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MONTANA MOMENTSPERFECT FOR ALL AGES
by Joyce Dalton
Yes,
Mom and Dad, you do have options beyond Disney and beaches guaranteed to keep
the kids exuberant throughout the day, exhausted by evening and eager to get up
in the morning. They might even learn a lot in between, but don’t worry,
they’ll never realize it. What’s more, you, and grandparents, too, will find
yourselves as caught up in the sites and activities as the younger generation. Where
is this magic spot? The western half of our fourth largest state, Montana, home
to mountains, glaciers, wild animals of the Discovery Channel kind (eagles,
bears, wolves and mountain goats, for starters), cowboys, guest ranches where
you’ll more likely ride out to repair fences than have facials, ghost towns,
train rides with a “robbery” served along with dessert, museums that defy the
word “stuffy” and a carousel to exceed our fondest childhood fantasies. But
down to specifics. The sites highlighted below are given in a logical sequence
for a self-drive, beginning in Helena, the capital, and ending in Butte. Both cities
are accessible via Delta or Northwest. Recommended lodging is suggested for
each overnight. While I did this trip in three weeks, others might prefer a
less hectic schedule, picking and choosing spots of greatest personal interest.
Though Helena’s sites veer more toward adult tastes, few kids would complain
about a one hour look-see via the Last Chance Tour Train which operates mid-May
through September.
Ghostly
encounters aren’t promised, but history is at the Fairweather Inn in Virginia
City, one of the town’s first boarding houses and remodeled in the 1950s, or at
the Nevada City Hotel, once an active stage coach station. Accommodations at
the latter vary from Victorian suites
to basic motel fare. Thankfully, guests no longer make use of the hotel’s
two-story outhouse.
Less than two hours’ drive from Virginia City, Bannack grew from a population
of zero to 3,000-plus after gold was discovered in 1862. When the mines ran
dry, the population dropped back to zero but 50 buildings survive. Each July,
the town lives again during Bannack Days when quilters, woodworkers, fiddlers,
bonnetmakers, and more set up shop for the two-day event. Climb aboard a stage
coach, learn mule packing techniques or witness a shoot-out, culminating in a
rather realistic hanging. The
Jackson Hot Springs Lodge at nearby Jackson makes a comfortable overnight. Its
pool is fed by hot springs and guest rooms are in attractive cabins with stone
fireplaces.
Visit
the town’s Granite Museum for an introduction to your next stop, Granite. This
mountain ghost town, four miles up a rough, windy road, once was among the
world’s richest silver mines. No shops or annual events bring the town to life.
Instead, the sad remains of a hospital reduced to piles of wood, a partial
church wall and the cast-iron facade of a once grand miner’s union hall make
the fickle nature of wealth all too clear.
Scharf
Motor Inn in nearby Deer Lodge serves as a convenient and moderately priced
overnight spot. While in Deer Lodge, check out its four museums, handily
clustered together. One admission fee covers all four so choose from the old
Montana prison, a doll museum, Frontier MT, or a collection of 121 cars ranging
from a 1905 Maxwell to SUVs.
Before leaving Deer Lodge, plan a couple of hours at the Grant-Kohrs Ranch,
just out of town. Here, Montana’s cowboy and cattlemen heritage comes to life
as National Park Service rangers tell the story of cattle driving days and a
chuck wagon serves up cowboy fare. Follow
Rt. 90E to Three Forks, one of the first trading posts between the Mississippi
River and the Pacific, and today, a sleepy town with a fine hotel. Kids who
have survived fifth grade social studies might enjoy standing where the
explorers Lewis and Clark discovered the headwaters of the Missouri River, or
visiting Madison Buffalo Jump State Park where interpretive displays explain a
hunting technique employed by Native Americans some 2,000 years ago.
To reach Red Lodge, a town oozing charm, continue along Rt. 90E, then turn
south on Rt. 78 for a curvy drive with snow-capped vistas. At the base of the
Beartooth Mountains, Red Lodge draws skiers in winter; hikers, bikers, golfers
and fishermen in summer, and lovers of nature, good restaurants and cute
boutiques year-round. If you’re here on a summer weekend, you can be off to the
races -- pig races, that is. Held in the Bear Creek Saloon at nearby Bearcreek
Downs, fans and visitors gather to cheer on their favorite porker.
