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The big skies welcome visitors for year-round outdoor activities: spring rafting, summer camping, fall hiking and winter skiing. Montana is one of the largest states in the U.S. but it has one of the lowest population densities. Enjoy wide open spaces and big skies across the state while participating in thrilling adventures or peaceful outdoor activities.
Near the Canadian border, Glacier National Park features 740 miles (1,191 kilometers) of trails. Drive along the 50-mile (80-kilometer) Going-to-the-Sun Road for some of the park’s best scenery. Spy mountain goats and bighorn sheep near Logan Pass. At Jackson Glacier Overlook, look down upon the slow-moving mass of melting ice. Check the website for seasonal road closures and schedules of ranger-led activities.
Find some of the country’s best skiing on Montana’s powdery slopes. Try Big Sky or Whitefish Mountain for comprehensive resort experiences including fine dining, shopping and spa experiences. Visit Teton Pass or Great Divide for affordable family ski days.
Not far from skiing and glacial views, head to the hot springs near Bozeman and the northern parts of Yellowstone National Park. Relax in the geothermally heated waters and look for geysers bubbling up from the surface. Yellowstone Park has over 10,000 hydrothermal features and 300 geysers, many around Old Faithful, just south in Wyoming.
The state’s hiking offers peaceful scenery, spectacular views and wildlife encounters. Visit Gallatin National Forest near Pray to see grizzly bears, gray wolves and bald eagles. Enjoy spring wildflowers and autumn leaves before snow-covered mountains.
For historical appreciation, go to the Little Bighorn Battlefield Monument near Billings where General George Custer made has last stand, defeated by Lakota and Cheyenne warriors defending their way of life.
Montana’s cowboy heritage has spawned a tourist opportunity. Visit a dude ranch for horseback riding, stock wrangling and watching rodeo events. Many resorts also offer fly-fishing lessons, whitewater rafting and hiking.
Visit Missoula for its outdoor attractions as well as museums, art galleries and the hand-carved Carousel for Missoula. During the annual beer festival sample local Montana craft beers with names as unusual as their taste: Moose Drool and Trout Slayer.