"We've been telling the public about how great the Legacy Center is, and telling families and kids about it, but we have yet to have an event with 400 people in it." That is how Jedd Sankar-Gorton, program director at Whitefish Legacy Partners, described the run-up to this weekend in a September 24 Flathead Beacon report.
That chance comes on October 4. The Sunday races of the Whitefish Trail Blazer will start and finish at the Whitefish Legacy Center, the 35-acre property at Beaver Lakes that many locals still know as the Whitefish Bike Retreat. The race has run before. This time the Whitefish Trail is hosting it on land the trail's own nonprofit owns. For most of its history the trail system had trailheads and easements but no home base. Now it has one, and this fall is the first chance to see what that home is for.
Borrowed Ground, Then Owned Ground
Whitefish Legacy Partners bought the property at 855 Beaver Lake Road in December 2025. Before that, the Trail Blazer's Sunday races were held on property WLP did not own, first at Stillwater Lodge and later at the Bike Retreat, under commercial arrangements.
The economics change with ownership. "Your money goes straight back into this thing," Sankar-Gorton told the Beacon. He meant that registration fees now go toward developing the property and the public trail system rather than to a host venue. He compared the Legacy Center to the wider Whitefish Trail project at a 35-acre scale. "We want people to buy in and realize that they are welcome and invited to be here a lot," he said.
The phrase "a lot" carries the weight there. A trail system gets daily use from its trailheads, and a headquarters only becomes a front door if people show up on an ordinary Wednesday. That has been the hard part.
What's Out There Right Now
The property opened to the public on July 16. WLP's announcement covered the trails, the pump track, the skills park and the Picnic Park, along with parking at the picnic area. Here is what the sources confirm as of the end of September:
| Feature | What's confirmed |
|---|---|
| Property access | Dawn to dusk, year-round |
| Welcome Center | Fall hours not yet posted |
| Pump track and skills track | Open to the public since July 16 |
| Picnic Park | Open, with parking at the picnic area |
| Former lodge | WLP offices and a hangout space, with Wi-Fi |
| Trail connection | Ties directly into the Whitefish Trail at Beaver Lakes |
The Welcome Center line matters if you want to go inside. WLP's page currently says to check back for fall hours, so check that page before you plan on the lodge. The grounds are another matter. With dawn-to-dusk access every day of the year, the pump track and the Beaver Lakes connection are available on any afternoon you have daylight left.
Dogs follow the same rules as the rest of the Whitefish Trail. They must stay under control, any dog without strict voice control has to be leashed, and owners pick up after them.
Race Weekend Is the Open House
The Trail Blazer is how WLP plans to show off the Legacy Center to the whole town at once. Here is the weekend in order:
- Packet pickup at 38 Central in downtown Whitefish, set up as a hangout with a bar, music, food and door prizes.
- Saturday, October 3: the 50K. It starts at 7:30 a.m. at the Village at Whitefish Mountain Resort, and runners pass the start-finish area in front of the Hellroaring Saloon four times between roughly 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. Live music by Todd Cowart and barbecue from Ed McGrew BBQ will be in the Village.
- Sunday, October 4: the half marathon, 10K, 5K and two-mile family fun run at the Legacy Center. The finish celebration runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and is open to non-runners.
The Sunday finish area is laid out like a small campus. Organizers have added seating and expanded the spectator zone, and staff will lead tours of the new headquarters. The start and finish sit at the lodge at the top of the hill. Runners head out on two-track and trails across the property, then join the Whitefish Trail on the same connector used in past years. Spectators who walk a short way from the finish will be standing at the point where the property meets the wider trail system.
Flathead Running Company is back as presenting sponsor, OrthoRehab is the physical therapy sponsor, and Open Fuel is the race's first official fueling sponsor. Registration and details are on the Trail Blazer page, and all proceeds support WLP and the Whitefish Trail.
