It’s typically not top of mind on a crisp and breezy January day when you decide to visit a park. This isn’t just any park though – it’s the nation’s largest county park with some incredibly varied terrain. I only saw patches of snow, somewhat rare for January, but those beautiful endless blue skies had me captivated. The statistics. Beaver Creek Park begins 10 miles south of Havre. The park is a mile wide, 17 … Read more
It’s hard to believe, but driving just fifteen minutes north of Great Falls, Montana, a town of 60,000 people, you can be at Benton Lake National Wildlife Refuge. Covering 12,383 acres (19 square miles), this wetland refuge is sprawling. Birders have documented 240 species of birds there. Twenty-eight different species of mammals, including mule deer, white-tailed deer, pronghorn, muskrats, badgers, yellow-bellied marmots, coyotes and more enjoy the terrain at Benton Lake. A crisp and wintry … Read more
The five waterfalls of the Mighty Missouri River are the liquids that gave the town known as Great Falls its name. The Missouri River drops a total of 612 feet in ten miles as it tumbles over five waterfalls. About 187 feet of that drop is the plunge from the series of waterfalls, and the remaining 425 feet comes from the descent of the riverbed. Black Eagle Falls are the uppermost falls and they are … Read more
The area near Lewistown, literally the center of Montana, has a history of gold mining, and with the boom and bust associated with that, there are now ghost towns. I took a driving tour following along portions of the Ghost Towns/Gold Mines history detailed in a brochure available at the Lewistown Chamber of Commerce. It’s a self-guided driving tour but I was lucky to connect with a historian who lives in one of the areas … Read more
Joplin hosts an annual Art In The Park and Car Show each June and it was on my list of events to attend this year. And what an event it was! There were vendors of all kinds, live music and over 60 vintage vehicles in the car show. And, of course, I couldn’t pass up a yummy slice of pie at one of the food booths. What kind? Raspberry rhubarb with pecan topping. Homemade, unique … Read more
Last fall I was in Choteau and had a chance to visit with Maggie, one of the owners of Dropstone Outfitting, a stock-assisted hiking company. We met in a pasture and that ultimately led to my little crush on Ruby the mule. While Maggie and I were visiting, a mule wandered over and snuggled right up to her. I soon found out this was Ruby, a now-retired employee of Dropstone Outfitting. Ruby wasn’t overly persistent … Read more
Most people think of Tiber Reservoir/Lake Elwell as a place for boating, camping and fishing and those are probably the activities that most people do. However, there are a lot more activities you can do at Tiber. First, some history – the reservoir or lake, whichever you choose to call it, has 181 miles of shoreline (in two different counties) and was created when an earth-filled dam was built on the Marias River in 1956. … Read more
It was a beautiful spring day for a drive from Great Falls over the Kings Hill Scenic Byway and in to White Sulphur Springs. US Hwy 89 was clear the entire way but snow still clung to the roadsides. Belt Creek was partially covered with snow that looked like dollops of marshmallow cream. My first stop was 2 Basset Brewery in White Sulphur Springs. I had been to 2 Basset Brewery several times but I … Read more
If you only had 24 hours to enjoy Great Falls what would you do? First of all you need to realize that you can’t see it all and you will get only a taste of the community. And that’s just what we did a week ago for visitors to the area. After checking in to the Hotel Arvon in downtown Great Falls, a dinner plan was decided. Our visitors wanted something casual and fun. Someone suggested Roadhouse Diner, … Read more
One hundred antique motorcycles are spending the night in Great Falls tonight and their owners are busy tuning things up for tomorrow’s ride. The parking lot of Great Falls’ Heritage Inn looks like a cross between a museum and a mechanic’s garage. Bikes and their owners were working on parts, some were dismantling engines, all in 48 degree temps and a drizzle of rain. The Cannonball Motorcycle Ride is an endurance ride that could be … Read more