Red Lodge stands at the eastern end of one of Montana’s most spectacular scenic
drives, the Beartooth Byway, a 65-mile stretch that hugs the Montana/Wyoming
border, dipping in and out of each state, as it wends its way past forests,
flower-filled meadows and snow-capped peaks in excess of 10,000 feet. The
western stretch passes through Yellowstone National Park. If your itinerary
doesn’t include a park visit, exit at Gardiner and head north to Livingston. Livingston
is proud of the many historic buildings and some of its museums should appeal
to young people. In days past, the town was a strategic railroad point half-way
between St. Paul and Seattle, as a visit to the Depot Center Museum proves. The
skeletons of dinosaurs and ancient bears at the Natural History Exhibit Hall
should elicit a few “wows” from the kids, while Dad could check out the 3,000
colorful flies on display at the Fly Fishing Center. Though
adults might prefer Livingston’s historic Murray Hotel, which film director Sam
Peckinpah once called home, kids, perhaps, would be happier with the indoor
heated pool at Paradise Inn, which offers a step up from the usual motel furnishings.
The big attraction in Lewiston, less than a three-hour drive north of
Livingston, is a dinner ride on the Charlie Russell Chew-Choo. A major
attraction and fun for the whole family, the train operates on Saturdays from
Memorial Day through September., in addition to special runs for Christmas, New
Year’s and Valentine’s Day. While a narrator gives a run-down of sites and
history during the three and one-half hour journey, passengers enjoy a
three-course dinner, plus entertainment. The $7.00 bills at each table come in
handy when a band of outlaws gallops over the hills and attacks the train. It’s
best to pay up if you want a photo of Junior confronting the bad guys or Dad
with a dance hall girl on his lap. Reservations are essential. The
Yogo Inn caters the Chew-Choo’s dinner and offers guests transportation to the
train. This bustling hotel provides comfortable, spacious accommodations in
what is said to be the exact center of the state.
Although I traveled to Fort Benton primarily to see the restored Grand Union
Hotel, I found a number of interesting sites. Situated on the banks of the
Missouri, the town was a trading post, military fort and important steamship
port. Once known as the “toughest town in the West,” it proved a magnet for gold
seekers, fur traders and homesteaders. Pictures and signs line a park along the
river, recounting these days. Six buffalo, housed in the Museum of the Northern
Great Plains, symbolize the great herds that once roamed the West. Back in
1887, these same buffalo were exhibited at the Smithsonian in Washington, DC.
Before heading west to Glacier National Park, consider an easy hop northward to
Havre, mainly to tour Havre Beneath the Streets. When a 1904 fire destroyed
most of the business district, enterprising entrepreneurs set up shop in
basements. Shoppers headed underground, following a series of tunnels, for
visits to the drug store, market, bakery, dentist, barber, saloon, even the
bordello. Today, guides lead visitors through this unique “mall,” recounting
tales of railroaders, ranchers and less savory local characters. It
was in Havre that I discovered TownHouse Inns of Montana, a chain that sports
the motto “Montana’s Best Lodging Value.” The chain has eight inns or motels
across the state and based on the ones I sampled, the claim is valid. The Havre
property, for example, offers an indoor pool, hot tub, sauna, fitness center
and complimentary continental breakfast, plus, of course, a comfortable room,
beginning at $44.95.
The
Swiss-style Belton Chalet stands just outside the west entrance to Glacier.
Built in 1910 by the Great Northern Railroad to house upscale passengers, the
property was restored in 1999 to reflect its original rustic, but comfortable,
style. Lodge and restaurant decks and guest room balconies face forested
mountains. Though not on the tourist office’s list of scenic drives, the 136 miles from
West Glacier to Missoula are pretty impressive. Part of the journey winds along
the shores of Flathead Lake (the West’s largest natural freshwater lake) while
mountains and the scent of pine forests are never far away. A
university city, Missoula boasts several museums, a chairlift/hike combination
to the summit of Snowbowl, an outdoor dinner theater at Fort Missoula and two
very special attractions that, in themselves, warrant a visit. Following a
summer of fires in the West, a tour of the Fire Jumpers Visitors Center takes
on added meaning. After exploring various inter-active exhibits, visitors take
a guided tour of the facility, observing firemen performing such routine duties
as packing gear and repairing parachutes. Admission is free.
