Camping Gems - Places to Go in Montana

Glacier National Park
Come and experience Glacier's pristine forests, alpine meadows, rugged mountains, and spectacular lakes. With over 700 miles of trails, Glacier is a hiker's paradise for adventurous visitors seeking wilderness and solitude. Relive the days of old through historic chalets, lodges, transportation, and stories of Native Americans.

Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, Fort Smith
The canyon offers a diversified landscape of forest, mountains, upland prairie, deep canyons, broad valleys, high desert, lake and wetlands. The Recreation Area is composed of 120,000+ acres, which straddles the northern Wyoming and southern Montana borders. Enjoy activities like: Biking, Bird Watching, Boating, Cross Country Skiing, Fishing, Hiking, Hunting, Snowshoeing, Stargazing, Swimming, and Wildlife Viewing.

Yellowstone National Park
Located in Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho, this magnificent park is home to a large variety of wildlife including grizzly bears, wolves, bison, and elk. You'll want to see the Norris Geyser Basin, Old Faithful, the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, Firehole Falls, the Fountain Paint Pots, Midway Geyser Basin, Morning Glory Pool, the Mud Volcano, and the Visitors Center at Earthquake Lake.

Gallatin River
Among people who fly fish for trout, the Gallatin River is considered one of the best anywhere.  Select your flies for Brown Trout, Mountain Whitefish, and Rainbow Trout.  The river is about twelve miles long from its origin at the confluence of the West and East Gallatin rivers to Three Forks, Montana, where it joins the Jefferson and Madison rivers to form the Missouri River.

Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation
This is a nonprofit wildlife conservation organization that is dedicated to helping elk and other wildlife maintain required habitats for survival. During your time here you'll get to see wildlife art, visit the video theatre, and see a life-size bronze elk. Plus there is a nice gift shop to take some memories home. (5705 Grant Creek Rd, 406-523-4545)

Blackfoot River
The Blackfoot River, one of twelve renowned “Blue Ribbon” rivers in Montana and a major tributary of the Clark Fork of the Columbia River, begins at the junction of Beartrap and Anaconda creeks near the Continental Divide. Set your line for Brook Trout, Brown Trout, Mountain Whitefish, Rainbow Trout, and Westslope Cutthroat Trout. The Blackfoot is the setting of the acclaimed novel (and film) A River Runs Through It by Norman Maclean.

Sun River Wildlife Management Area, Augusta
Gorgeous mountain and plain landscapes greet you at Sun River, a terrific place to watch for wildlife.  Take your hiking boots, your horse and saddle, or your birding guide when you visit Sun River -- you won't want to miss the elk, deer, beavers, ermine, bear, squirrels, and hundreds of species of birds that call this area home.

Montana Scenic Loop
Take a scenic drive that you'll never forget through the mountains and forests of northwestern Montana.  This 400-mile loop will carry you through the Bob Marshall Wilderness and in between the Great Bear Wilderness on the north and the Scapegoat Wilderness to the south. Surrounding this wild gem are four National Forests and a host of Wildlife Management Areas and National Wildlife Refuges.

Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center
Grizzly bears, wolves, raptors, and more!  Head to West Yellowstone for the chance to see wildlife as you've never seen it before.  You'll get an up-close view and the chance to ask the staff about the lives of wild bears and wolves.

Virginia City
Ready to step back in time?  The ghost town of Virginia City offers fun old-fashioned activities like gold panning, stagecoach rides, ghost tours, train rides, and living history re-enactments.  This town is frozen in time, showing you just what an 1800s gold-mining town was like. Long live the Old West!