Montana

A collection of 27 posts

May/Jun '23 Premium Content

ZenMoto Part 2: Montana to Idaho

Motorcycle travel is, conceptually speaking, very simple—wake up at Point A, aim for a bed or campsite at Point B, and refuel the bike and the body along the way. It’s not always easy but, compared to the complexities of adulthood, this rhythmic simplicity may be part of

Mar/Apr '23 Premium Content

ZenMoto Part 1: Minnesota to Montana

It takes about an hour before I leave behind the exurbs of Minneapolis, MN. The riding is easy—lots of straight roads and not a lot of traffic or navigating. There is space in my head to scroll through the 50 million things that one thinks about on the first

Destinations

Yellowstone National Park

Its natural magnificence inspired the United States Congress to establish Yellowstone [https://www.roadrunner.travel/tours/yellowstone-national-park/] as the world's first national park in 1872. Kathy and I were so thrilled by the area that we decided to return for an extra day after completing our tour of US 191.

Nov/Dec '22 Premium Content

Snowbiking Serenity in Kalispell, Montana

I felt the crunch of compacting snow under my boot and before I knew it, I was face down—sunk to my hip in fresh powder with a Husqvarna TE 300 towering over me. The snow around my leg instantly solidified like concrete, locking my boot into place some 33-odd

Classic Roads

Classic Roads: US 12 Through Montana and Idaho

Roundtrip Tour Premium Content

Riding from Mexico to Canada along US HWY 191

A little north of Tombstone, the coyote (Roadrunnerus digestus) emerges from the low scrub brush on the dusty shoulder of Arizona's SR 80. He stops mid-trot and watches with apparent nonchalance as our RoadRUNNER Gold Wing (Burn-em-upus asphaltus) breezes by. But I'm not fooled by his insouciance—years of Saturday

Classic Roads

Classic Roads: US 212 & Beartooth Hwy

> If you’d like to ride through America the Beautiful, you can’t do much better than the Beartooth Highway. But don’t take just my word for it—this roughly 70-mile stretch of US 212 has been called “the most beautiful road in America” by both Charles Kuralt and

May/Jun '22 Premium Content

Scramblin' Through the Floods, Part 2: Flood-Scoured Motorcycle Wonderland

In Part 1, I traveled from Portland, OR, to Missoula, MT, and northwest to Sandpoint, ID, where our Ice Age Floods Tour picks up. These ancient floods profoundly shaped the landscape of the Pacific Northwest. As the last ice age was ending about 10,000 years ago, there were a

Mar/Apr '22 Premium Content

Scramblin’ Through the Floods, Part 1: A Tour in the Pacific Northwest

The first trip with luggage on a new motorcycle is always interesting. I’ve owned my 2019 Triumph Scrambler 1200 XE for nearly two years, but this was the first fully packed excursion. With the “mono pannier” setup, I don’t have as much storage space as with the previous

Nov/Dec '21

City Escape: Missoula, Montana

> Missoula, MT, is located in a green landscape where five valleys converge in the northern Rockies. With three rivers running through town, Missoula was the ideal shooting location for the 1992 film A River Runs Through It that featured Montana fly-fishing. Riding north from Missoula, you’ll encounter a diverse

Jan/Feb '19 Premium Content

Billings, Montana Shamrock Tour®: Touch the Sky

I land in Billings and meet Cameron at the moto-inspired MoAV Coffee House. We’re both eager to spend time in Big Sky country, and brand-new 2018 Gold Wings await us at Montana Honda & Marine. The next morning we start with breakfast at Stella’s for strong coffee and a

May/Jun '18 Premium Content

Expedition Idaho: Where Memory Lane Isn’t Paved

Going the distance can mean so many different things. For wanderers, it typically refers to making a trip longer than expected, by choice, or sometimes, by forces beyond our control. For others, it just means that you’ve gone, or are going, as far as you can. Last year I

Sep/Oct '16 Premium Content

Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming: Continental Divide, Part 1

A rugged adventure awaits those who seek it. Remote mountain passes, picturesque views, and diverse, often challenging, terrain—where every mile is a feast for the senses—can all be found on a cross-country journey along the Continental Divide. Our tour starts on a sunny July morning just a couple