Best
Western Executive Inn, three stories of comfortable motel-style rooms wrapping
around a pool, is within easy walking distance of shops, restaurants and the
Carousel. An easy drive eastward on Rt. 90, Butte makes a good final stop on a Montana
itinerary. Once tagged “the richest hill on earth,” due to its copper, gold and
silver deposits, Butte boasts attractions to suit all ages and tastes. Many can
be viewed via “Old No.1,” a replica of an old-time electric trolley, or by
following walking tours available from the Chamber of Commerce.
There’s
no doubt that Butte’s World Museum of Mining crosses generational lines in its
appeal. Situated on the former site of the Orphan Girl mine (silver, zinc,
lead), it spreads over 12 acres and features mining equipment, recreated
streets housing some three dozen structures typical of a 19th century mining
town, an indoor museum offering simple explanations of the working of a mine
and a marvelous ‘orchestrion,” which resembles a player piano but is much, much
more. A ride on a minitrain pulled by a 1911 trammer engine provides a good
introduction to the various attractions here.
As
the family car heads for the border or the taxi approaches the airport for the
trip home, take a final look at the seemingly endless vistas and consider that
Montana’s entire eastern half remains to be explored. No wonder it’s called the
Big Sky State. Contact
information:
Travel
Montana, the state tourism organization: (800) VISIT MT. Web: www.visitmt.com
Images
by Joyce Dalton |
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TM
For
an adventure straight out of western movies, spend a few days at Hidden Hollow
Hideaway in nearby Townsend. This 20,000 acre working ranch houses guests in
rustic, but comfortable cabins with peeled log furnishings and fabrics
featuring bears or moose. Meals are taken in the main house with hosts Kelly
and Jill Flynn. Kelly has that real cowboy look and a mean hand at an outdoor
grill. Recent guests proudly showed off the section of fence they helped build
while their teen-agers demonstrated the proper technique for gold panning. They
even had test tubes filled with the glittery stuff to take home. Activities
include horseback riding, fishing, hiking, cattle drives, wildlife tours,
nature study or just lazing around. Three-day minimum stay. 
Ready for a ghostly good time? The state claims several dozen ghost towns, primarily
in its southwestern region, and an entire vacation could be spent following
their trail. Don’t miss Virginia City
and Nevada City, just a mile apart and linked by narrow-gauge railway. After
the discovery of gold in 1863 in nearby Alder Gulch, rooming houses, general
stores, saloons, livery stables and theaters quickly sprang up to cash in on
the miners’ new-found riches. Both towns have been restored so expect plenty
of shopping and
eating ops, as well as nightly melodramas at Virginia City’s opera house and
more risqué fare at the Brewery Follies. 
Head north past snow-capped mountains and possibly, wranglers and wranglerettes
with their herds of cattle, for Philipsburg, a small but lovable town that’s
home to Shirley Beck’s Sapphire Gallery (for Mom) and Sweet Palace (for
everyone). At the latter, feast on some 578 kinds of candy, including 36 types
of fudge and 72 varieties of taffy. Don’t be startled when a booming voice
shouts, “Loud noise!” It’s the warning that a huge pan of cold taffy is about
to be dumped on a table where it’s cut into strips and fed into a 1918
taffy-cutting machine. 
For
a beautiful bed-and-breakfast experience, Blue Heron, situated right on
Philipsburg’s main street, is the place. Myrlin Rasmussen and John Ohrmann have
lovingly transformed a 1887 miners’ boarding house into four cozy guest rooms
plus living quarters for themselves. 
