gearing up to head home. The 220 mile trip home seemed very short, and I know that we are already making plans to go back. the call of the sand is strong, and we will be prepared for our next adventure. We are so lucky that we live in an area that we can go snowmobiling, atving, and practically do anything there is to do outdoors. Please do your part to support keeping our riding areas open, and ride safe, ride sober, and support our sport.

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