Mar/Apr '16

City Escapes: Billings, Montana

> Wide open spaces, hundred-mile views, and light traffic highlight this loop southwest of Billings, MT. Enjoy the sights and sounds of nearby waterways with most of the route flanked by beautiful Montana rivers like the Yellowstone, Stillwater, Rosebud, Bear Creek, and Clark Fork. This is a ride best made in

Jan/Feb '16 Premium Content

British Columbia and Washington: The Border Tour

The Canada-U.S. border disproves the old saying that good fences make good neighbors. It’s famously the world’s longest, undefended international border and, in much of the West, it’s simply a line drawn along the 49th parallel. There are no walls or fences, just a column of

Jan/Feb '14 Premium Content

North Dakota and Montana: The Lewis & Clark Trail

When the Lewis & Clark Expedition departed Fort Mandan on April 7, 1805, Lewis noted in his journal, “we were now about to penetrate a country at least two thousand miles in width, on which the foot of civillized man had never trodden; the good or evil it had in store

Jul/Aug '12 Premium Content

Montana: Going-to-the-Sun on the Cusp of Winter

The fuel tank of my Harley-Davidson Electra Glide Ultra Limited is topped off, my thermal liner is zipped in, I have on two pairs of socks, and the heated grips are cranked up all the way. I’m idling at the east entrance of the Going-to-the-Sun Road (GTTS) near St.

May/Jun '12 Premium Content

Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park Loop: Riding the Crown of the Continent

It is closer to bedtime than it is to dinnertime when I finally park the bike. But the kitchen is open until 10 p.m. here at Vimy’s Lounge & Grill at the Waterton Lakes Resort, so I order yak meatballs (since they are fresh out of elk chili) and

Nov/Dec '11 Premium Content

Rocky Mountains Part II: Wyoming, Idaho and Montana

The owner slowly scuffles toward the entrance of his café, unlocks the door, and lets us in. Like him, the interior is simple, original and down to earth. Breakfast is the same: a huge pot of coffee, hash browns, bacon and eggs. Eat it or leave it. But something else

Sept/Oct '11 Premium Content

Wyoming, Colorado, South Dakota and Nebraska

What a scary welcome. The captain warned us that there would be some turbulence as we crossed the barrier of the Rocky Mountains from the west, but the effect of the thunderstorm is still intimidating. The plane is shaking and rattling in every joint. It feels like we’re sitting

May/Jun '11 Premium Content

Yellowstone National Park

I don't really need a good reason to go on a motorcycle trip, whether it be for the adventure of exploring a new area, tackling a challenging road, or just getting away from my daily routine. But this ride is something special, and I'm excited to get to ride through

Sept/Oct '10 Premium Content

The International Selkirk Loop

Here we are in Castlegar, Nelson can't be very far. Climbing out of Castlegar on Highway 3, the view of British Columbia below is so captivating that I pull over to fully appreciate it. The Columbia River glistens in the afternoon sun like the chrome on the 2009 Harley-Davidson Electra

Jan/Feb '09 Premium Content

Northwestern Montana

Western Montana has some of the finest scenery and least-traveled roads in the lower 48 states, or anywhere else for that matter. Formed by the jagged Rocky Mountains and separated north to south by the massive Continental Divide, Montana is ruggedly beautiful. For eons, the relentless forces of nature have

May/Jun '08 Premium Content

Shamrock Tour® - Helena, Montana

My reward for hiking up the hill to Helena, Montana's timber-framed fire tower is a glorious view over the city in the warm light of late afternoon, encompassing the dome of the capitol, Last Chance Gulch, the twin spires of St. Helena Cathedral, and the minaret of the Civic Center.

Mar/Apr '07 Premium Content

Montana: Into the Big Sky Sunset

Heads still awhirl from a day of amazing sights in Yellowstone National Park, Kathy and I exit the West Entrance and suddenly enter the town of West Yellowstone, Montana. Even though the shadows are lengthening, we decide that it's better for us to push on past this crowded tourist trap