The Other End of the Trail Got Longer
Saturday's course shows the second change this fall. The 50K still climbs the Chair 3 liftline. At the top, runners now turn left onto newly built Whitefish Trail toward the Base Lodge, cross the Willow lot, and join a new section that connects to the Reservoir Trail. In total the course picks up nearly three miles of new trail in place of stretches of two-track.
The new trail links the Big Mountain Trailhead to Hellroaring Basin. WLP built it with Whitefish Mountain Resort, which wanted better connections across its property, where getting around in summer is difficult. A grand opening is planned for October. No date had been published as of the Beacon's September 24 report, so keep an eye on WLP's announcements.
More is coming in the same area. In April, WLP announced two Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks grants for its Haskill-to-Hellroaring work. In late August it put out a call for bids on four miles of natural-surface trail and related forestry under the Taylor-Hellroaring Project, with work to be finished by the end of October. The Beaver Lakes hub and the Big Mountain extension sit at opposite ends of the system, and both are moving this month.
The Real Obstacle Is the Drive
Sankar-Gorton was frank about what has kept weekday visitors away. People who come leave energized, he said, but drawing them out on random weekdays has taken some convincing, particularly while construction on U.S. Highway 93 West continues.
The Montana Department of Transportation's US 93 West of Whitefish project covers about three miles from Mountainside Drive to just west of Livermore Flats. The work includes a new road surface, turn lanes, guardrail, wider shoulders, signage and a separated shared-use path. As of MDT's September 25 update, here is what drivers face:
- Crews from Knife River work dawn to dusk, Monday through Saturday
- Daytime traffic runs single-lane under pilot car and signal control
- Two lanes are open at night, except near the retaining wall work
- Speed limits are reduced, and stops can mean delays of up to 20 minutes
- Paving and grass seeding are on track to begin in October
The 20-minute figure is the number to keep in mind. On a fall evening, 20 minutes at a pilot-car stop can take up most of the daylight left for a pump track session after work. WLP's own event notices have pointed people to KM Ranch Road as a way around the delays. Sundays are the easiest window, since crews work Monday through Saturday, and that is the day the race lands on.
The highway work runs on a set calendar. In July, MDT said construction would continue through the fall, pause for winter and resume for final work in spring 2027. The finished road will include the separated shared-use path, so the drive out to Beaver Lakes should eventually come with a way to get there without a car. For now, the trip involves some waiting.
What's Still Being Decided
The Legacy Center's long-term public access is still being worked out. During the week of September 24, WLP asked the Whitefish City Council for direction on a proposed trail and trailhead easement. It would cover a 0.3-mile section of trail plus a new 27-car parking area, a kiosk, a vault toilet and a pet-waste station, and it would give the public perpetual access within the existing Whitefish Trail easement structure. WLP has proposed granting it to the city free of charge.
A related easement depends on the state. The trail near Beaver Lakes runs about 50 feet from the boundary of Stillwater State Forest, and the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation no longer issues new trail licenses. That means a survey, an appraisal and a hearing before the state Land Board, with WLP covering the cost. None of this affects the 2026 race. Still, the parking lot, the kiosk and the permanent access that would make the Legacy Center a true everyday trailhead are proposals for now.
Councilor Steve Qunell backed the effort, noting how much more trail the community has now than it did 20 years ago.
After Race Weekend
The Legacy Center stays open from dawn to dusk once the finish line comes down. WLP's next listed fall program is a free, family-friendly wild mushroom hunt on October 13, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. It meets at the Woods Lake Trailhead, not the Legacy Center, so check the location before you drive west. If you spent August around Depot Park and Lakeshore Drive, Beaver Lake Road adds a third Whitefish address with its own fall calendar. More on the town is on our Whitefish neighborhood page.
Land and trails are a large part of what makes Whitefish feel like home, and the Legacy Center is a clear example of a community choosing to own and look after the ground it loves. If you have questions about properties near the Whitefish Trail, or about how trail easements and access work on acreage around Beaver Lakes, Alida Tinch would be glad to talk it through. Let's Connect.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
