Mount Rearguard is the highest point on the massive Hellroaring Plateau in Montana's Beartooth Mountain Range, and one of only 27 ranked peaks in the state to rise over 12,000 feet.
This route starts at the parking lot at the bottom of the Hellroaring Road. Start the watch as soon as you leave the parking lot and start on the dirt road. About six miles up on the road until you reach a small parking lot with a trailhead sign, at this point you are on top of the plateau. From here there is a trail that travels SW for a while but it will have to be abandoned, as there is no trail to the top of Mount Rearguard. Turn around after touching the highest rock on the first summit of Rearguard. There are some other rock towers that look to be a similar height further on, but the first one is the true summit.
This route is super fun because you can make some good time on the road portion, and then you get a remote rock-hopping and scrambling experience to the top of Rearguard. Also, Hellroaring Road is barely passible for vehicles, so the road portion is also beautiful and never busy. This route is great because it makes its way from the Beartooth highway to one of the 12k foot peaks in the Beartooths. It is one of the few 12k foot peaks in the Beartooth Mountains that is pretty easy to navigate and has a trail that can be followed for more than half of the route.
