The majority of Johnsrud Road in the Lower Blackfoot River Corridor will be CLOSED for the Summer and Fall of 2022 while the route is resurfaced.
Starting May 23, 2022, Johnsrud Road will be closed from just past the turnout near Messina Drive to Whitaker Bridge. The recreation and fishing access sites along this stretch of Johnsrud Road (Darrell Sall Memorial, Daigles Eddy, Sheep Flats, and Thibodeau Rapids), and Thibodeau Campground will be unavailable during the road improvement project.
The work is expected to be complete by late October 2022.
Johnsrud Park day-use site and Whitaker Bridge boat launch/day-use site will remain OPEN. To access Whitaker Bridge, visitors will need to come from the east via Ninemile Prairie Road.
The heavily-used route runs parallel to the Blackfoot River 17 miles east of Missoula, starting at the Johnsrud Park turnoff on Highway 200. All visitors to this portion of the Blackfoot River recreation corridor should expect to see increased construction traffic during the summer months.
For up-to-date information, please visit the Federal Highways website at: https://highways.dot.gov/federal-lands/projects/mt/blm-wmdd-0427-1
You can view road closure on this map.
Twelve miles of the Lower Blackfoot River flow through public lands only 20 minutes east of Missoula. During the heat of the summer, the Lower Blackfoot River Corridor is an excellent place to cool off alongside a large portion of the Missoula population. Crowds disappear during the other nine months of the year, and the Lower Blackfoot river Corridor becomes a great place for fishing, whitewater boating, and wildlife viewing.
The Lower Blackfoot River Corridor has a campground, boat ramp, Restrooms, day use sites, and a non-motorized trail along an old railroad grade. Some Sites Accessible to Persons with Disabilities.
Access the Blackfoot River Recreation Corridor twelve miles east of Bonner on Highway 200. A dirt road (not suitable for RVs) follows the river for twenty miles, reconnecting with Highway 200 near Mile Marker 28, six miles east of the junction with Highway 83.