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Going to the Sun Ride - Self Drive Motorcycle 8 Days Tour
offered by supplier M19618 (view this supplier profile)
Key Information:
Tour Duration: 8
day(s)
Group Size: 1
- 2
people
Destination(s):
Montana
Specialty Categories:
Motorcycle Tours
Season: March - November
Airfare Included: No
Tour Customizable: No
Minimum Per Person Price: 2349 US Dollar (USD)
Maximum Per Person Price: 3349 US Dollar (USD)
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Tour Itinerary:
Day 1: Fort Benton Arrival. Today you arrive at Fort Benton and transfer to your hotel. Fort Benton is one of Montana’s oldest communities and was the link between east and west. Thousands of immigrants and miners marked this landing as the beginning of the way west along Mullan Road or north along WhoopUp Trail. Overnight.
Day 2: Fort Benton - East Glacier. This morning you pick up your motorcycle and start your ride through Mighty Montana – a state that bursts with mountains, rivers, ghost towns and saloons, and projects a refreshing self-reliance and strength of character. You leave Fort Benton on US 87 and head to Great Falls. The Great Falls of the Missouri River was seen first by Capt. Meriwether Lewis in 1805 – Capt. William Clark mapped the area while the others portaged around a series of five falls. In 1883 the town site was named Great Falls. Here, you pick up US 89, which will take you up north towards Glacier National Park. When you hit US 2, make a left turn and ride over to East Glacier. As the name suggests, you are at the eastern gateway to Glacier National Park. Overnight.
Day 3: East Glacier - Kalispell. Glacier National Park is the wildest and most rugged of all Rocky Mountain national parks and protects some 1,500 square miles of high-altitude scenery, including the glaciers for which the park is named, more than 200 lakes, and countless rivers and streams. Knifelike ridges of colorful sedimentary rock rise to over 10,000 feet, looming high above elongated glacier-carved valleys. Grizzly bears, black bears, bighorn sheep, mountain lions, and wolves roam the park’s wild backcountry, which is criss-crossed by some 700 miles of hiking and riding trails. The park’s main features are reached via the 50-mile-long Going-to-the-Sun Road, a magnificent serpentine highway that is arguably the most scenic route on the planet. Note that the road’s middle section is usually closed by snow from late October until early June. If weather conditions allow you will be in for the ride of your lifetime here! From East Glacier head back a few miles to Browning and pick up US 89 to St. Mary, which is where you enter the spectacular “Going-to-the-Sun” road. You ride down to West Glacier and then on SR 40 to Columbia Falls, continue until you hit US 93, your road down to Kalispell. Located in the Flathead Valley between Glacier National Park and Flathead Lake, this is a region noted for the production of sweet cherries. Kalispell is circled by dense forests, lakes, rivers and mountains. To the east is the Swan Range of the Rocky Mountains, and to the west, the Kootenai Range. Flathead National Forest has its headquarters in the city. Overnight.
Day 4: Kalispell - Missoula. From Kalispell you continue on US 93 and enjoy a ride along Flathead Lake – a recreational mecca. Flathead Lake appeals to those who enjoy a wide array of activities ranging from water skiing and fishing to sailing and sightseeing. As you continue south you will reach Pablo, which is home to the 1,244,000-acre Flathead Indian Reservation and the headquarters of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Indian Tribes. Approximately 3,700 tribal members live on or near the reservation and manage wildlife and natural resources. US 93 will take you all the way into Missoula, located at the mouth of Hell Gate Canyon. Missoula straddles the route the Salish Indians traveled to reach the Great Plains hunting buffalo. Lewis and Clark later followed the same route through the canyon and camped approx. 9 miles southwest at Travellers Rest, near present day Lolo. You overnight in Missoula.
Day 5: Missoula - Dillon. Missoula is the third largest city in Montana and it reveals reasons to love this state: no sales tax, the saloons and roadhouses still have character, and the citizens are a pleasing mix of university students, artists and regular folks. The road south – US 93 – you will take today, is a fine ride. As you leave Missoula, Montana will grow on you and you will probably realize that there is no other state quite so attractive, no outdoors quite so great…the sky ahead just opens and draws you forward! The stretches of emptiness are long…Hamilton appears after you cross the Bitterroot River, offering opportunities for gas and food. After Hamilton the road is effortless – slow curves and a perfect combination of scenery and landscape. Follow US 93 until you hit SR 43, head west until you reach Divide and then take I 15 into Dillon. This place had an impressive start, it was born when the Utah and Northern Railroad was heading towards Butte in 1880, but the railroad stopped when it reached rancher Richard Deacon’s spread. He wouldn’t let the line continue until a group of businessmen raised enough cash to buy him out. The town site was renamed after railroad president Sidney Dillon. Overnight.
Day 6: Dillon - Bozeman. You leave Dillon on SR 41 north, which takes you right back into the prairie. The landscape varies little and you can let your mind wander until you get to Twin Bridges. Here, you turn onto Hwy 287 towards Virginia City, which is one of the older cities in the state – it served as territorial capital 1865 –76. The landscape now changes into mining country. When you reach Ennis, turn left on Hwy 287 towards Norris, at the junction of 84 turn right and the terrain takes you back into hill country. The low, flat road gives you instant twists beside the fantastic Madison River. You might want to cool yourself with a walk into the river. As you continue into Bozeman, the land turns into farmland. Bozeman was named for John Bozeman, who brought the first wagon train of pioneers to settle the Gallatin Valley. The trail he blazed became not only a highway for settlers and miners but also a flashpoint between the American Indians and the settlers. The city is a gateway to the nearby mountains in the national forests that flank the city and to Yellowstone National Park to the southeast. Overnight.
Day 7: Bozeman - Fort Benton. From Bozeman you pick up SR 86 (Bridger Canyon Road) and cut through to Wilsall, where you enter US 89, your scenic road up north. You’ll be riding along Crazy Mountains, Castle Mountains and arrive at White Sulphur Springs. Reminders of frontier life during the silver mining era can be found in the surrounding ghost towns of Castle, Copperopolis and Fort Logan. As you continue north you’ll be riding through Lewis and Clark National Forest. Consisting of 1,843,397 acres, the forest has two units. The Rocky Mountain Unit, which embraces about half of the acreage, lies along the eastern slope of the Continental Divide south of Glacier National Park. The Rocky Mountain Unit rises sharply from grasslands to peaks between 7,000 and 8,000 feet in elevation. US 89 connects with forest roads and trailheads and serves several campgrounds here. Stay on US 89 until you hit SR 228 (Highwood Road), which will take you back into Fort Benton. Back in Fort Benton it will be time to return your motorcycle and transfer to your hotel. Overnight.
Day 8: Fort Benton Departure. Today your trip through Mighty Montana will come to an end with your departure flight back home.
Notes:
Airfare is not included in the tour price.
Prices:
- 1 person, 1 room, 1 vehicles: $2349
- 2 people, 1 room, 1/2 vehicle: $2499/$3349.
Also see tour packages in:
USA
Montana
Outdoor: Land Rambler
Motorcycle Tours
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