Planning
Good preparation can turn an otherwise miserable misadventure into the best day of your life. Maps, guidebooks, current conditions... it's all right here.
Click here for a map of all Forest Service cabins available for rent in the Gallatin National Forest. Read more >>
Tired of wading through endless pages of Google searches? Here are a list of tried-and-trusted outfitters, shops, and resources that we've perused, used, and endorse wholeheartedly so that you can do less planning and more playing. Read more >>
When it comes to preparing for weather, most of us are decidedly reactive: see raincloud, grab parka. Even the most scrupulous student of the skies does little more than read the newspaper’s daily forecasts and check the latest updates on her MSN homepage. Read more >>
Reports & Conditions
To alleviate user conflict, the Forest Service recently implemented "timeshares" - usage schedules segregating hikers, bikers, horse riders, and motorcyclists. During the summer, these trails are closed to certain users on certain days. Read more >>
The Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks website has up-to-date information on wildlife populations, hunter success rates, and predictions for next year's hunting seasons. Read more >>Guides & Outfitters
If Yellowstone Park is America’s Serengeti, as it is often called, then the Absaroka Mountains are Montana’s Alps. Read more >>
The last time I floated down the Madison, I was waist-deep in water, scuffing along the bottom in an underinflated, sinking kiddy pool. I had on far too little clothing given the circumstances and with both hands full of beer; navigation of such a vessel was simply out of the question. Read more >>
During hunting season in the backwoods of Montana, it’s not all that rare to run into a chick with a gun, or a bow for that matter. Plenty of female hunters stock the freezer, sometimes during years when their husbands come home empty-handed. Read more >>
Fanning out across the field, a dog in front of each of us, we move slowly, deliberately, through the hayfield’s saffron stubble. It’s late morning in the lower Madison Valley; the sky is clear and bright, with a cool, persistent breeze. Perfect hunting weather. Read more >>Weather
Every so often, a blue light flashes on top of the Baxter Hotel, alerting anyone within view of the tallest building in Bozeman that snow is falling at Bridger Bowl. Read more >>Maps
If you’re looking to get out in the Gallatin National Forest but don’t want to pack around a stack of USGS topo maps, keep in mind that modern graphics programs and desktop publishing have allowed some nice alternatives in recent years. Read more >>
It’s hard to get excited about pieces of paper, but Beartooth Publishing has printed a few new maps that are nothing short of badass. Its extensive Outdoor Recreation maps cover a huge portion of the Rockies, including Yellowstone, Wyoming, and Idaho. Read more >>
A good map is a beautiful thing. You spread it out on the table, friends gather around, and together you marvel at the vast terrain that will soon host your next adventure. Read more >>Guidebooks
A fisherman could spend a lifetime exploring Yellowstone’s waters—and it would be a life well spent. At least that’s what I got out of Fly Fishing Yellowstone National Park: An Insider’s Guide to the 50 Best Places (Stackpole Books, $20). Read more >>
Don’t buy Trapper Badovinac’s Fly Fishing the Solitude: Montana if you’re expecting the author to reveal his favorite fishing spots. Read more >>
Montanans know all too well the dread-inducing buzz of a rattlesnake’s tail—and how these slithering serpents can cast a dark shadow over an otherwise glorious summer day. Read more >>Entertainment
More guests, guests in summer pouring into the homes of all southwest Montanans like water through a breach in the earthen wall of the other nine months, friends and family compressing the long supple year to a single point, vacation, so that Montanans can only joke about it among ourselves, abou Read more >>
We’ve all exhausted ourselves enjoying Mother Nature’s struggle between snow and sunshine, skiing one day and biking the next. But as the days lengthen and the temperatures rise, the Pied Piper of summer beckons us from the rivers and trails. Read more >>
Face it: no outdoors enthusiast worth his salt readily and without profanity cancels a sunny, spring-weekend excursion to pack into a church and watch a twitterpated twosome tie the knot. Read more >>
Quick, hide this article. Otherwise, you can’t take all the credit for orchestrating one stand-out family reunion, company retreat, friendly gathering, corporate conference, or other outdoor outing right in your proverbial backyard. Read more >>Weekender
First comes runoff, flushing snow out of the mountains and forcing fisherfolk off the rivers. Read more >>
Nobody moves to southwest Montana looking for balmy beaches. The choice to live here is a choice to embrace the long winters that come with the territory. June snowstorms aren’t out of the question, nor is ice-fishing in November. Read more >>
For the average outdoor enthusiast, winter can be a difficult time to squeeze in a fun-filled overnight or multiday adventure without freezing your buns off or breaking the family budget. Read more >>
Looking for a new venue for your favorite winter activity? Just head over the hill. Doesn’t matter what blows your hair back—once the snow comes down, you can find it in Paradise Valley. Read more >>Visitor Guide
Places to stay in the area: Big Sky Big Sky Resort This is a great place to stay if you like to ski and then stick around for the bar scene. Read more >>
Local Weather
Outfitters
Started in 1949, Montana Outfitters & Guides Association sets the standard for outftters & guides throughout the state. This page lists over 200 outfitters who will take you wherever you want to go.