Travel to Pioneer ghost town from Gold Creek the way the settlers did it -- by
an overland stage coach drawn by two Belgian draft horses. Bounce along inside
or climb up on top for the three-hour round trip as owner Dave Bluford drives
his team past aspens, pines and firs along an old stage road to the evocative
ruins of Pioneer, once a prosperous gold mining town which boasted a post
office, six saloons, three breweries, even a bowling alley. A snack is included
as Bluford recounts Pioneer’s past. Reservations required. 
Most
Americans over age 10 recognize the name Sacajawea, the Native America woman
who guided Lewis and Clark on their perilous journey. At Three Forks, the
Sacajawea Inn, built in 1910 as a railroad hotel, offers a long verandah where
rocking chairs await the weary and 33 guest rooms where period furnishings
reflect the past. 
Standing
near the river, the Grand Union Hotel was built in 1882. Trappers, river
captains, Indian agents, Army officers and missionaries once gathered in its
public rooms. After being closed for 15 years, the entire hotel recently
reopened after total renovation, resulting in finely furnished rooms that evoke
the property’s rich history. “Ralph Lauren-inspired rustic elegance,” as one
person put it. 
Glacier National Park has to rank high on anyone’s list of beauty spots. From
Havre, it’s 173 miles westward on Rt. 2 to the park’s eastern rim. Though I
missed the sight of mountains during the drive, I found them aplenty on
arrival. Nature lovers and hikers could spend days in the park. Those with less
time should traverse the 52-mile Going to the Sun Highway, which crosses the
park east-west, and overnight at both ends. The winding road, with numerous
pull-over points, opens onto panorama after panorama of soaring mountain peaks,
glacial lakes, waterfalls and wildflowers. Nature at its best. Kids might keep a sharp eye out for bighorn sheep, elk
and white mountain goats, but no guarantees. 
Situated
right at the drive’s eastern entrance, St. Mary’s Lodge and Resort has about
everything travelers of any age could seek with attached log cabins featuring
peeled pine furniture, fabrics and art in western motif and toiletries and
soaps scented with huckleberry, an aroma you’ve probably come to love by now.
There’s a fine restaurant overlooking the mountains and a bustling shop with
souvenirs ranging from the usual to the unique. Owned and operated by the same
family since the first six cabins went up in 1932, St. Mary’s has continued to
expand over the decades. The most recent additions include six two-bedroom
hilltop cottages, ideal for families. 
To
recapture the beauty of childhood, take a few rides on A Carousel for Missoula.
The first fully hand-carved carousel to be built in America since the
Depression, the 38 horses and two chariots were all crafted by volunteers as a
gift to the city they love. Each pony had a sponsor as well as a sculptor and
its look, stance and adornments reflect the fantasies of both. As riders spin
around at 11 miles per hour and reach for brass rings, a 400-pipe band organ
belts out such favorites as “Camptown Races,” “Yankee Doodle,” and “Oh
Susanna.” 
Whether
the Dumas Brothel could be termed “family fun” depends on the particular
parents and kids, but without question, it’s one of any town’s most unusual
museums. Though today’s business is tourism, Dumas was a “working” house from
1890 until 1982, giving it the dubious distinction of being America’s longest
running brothel. As visitors tour some of the 43 rooms, complete with
furnishings and appropriately clad mannequins (don’t worry, parents, they’re
less erotic than those in a Victoria’s Secret window), a guide offers brothel
trivia. For example, the doorman sold special script to customers so that the
girls weren’t led into temptation (to steal). 
If
the kids are old enough not to race around and shatter the antiques, what
better way to end a Montana adventure than an over-night in one of the Copper
King Mansion’s five sumptuously furnished rooms? Constructed in the 1880s by
William A. Clark, one of Montana’s copper barons, the mansion now is a
designated National Historical Place. A massive carved oak staircase, 13-feet
high stained glass windows, nine fireplaces, hand-painted frescoed ceilings, nine kinds of
hand-finished woods, a private chapel and a circular “bird cage”
shower with numerous jets spurting from all directions (“more like a car wash,”
one person commented somewhat irreverently) insure that guests will feel like
lord and lady of the manor. The mansion also is open daily for guided tours.