Posted in Montana
August 25, 2016
8 Adventures To Enjoy On The Montana Side Of Yellowstone National Park
In honor of the National Park Service turning 100, we’re celebrating America’s first national park, Yellowstone.
We’ll be the first to admit that you can’t always tell for sure which state you’re in when you visit Yellowstone National Park. Since the vast majority of the park is in Wyoming (and a tiny portion with Idaho), it’s easy to lose track. But it’s possible to have a few adventures while you’re still in the great state of Montana. Here are eight things you can do on our side of Yellowstone:
Saddle up with Flying Pig Adventure Company and enjoy views of Yellowstone like you’ve never seen it before. You’ll experience the life of a Montana cowboy as you ride the trails around the park, which is led by expert wranglers.
Just a few feet north of the Montana- Wyoming border lies the 45th Parallel Bridge, which is near the Boiling River. This is one of the few places in the park where you can actually enjoy a swim in warm water. It’s open for swimming from dawn to dusk.
Yellowstone National Park is one of America’s premier wilderness areas, with more than 900 miles of trails crisscrossing Yellowstone. You can start in Montana, cross into Wyoming and end your hike back in the Treasure State.
Backcountry camping is allowed in Yellowstone, including some spots on the Montana side. Pick up a permit from a ranger station or the West Yellowstone Visitor Information Center.
The not-for-profit Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center is located in West Yellowstone, offering park visitors a chance to see grizzly bears and gray wolves. All the animals at the center are unable to survive in the wild for various reasons, so they serve as ambassadors for their wild counterparts.
Montana Whitewater’s Gardiner location offers rafting trips for beginners and families on their Half-Day Yellowstone River Raft Trips. You can also book a trip through Flying Pig Adventure Company.
Bison are the most common mammals spotted in the park, and plenty of herds can be seen without crossing the border into Wyoming.
The historic Roosevelt Arch can only be found at the Gardiner entrance to the park, which is definitely in Montana. Dedicated by President Theodore Roosevelt in April of 1903, it’s one of Yellowstone’s most famous structures.
What’s your favorite area of Yellowstone National Park?
